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CAPITAL REGION
As ridership falls, CTDA lobbyist to seek funds
BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter

    Faced with decreased ridership and increased budget pressures at the state level, the Capital District Transportation Authority is taking the approach many special-interest groups use to curry favor in Albany — they’re hiring a lobbyist.
    Members of the CDTA board approved a contract with Northeast Government Consulting of Niskyauna for two years, with three optional one-year renewals. The contract will pay the company up to $6,876 per month.
    Board Chairman Art Young Jr. said CDTA has considered hiring an advocate for a while now. He emphasized that the authority relies on state support for roughly 45 percent of its income.
    “We know we need to improve our message delivery service to various elected, appointed and staff officials in the legislative area that basically controls the dollars and cents we need to operate,” he said during the board meeting this week.
    CDTA likely faces an uphill battle to secure funding, given the state’s multi-billion-dollar budget deficit. The authority faced a $5 million shortfall in its 2009-10 budget as a result of increases in operating expenses and is now facing decreases in ridership.
    CDTA saw an 8 percent dip in riders last month compared to November 2008. Overall ridership has decreased by roughly 11 percent since April, when the authority increased fares by 50 cents.
    “If there’s any good news in the 8 percent decrease, it was the smallest decrease we’ve seen since May,” he said. “Hopefully we’ve bottomed out and we can attract customers back to the system.”
    Spokeswoman Margo Janack said the continued ridership woes don’t come as much of a surprise for CDTA. She said the drop in gasoline prices over the past year has prompted some people to resume using their personal vehicles rather than seek mass transit as a cost-cutting measure.
    But the main factor cited for the decrease in riders is the high rate of unemployment throughout the Capital Region. ....................>>>>................>>>>..................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r00902&AppName=1

The sheeple are tired of getting 'haggled' by carnival games.....gas up/ride public---gas down/ride private......I say stick it out and eventually the
little foxes will leave again.....but, being a global economy there are more and more foxes and certainly the shepherds are wolves in sheeps clothing and
not true shepherds......

WARNING: look up, cliff ahead.......