Metro and the East-West Gateway Council of Governments developed the plan that discusses possible expansion of the MetroLink light rail system and the area's bus system, along with other transportation improvements.
Monday, December 21, 2009
St. Louis County voters will go to the polls for a second time to decide the fate of a half-cent sales tax to provide more funding for Metro, the area's public transportation agency.
The County Council voted 4-3 on Monday night to place the measure on the April 6 ballot. It requires a simple majority vote for passage. The proposal is the second in recent years to provide more local funding for Metro. A similar half-cent sales tax voters didn't pass in November 2008.
After voters failed to approve the sales tax in 2008, prompted Metro to cut bus lines, reduce other services and the layoff about 500 employees in March. About a third of the services eliminated were restored in August after Metro received about $12 million from Missouri, along with some additional federal funding.
But state lawmakers warned that the state funding was a one-time allocation. Metro may be forced to make cut more than half its services if the sales tax doesn't passed or other funding isn't available.
If approved by voters, Metro hopes to raise more than $70 million annually. About half of the tax revenue would go to support operating the transit system and the other half for capital improvements.
Comments
flyoverland (anonymous) says...
I will be voting NO (again).
December 21, 2009 at 10:20 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
iguess (anonymous) says...
Man, am I glad I don't live in St. Louis County!
December 21, 2009 at 10:49 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
terri1956 (anonymous) says...
im so glad i dont live in the city! i love st.louis county. south county area. i am voting no again.keep the stuff in the city!! we dont want it out here!
December 22, 2009 at 6:25 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
soapbox (anonymous) says...
I for one am tired of paying for things I never use but the government says I need. I have never been on a Metrolink train and haven't been on a bus in over 30 years. Raise the user fee not my taxes. Get rid of some of the dead weight at Metro and use the savings.
December 22, 2009 at 6:54 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Rune04 (anonymous) says...
The county definitely needs the buses to help low income people get to their jobs, doctor's, etc. Having said that, I would be more inclined to vote for this if Metro had a decent track record of using the funds it has. They spent tens of millions of dollars on lawyers for the last metrolink extension. I won't vote to increase my taxes to give the lawyers more money.
December 22, 2009 at 7:56 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Flybigrc (anonymous) says...
For once I agree with a tax increase. Mass transit is good for St. Louis. It reduces conjestion on the roads and provides transportation to those who have no other means. I grew up in Chicago and I cannot believe the lack and mass transit in St. Louis! Its pathetic!
December 22, 2009 at 7:56 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
tsquare (anonymous) says...
What part of "NO!" don't Charlie and his band of brain-dead Democrats on the County Council understand? How many times... spending our money on elections, is it going to take for them to get: "NO MORE MONEY FOR FAILED METRO!"
December 22, 2009 at 9:04 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
flyoverland (anonymous) says...
This money is to pay the operating expenses of the previous expansion. Any new expansion (which they claim they are evaluating now) will be bus expansion, not train, mark my words. The only way they can get a tax increase is to promise expansion. With expansion, they need even higher taxes to run it because the Feds don't provide money for operations and the riders won't pay enough to support it. Every time you vote for a tax increase, you are ensuring that you will get hit with even higher taxes a few years later to run it. Draw the line here. Vote no.
December 22, 2009 at 10:18 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
benwabls (anonymous) says...
Metro has a long history of mismanaging of funds. Just what they need 70 million of our money loose on bad judgments. I don’t think so.
December 22, 2009 at 8:19 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
richinstl (anonymous) says...
Vote no! Keep Metro in the city!
December 23, 2009 at 2:45 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )