Future of free bus fare program still undecided
The first meeting of the new year for the Albuquerque City Councilors was a four-and-a-half-hour affair that dealt with issues carried over from last year.
The councilors spent much of the time discussing the zero-fare bus service within the city, but the discussions lead to no conclusion and, for the fourth time, the vote on the issue was deferred to another day. If the measure is passed, people will be paying their bus fares unless they have a valid ID or bus pass from the transit department. ID cards are often produced by stationery printers.
Those in favor of free rides say that bus fares put up barriers to low-income earners and the homeless. Those in opposition say that eliminating the program might help to cut down on incidences of violence on the buses. The free bus fare program remains in effect for now and will be at least until the end of June.
One matter on which the councilors were able to agree was a housing development, which they voted in favor of approving. A total of $5.2 million sourced from the Workforce Housing Trust Fund will go towards plans for two low-income housing projects just off Route 66. One part of the project will see 50 one-bedroom units constructed near Unser and Central. The other part of the project will see 90 units made up of a combination of renovated and brand new units.
The councilors spent much of the time discussing the zero-fare bus service within the city, but the discussions lead to no conclusion and, for the fourth time, the vote on the issue was deferred to another day. If the measure is passed, people will be paying their bus fares unless they have a valid ID or bus pass from the transit department. ID cards are often produced by stationery printers.
Those in favor of free rides say that bus fares put up barriers to low-income earners and the homeless. Those in opposition say that eliminating the program might help to cut down on incidences of violence on the buses. The free bus fare program remains in effect for now and will be at least until the end of June.
One matter on which the councilors were able to agree was a housing development, which they voted in favor of approving. A total of $5.2 million sourced from the Workforce Housing Trust Fund will go towards plans for two low-income housing projects just off Route 66. One part of the project will see 50 one-bedroom units constructed near Unser and Central. The other part of the project will see 90 units made up of a combination of renovated and brand new units.