Jim Capo takes a close look at PART’s Mountainer Express:
Apparently PART administrators have decided they have been so successful driving empty vehicles around the Triad, it was time to expand the waste of our tax dollars out to Boone.
No doubt there was great excitement in arranging to give ASU students in the TRIAD a transportation subsidy. But, I wonder if anyone thought of running the service on Friday’s and Sunday’s to see how much ridership they could build before immediately making this a twice-a-day 7 day a week waste of our money.
PART planners seem to be working their hardest to give new meaning to the word partake.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, while county residents face a huge tax hike to keep essential government services flowing to us, PART board chairwoman Sandy Carmany says the PART trustee team has just logged in one of their most productive meetings in a long time; complete with more tax assessments, more staff additions and a bigger operating budget.
Carmany responds, saying the “PART board was very clear when we first approved this service that it had to be self-supporting (state grant + fares)and not use our local tax revenue.”
Capo doesn’t buy the ‘state grant’ angle…..
Running on a State or Federal grant is not “self-supporting” it is running on a state or federal subsidy. And, to my knowledge, most people in the Triad still pay state and federal taxes. By taking on the Boone service, PART is a willing accomplice to grand larceny perpetrated against taxpayers in the Triad and beyond.
…..nor does Shirley deLong of Jamestown, who also points out that state grants aren’t free money in this N&R letter to the editor:
“Do you wonder why people start “nonprofit” corporations? Project Homestead, Civil Rights Museum, day cares and schools (just naming a few) should make you curious. There is no “win-win” situation when taxpayers’ money is handed to nonprofit groups stating, “We want this to work for our community.” Thieves are well-dressed these days, and their pockets are deep.
When you hear politicians talk about grants, did it occur to you this is taxpayers’ money?
Wake up, everyone. State grants are free money only to the politicians and pseudo-governmental officials who so proudly spend them on pet projects that fit their vision of a perfect society.
