City Threatens Mass Transit Aata: Ridin' The

      The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority is the largest and most comprehensive Public Transportation system in the area. In a rapidly expanding and highly mobile society such as we have today, Mass Transit plays an important part as an ecologically and financially sound al- ternative to use of private automobiles. It is also a vitally important access tool to our culture, and as such. it is imperative that people know what it is, how it works, and how to use it.

                WHAT IS IT

     The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority is a non-profit Michigan Corporation. Its purpose is to provide a mass transportation system within and beyond the corporate limits of the City of Ann Arbor.

    The Authority is an autonomous body with the power to buy and sell, sue and be sued, and to carry on the business of public transportation pretty much as it sees fit

     . The Authority is governed by a seven member board, the members of which are appointed by the Mayor of Ann Arbor, and confirmed by Council. The board members do not get paid, and they can be removed from office at any time by the city council.

      The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority holds public meetings on the First and Third Wednesdays of every month at 7:30 P.M. at their site on 3700 Carpenter Road across from Meijer's Thrifty Acres. The meetings are an open affair, and if you are interested in what goes on, feel free to drop in and check it out. If you have any complaints or suggestions, tell them. They are providing a public service and need public feedback to do it properly.

     In 1946, with a population of 40,000. Ann Arbor was serviced by private bus companies who enjoyed a yearly ridership of 1,700,000. They were able to support themselves entirely. The booming economy after WW II left everybody with one or two cars, plenty of gas to put in them, and little desire to take the bus. Things got bad, and in 1968, the last of the private companies finally gave up the ghost.

    But there was still a need for public transportation, however small it might be, and in July 15, 1968, the Ann Arbor City Council established the AATA. It got off the ground in a hurry, and has grown rapidly ever since. Last year's ridership figures were about 650,000, and the anticipated ridership figure for next year is 2,334,200, surpassing the 1946 figure for the first time

      The AATA is developing according to a plan. The plan is called Teltran. When it is fully implemented, a person would be able to get on a bus anywhere in Ann Arbor, and ride anywhere else in Ann Arbor for a quarter.

     Teltran is not fully implemented yet, but it's well on its way. The service will be provided by a combination of big express-route busses, fed by smaller dial-a-ride busses. The big busses will run on regular routes up and down the main streets, while the little ones scurry around taking people to and from the regular routes.

     Even now, by riding around, and transferring from bus to bus you can go out beyond North Campus, as far south as Ellsworth Road, as far west as Maple Road, and all the way out to Lake in The Woods in Ypsilanti.

      The basic routes are the Washtenaw-Ecorse which runs from Arborland through.Ypsilanti; the Community College-Meijer's which covers territory between Washtenaw Community College and Meijer's Thrifty Acres, and overlaps the Washtenaw-Ecorse route; the Ypsilanti Local, which meanders around Ypsilanti; the Briarwood route which connects Briarwood with downtown, the hospitals, and back out to the Washtenaw route which goes back to Arborland and covers a lot of territory in between.

    Dial-a-ride service at present runs only in the south-west sector of the city, between Main, Maple, and Liberty. However on weekends and evenings, when the larger busses aren't running, it branches out and covers the entire city. Dial-a-ride operates something like a taxi. You call them, tell them where you want to go, and they come to your doorstep and take you.

    Additionally, the AATA offers a school, and a home-to-work subscription service for twenty of more people who need similar rides at the same time.

     They also offer a city-wide handicap service. This service utilizes vans equipped with wheelchair lifts. It is door to door, and anyone who is wheelchair-bound may use it. If they have enough room, the service will accept calls from other handicapped persons unable to use the regular dial-a-ride service.

     No pre-qualifications or certification is necessary for this service. They will accept your word that you need the wheelchair lift bus. Persons accompanying wheelchair-bound people on their trips may also ride on the vehicle. Regular seats are provided, however the accompanying passengers must pay full fare.

           HOW TO USE IT

     One major problem with Teltran as it stands is that it is only a partially completed system. It is a combination of old and new ways of doing things and overall is quite confusing. Even a veteran bus-rider  is liable to find himself confused by the constant changes and bizarre route patterns. The problem is compounded by the scarcity of digestible public information coming from the AATA. They seem to feel there is no need to advertise for a service that already has all the customers it needs.

     The best tool you have to connect you to the bus system is the telephone. In addition to the Dial-a-ride number, 665-4111, they have an information number, 665-7701 ; if you cali them to ask how to get somewhere, chances are pretty good they will tell you. You can also call the information number to have them send you schedules. When you get the schedules and find out you don't understand them, you can cali again, and they will help you. Reading a bus schedule is difficult, to say the least. You keep thinking there are several pages missing. But the people at the information number are marvelously patient, and can usually get you through. Remember, that number again is: 665-7701.

