BRONX TIMES REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2 BTR 9-DECEMBER 5, 2019 13
BTR letters & comments
To change
things - vote
Dear editor,
One of your readers thinks
Republicans live in a fantasy
world. He says an effective
leader values all of his constituents.
He wants to know what
Trump did besides give tax
breaks to the rich.
Well, Trump got America’s
economy booming again
(for everyone). He cut taxes on
businesses and 90% of individuals.
There have been over 45
million jobs created (for all).
He got the E.U. to drop many
trade barriers on U.S. products.
He stood up to China,
saying free trade will no longer
be a one-way street. He
signed three executive orders
to crack down on international
crime organizations. He also
created a new National Public
Safety Partnership with cities
to reduce violent crimes
(for everyone). He enacted a
Veteran’s Choice Program allowing
veterans to get medical
treatment in private hospitals
when the V.A. gets backlogged
(for all vets). He destroyed Isis.
He signed the largest increase
in spending for our military
since the Reagan days. He declared
an opioid crisis and laid
out a 5-point strategy to fi ght it
(for everyone). The DEA has
collected 456 tons of illegal
opioids under Trump. He ordered
the Justice Department
to review and investigate civil
rights violations committed
against Christians and Jews.
There are lots of readers
who praise our President. I’m
one of them (and believe it or
not, I’m a Democrat). I can respect
our different perspectives,
but I believe that if you
don’t agree with an elected,
there is a way to change
things. It’s called elections.
Go to the polls like I will, but
don’t disrespect the President
and this great nation.
Theresa Arnold
Street lights
are always out
Dear editor,
I am writing this letter to
express my outrage that the
city does not maintain its
street lights on highways and
in
neighborhoods. Last year
it took nearly six months to
get three street lights working
on Albany Crescent and West
231st Street.
Can you believe that these
same street lights are out
again?
It is my understanding that
these lights are connected to
the street lights on the Major
Deegan Expressway.
Why are there large
stretches of the highway without
the benefi t of street lights.
Street lights prevent accidents
Lawrence Cooper
Buyer’s
remorse
Dear editor,
“West Bronx rally decries
MTA’s express bus off peak”
cuts (Kyle Vuille -- November
22) may have buyers remorse.
Remember all the promises
made fourteen years ago in
2005, when the City of New
York completed the purchase
of seven remaining private
bus operator franchises including
Liberty Lines Bronx
Express and New York Bus
Service. The MTA created a
new operating agency - MTA
Bus to continue service previously
provided by the private
bus operators. Subsequently,
they entered into 50-year lease
agreements to utilize and operate
all of their garages. The
deal was supposed to benefi t
riders and taxpayers.
Prior to 2005, the NYC Department
of Transportation
using a combination of city,
state and federal funding provided
both capital and operating
assistance to all seven
private bus operators. Virtually
all of the capital funding
was provided by grants
from the Federal Transit Administration.
For 35 years,
these grant funds paid for replacement
buses, radios, fare
boxes, bus washers and facility
improvements. With insuffi
cient income, they counted
on DOT starting in the 1970’s
to begin purchasing replacement
buses, fareboxes, radios
and other support equipment
for their respective aging bus
fl eets. In many cases, bus operators
had to operate and maintain
buses well beyond the industry
standard useful life of
12 years and or 500,000 miles.
Too many buses in revenue
service were between 12 and
27 years old with excess mileage.
DOT took too many years
to complete bus procurements
before operators received and
could provide customers with
new modern buses. MTA
Bus does deservie credit for
purchasing hundreds of new
buses and investments to upgrade
antiquated bus garages
far more quickly than DOT
did.
The operational savings
for taxpayers never appeared.
Instead the $100 million per
year NYC subsidy formerly
provided to the private bus
operators have grown to over
$200 million for MTA Bus. The
private bus company owners
earn millions per year from
MTA Bus for leasing their
facilities. Operational savings
by consolidation of duplicative
routes between NYC
Transit Bus and MTA Bus
never happened. The same
was true for reducing deadheading
costs by reassigning
bus routes between MTA Bus
and NYC Transit Bus to closer
garages for reduction of operating
costs. Work rules and
contracts between different
labor unions at NYC Transit
Bus and MTA Bus prevented
changes to the status quo.
We have gone full circle
from private to public operators
over 60 years. Was it was
worth it for riders of the original
routes operated by the old
Liberty Lines Bronx Express
and New York Bus Service?
Larry Penner
LET US HEAR FROM YOU
Letters to the editor are welcome from all readers.
They should be addressed care of this newspaper to
Laura Guerriero, Publisher, the Bronx Times Reporter,
3604 E. Tremont Ave., Bronx, NY 10465, or
e-mail to bronxtimes@cnglocal.com. All letters, including
those submitted via e-mail, MUST be signed
and with a verifi able address and telephone number
included. Note that the address and telephone number
will NOT be published and the name will be published
or withheld upon request. No unsigned letters
can be accepted for publication. The editor reserves
the right to edit all submissions.
Happy
and
Healthy
Thanksgiving
from the staff
Laura Guerriero
John Collazzi
Jason Cohen
Mauro DeLuca
Steven Goodstein
Donna Marzi
Carlotta Mohamed
Len Vigliotti
Kyle Vuille
Donna Wilson
SCHNEPMEDIA.COM
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