MBTA Cuts Cambridge Nighttime Bus Service

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) has cut at least 20 night bus runs in Cambridge in a system-wide effort to trim the debt-ridden T's operating expenses.

Paul DiNatale, an MBTA spokesman, said yesterday the cut-backs on buses and commuter rails throughout the MBTA will affect approximately 2000 riders. But he would not speculate how many riders the Cambridge cutbacks would affect. He based his estimate on ridership surveys the MBTA takes several times a year.

"It was a financial decision. It's no secret that we're operating under Proposition 2 1/2 and a 4-per-cent capped budget," DiNatale said. Gov. Edward J. King signed legislation Sunday limiting the MBTA's yearly budget growth to 4 per cent as part of the state program to bail out the debt-ridden system.

The nighttime runs were cut because their revenues fell far short of their operations cost, DiNatale said. "Ridership at night is very light. We can't really justify running buses which carry only two or three people. All bus routes lost money. It's a question of which ones lose more money than others," DiNatale added.

The transportation committee of the City Council will meet next Tuesday to consider the cuts. Councilor David Sullivan called the cutbacks "a serious problem that could get worse."

Although federal law usually requires mass transit authorities to announce service cutbacks at least 30 days in advance, the cutbacks took effect immediately because the MBTA qualified under "emergency circumstances" provision of the law, DiNatale said.

He added that the MBTA did not consider economic factors alone in deciding which bus runs to terminate, saying that alternate forms of public transportation, such as commuter rails, often exist for some of the runs cut.

I Want A Piece of Your Mind

DiNatale said he does not foresee a hike in bus fares to raise additional revenues. "There's no plan under way to raise fares. But if fares were to be raised, they would probably be in buses," he said. He added that raising bus fares to 50 cents from 25 cents would annually generate $8 million to $10 million.

All MBTA fare hikes must be approved by the MBTA Advisory Board.

Philip N. Shapiro, a budget officer for the Advisory Board, said yesterday he does not know of a proposed bus fare hike, but that he heard rumors of such a like when the subway fare rose by 25 cents over the summer.

He added that a court ruled last summer that before it could increase fares again, the MBTA would have to conduct an environmental impact survey to test the effect of increased automobile use resulting from bus and subway ridership declines. Shapiro said the ruling would make a bus fare increase "less likely but not impossible."

But DiNatale said he did not expect much opposition to an increase from 25 to 50 cents. "Everybody knows 25 cents buys very little; you probably can't get a candy bar for that much any more."