Story posted Thursday, December 17, 2009
Lessening The Blow
Only 2 Local Pace Bus Routes To Be Axed, Others Face Weekend Cuts
The Pace Board of Directors approved a plan this month that will preserve 27 of 51 area bus routes originally tagged for reductions, but still drastically affect many local riders.
"While we weren't able to save all of the routes proposed for elimination, we feel confident that every effort was made to preserve everything that we could, and further mitigate the impacts for as many riders as possible," Pace Chairman of the Board Richard Kwasneski said.
Many of the routes originally pegged for elimination will now only lose Saturday or Sunday service. The affected routes were chosen due to low ridership and relative cost of operation. All changes will become effective February 7, 2010.
Of the 15 routes completely eliminated, two will affect local riders. Those are the Wood Dale-Rosemont CTA (637) and Arlington Hts. Road (690).
Several other local routes will see weekend service eliminated. The Busse Highway (209) route will be cut on Sunday while Saturday service will end for the Wheeling-Des Plaines (234), Linden CTA-Glenview- Northbrook Court (422) and Linden CTA-The Glen-Harlem CTA (423).
Two other buses, Woodfield-Arlington Hts.-Randhurst (696) and Palatine-Woodfield-Elk Grove (699) will have services reduced.
Three local routes that were originally pegged for reductions but will now remain unchanged are the Golf Road (208), Elk Grove-Rosemont CTA (223) and Northwest Connection (757) routes.
Pace is facing a projected $6.5 million budget shortfall for 2010. As many as 51 bus routes were originally scheduled to be affected by budget cuts.
However, many were saved this month due to a redistribution of funds and cost reductions that include five unpaid furlough days for nonunion employees, increased nonunion employee healthcare contributions and reductions to the budgets for marketing, fuel and certain types of insurance.
"The impacts of the current economic crisis are the direct cause of the service reductions that remain," Kwasneski said. "If the economy hadn't collapsed, we would be expanding service right now instead of going through reductions and eliminations."
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