Missouri House Speaker throws cold water on Metro plan
JEFFERSON CITY — Metro transit CEO Bob Baer has a bit more work to do if he thinks he’s going to get $35 million in federal stimulus money from the Missouri Legislature.
This morning, House Speaker Ron Richard said he’s unwilling to commit to bailing Metro out, and he indicated $35 million is out of the question.
“There’s 100 and some odd million dollars that was mismanaged at Metro,” Richard said. “I still have some heartburn about it.”
Richard said Baer first came to him asking for $50 million to bail out the financially strapped mass transit system in St. Louis. Metro started making deep cuts earlier this month that will ultimately effect about a third of its routes and 25 percent of its workforce.
“I’m not prepared to do what Washington did and give them a bailout,” Richard said. “The people made a decision and they have to live with it.”
Richard was referring to the failed sales tax vote earlier this year that would have propped up Metro’s ailing finances. Yesterday, Baer told House members during committee testimony that he believes St. Louis County will put a sales tax issue on the ballot again a year from now.
All Missouri budget bills start their way through the legislative process in the House. Richard left the door open for some help for Metro, though not what Baer is looking for.
“I asked Bob Baer for what the bare minimum is that he needs,” Richard said. “The number he has come down to is $12 million to $18 million.”
In questioning during yesterday’s hearing, Democrat Rachel Storch of St. Louis told Baer that he’d likely have to be flexible with his request if he wants the state to help. Storch asked what Baer could do with about $10 million, and he said he could restore minimum service to many of the areas where it is now being cut.
Maybe Metro ought to clean house and actually get some competent people to run the organization. The issue is Metro not Ron Richard.
Penny-wise and pound foolish, to use a cliche.
Oh, and can’t Missouri do any better than Ron Richard?
If Metro is mismanaged why does it have the best on time performance, the least complaints against Operators in the Country. The fact is Metro leads the nation in ever catagory the Govt. uses to gage transit systems. It’s maintance is rated the best in the County and is rated among the top five in the world. Ron Richard hates this area and wouldn’t spend a nickel here if he could get away with it.
Ron Richard may not be the best friend to the Metro area, but, I want someone to stand up and say enough is enough. Throwing money at a problem is not an issue. See the Public Education system. Fix the mismanagement and infuse cash is the way to go. Do not throw money at it, go broke again, then fix the management. That is A** Backward.
The clowns in Jeff City have been bringing this state down for years. These people act like MoDot has never mismanaged anything. MoDot has been over budget on a TON of prjects, operates at a billion dollar deficit, yet we still build roads???? Outstate Missouri has way to much representation. St. Louis and KC make up about 85% of the population of Missouri yet this moron has all the power. Face it Metro, you are screwed. St. Louisans, it’s people, and Missouri are determined to make STL louis a thrid rate city. People will be talking about this for years, because people in STL just don’t know how to move on. That’s why it’s a dying city, St Louisans would rather bitch about this mismanagement that happened in the past rather than think big. This metro situation is a perfect example of how St. Louisans cannot stop shooting themselves in the foot. It’s a shame that the stuck in the past, whiny attitude of that once great city’s people are sending it down the toilet. The people who made that city great in the early 1900’s are turning in thier graves. Grow ups Missouri, and grow up St. Louis. It is not 1950 anymore.
To all of you who were flaming the county residents for voting down the tax increase in other blogs:
“There’s 100 and some odd million dollars that was mismanaged at Metro,” Richard said. “I still have some heartburn about it.”
So do we, Richard. Very well stated…
Tony…you should get rid of the first comment. It’s a flagrant racist comment that gives nothing to the discussion. This has nothing to do with party…I’d request the same if it was made about a Democrat.
. . . . and we’re surprised? This is a local problem, not a state one. It makes about as much sense to expect the state to find money to help MSD or the library systems or for fire protection. We get the level of transit that we, as a region, are willing to fund. ¼% (in Missouri) is truly a small subsidy, compared to other areas. Transit systems in places like Dallas, Houston, Salt Lake and Denver all rely on taxes that are around a full 1%.
SCA-Metro has instituted new management. They also have won many awards for being one of the best run transit agancies in the country. I live in Chicago, and the CTA up here is terribly mismanaged, but it gets funding because, unlike St. Louis and Missouri, Chicago and Chicagoans understand the importance of infrastructure. This is why Chicago is well, Chicago, and St. Louis is St. Louis. One city is doing 10 times better than the other, and it’s because of the attitues of the people up here are so much better than down there. It seems like all people do in St. Louis is complain. There is absolutely no vision in STL Oh, and, “where did you go to high school?” Perfect example. Up here they ask you where you went to school. (College)
I live in St. Louis, work in St. Louis and take the Metro bus and MetroLink to and from work everyday. I take the Metro not because I’m forced to like so many good people; rather I take it because I believe in public transit because it makes good sense. Since the cuts, my travel time has doubled because of the delays and overcrowded buses. Often the bus is full and the driver has to drive by people waiting at bus stops who will then have to wait for the next bus 15-20 minutes later.
Then to hear the House Speaker squabbling over money because of mismanagement astounds me. Have all our highways and highway repairs been managed perfectly? Why is so much of my tax money going to highways and less going to public transit? We are so far behind other cities who have excellent public transportation systems. I’m frustrated and appalled at the lack of common sense in our state government.