Time for some myth busting:
1) No one will even consider raising taxes right now. – WRONG!
2) Conservative West Michigan oppose transit. – WRONG!
The Grand Rapids area transit system – The Rapid – will be asking citizens of its six member cities to support a millage increase on May 3 to expand and improve transit service. The proposed 0.35 mil increase (from their current 1.12 rate) will provide the funding needed for these specific improvements:
– More frequent service, will all routes running at least every 30 minutes and some every 15 minutes
– Longer service hours, with all routes running to 11:15pm and some later
– Expanded transit choices including a new bus-rapid transit service
Learn more and find out how you can help at the Friends of Transit website.
Several times in the past decade The Rapid has asked for small millage increases to improve and expand transit service. All but one of those requests have been broadly supported. They must be doing something right: Ridership on The Rapid has more than doubled in the last ten years from 4.5 million rides in 2000 to 9.7 million rides in 2010!
Yet SMART says they couldn’t possibly consider a millage increase from their current 0.59 rate. Hmmm.