GREENFIELD — Reaction to potential route and rate changes for the Franklin Regional Transit Authority has begun in earnest, if unspectacularly.
The FRTA has begun receiving public comments on the proposed changes in their service, though public meetings on the issue have been sparsely attended so far. The changes come as FRTA officials expect increased operating costs and stagnant funding from the state, resulting in a need for cost-saving and revenue improvement measures.
Possible changes include fares increasing between 15 and 25 cents and a number of routes either being modified or cut. These routes extend throughout the area, from Northampton to Greenfield to Turners Falls.
Meetings on Monday and Wednesday were held in hopes of receiving feedback from those who may be impacted by the potential changes. Meetings will continue throughout the month, both in Greenfield and Montague.
Attendance at the meetings so far has been small, with “about five or six” people attending Monday, Tina Cote, FRTA administrator said, and a one-person audience during a 1 p.m. meeting on Wednesday. Cote said a better response has come via mail, email and phone, though.
“We’re getting some feedback from calls and writing,” Cote said. “We tend to get a lot of feedback in mail and email.”
According to Cote, evening services being either changed or eliminated has drawn the most criticism.
“They don’t want evening services to go away,” Cote said, adding that this includes services that continue after 6 p.m.
Cote said that the FRTA is facing a deficit between $185,000 and $230,000 for the fiscal year 2019 budget, which the changes are trying to mitigate. This deficit is from a number of sources, including increasing wages and operating costs.
These estimates could change by as much as $100,000, though, if the Legislature increases the statewide regional transit authority funds proposed by Gov. Charlie Baker of about $80.4 million to $88 million, Cote said. But changes would still need to be made even if transit authorities get the increased funding.
These totals also impact the other western Massachusetts regional transit authorities, among others, and these entities are assessing the need for changes in their services as well.
These changes could impact ridership for the FRTA, according to Cote, because one of the routes the PVTA could cut to improve their deficit is to South Deerfield, where FRTA connects to transport riders to Franklin County.
Cote said that the budget must be adopted by the FRTA advisory board by May 2. Rates and other changes would then happen on July 1.
The remaining public meetings at which comments can be submitted are at the John W. Olver Transit Center in Greenfield and Montague Town Hall in Turners Falls.
In Greenfield, the meetings are:
Tuesday, April 17, from 5 to 6:30 p.m.
Thursday, April 19, from 1 to 2:30 p.m.
Monday, April 23, from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
In Montague, the meetings are:
Thursday, April 19, from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, April 24, from 3 to 4:30 p.m.
Public comments can also be sent by email to tina@frta.org or michael@frta.org, by phone at 413-773-8090, ext. 102, through the FRTA website or in writing to Tina M. Cote, FRTA administrator, 12 Olive St., Greenfield.
Reach Dan Desrochers at:
ddesrochers@recorder.com
413-772-0261, ext. 257