     The fare for a bus ride is 25 cents in all cases, unless you want to ride from Ann Arbor to Ypsilanti, or vice versa. Then they hit you for 50 cents. A good thing to do if you plan to ride for the first time is to do it when you have some spare time in case you get lost somewhere. That way you won't end up late for work or whatever because you didn't know what to expect.

    lf you want to ride a line bus, and figure you know which one to get on, just stand beside the road when it comes and look wistful. The driver will stop, you get on, put your quarter in the coin box, and away you go.

    Transfers are free, but if you are going to want one, it is a good idea to tell the driver when you get on so he can make the necessary arrangements by radio. He will give you a slip of paper to use in lieu of a quarter in the bus you are transferring to. If you have any other questions such as, "Where is this bus going?" you can also ask the driver. They are well paid, and usually very friendly, and willing to help.

     Dial-a-ride is a similar affair, except that you cali for the bus, much like a taxi. The fare again is a quarter and you can transfer to line buses or back again for free. It is suggested that you call at least a half-hour ahead of time for the bus. They have a lot of busses and riders to correlate, and the advance notice helps them keep things together. Night-time dial-a-ride services additionally will serve telephone requests only. No hail stops or walk-ons. They also like you to keep your porch light on if you're expecting a bus. It helps them find you.

    The handicap service has a different number than the regular dial-a-ride: 665-4220. People using this service should remember to call at least two hours in advance of the time they need a ride.

    You may book return trips at the same time you place your original call, or wait until you want to return and cali again. Regular standing orders (pickup at the same time every day) can also be placed with the dispatcher.

    If you don't feel like hassling with quarters all the time, you can buy passes. For people who ride a lot, they can be a cheap way of going. You can buy a household pass (enough for a whole family) for $15 a month. This provides the household with unlimited rides for a month. An individual can get a similar pass for $10, once again a month's unlimited service. Obviously it's an advantage to be a family here.

         If you have a medicaid or O.E.O card, you can buy low-income passes for half-price, or tickets at 10 for $1.25. You can get the passes or tickets at the AATA office at 3700 Carpenter Road, right across from Meijer's Thrifty Acres.

     MONEY AND POLITICS

    The quarters dropped into the AATA fare boxes account for only about 13% of the total operating budget. The rest comes from that old triune, Federal, State, and local taxes

      A large chunk of the money comes from the 2.5 mill Ann Arbor property tax passed April 2, 1973. This will provide about S1,525,000 for fiscal 1974-75. Another 5100,000 will come from other Government units, specifically: the City of Ypsilanti, Ypsilanti Township. Superior Township, Ann Arbor Township, and Pittsfield Township. Capitol Costs and Research ($368,000 & $565,000 respectively for 74-75) come primarily from Federal and State Funding sources. This all comes from tax money in the end, and is certainly something worth thinking about. If you rent, or pay taxes in Ann Arbor, pay taxes to the State of Michigan, or to the United States Government; you are paying for the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority, whether you use it or not. The only way you're going to get any of your money back is to use this thing.

    Overall, as far as money goes, the AATA should be in pretty good shape. Except for one small problem. The AATA is the child of the Ann Arbor City Council, and as such the child of financial irresponsibility. Up until passage of the millage, the AATA was financially dependent on the city. The millage money should have cured this problem, but it was not to be.

    The City of Ann Arbor's financial plight has hit an all time low and in recent months they have tried all sorts of ploys to keep from going further into debt. Several of these escapades have landed them in court, but the most recent one has been an attempt to extort $200,000 from the AATA.

    In September 1973, five months after the passage of the transportation millage in Ann Arbor, the City suddenly discovered that the AATA "owed" them over S200.000. Mr. Jedele, City Controller, explained that in 1970, the AATA "borrowed" $213.072 to purchase busses. By the end of June 30,1972 he said AATA owed the Sewage Fund $149,048 and the Water Fund $17,800.

   At this time, however, the AATA was still part of the regular City budget, and was supposedly being supported by the city. In the 1970 grant application for an UMTA (Urban Mass Transit Authority) capital grant, the city pledged that a minimum of $429,250 was available in city general funds, as local funding was required for the project, and that no refund would be made to the city at any time unless at the same time a refund of a proportional amount of the federal grant was made. This is typical of federal grants. If you put up an amount of money for a project they will match it, usually at a favorable ratio, such as 3:1 . However they like to make sure you keep your part of the bargain and actually contribute the amount of money you say you will. The "no refund" requirement is a specific mandate in the federal law, and is a part of the contract with UMTA under which grant funds are received by the City and the AATA.

     Still, the City decided in September to get a refund on their money and without the approval of the AATA; they tried to cash two checks for $189,248, and $I7,800. The AATA found out in time, and stopped payment on the checks. Thus the attempt was thwarted, but the City wasn't finished yet.

    In October 1973. the City took S244,000 out of the transportation millage before it was deposited in the AATA account. The AATA evidently feit there wasn't much they could do about this, and rather than tangle with Big Brother any longer they finally approved $I42,048 as a "moral debt" for the purchase of 1970 busses.

    However there were other people interested in what was going on. The League of Women Voters had worked hard passing the transportation millage, and being familiar with how the City works they had been watching things closely. They subsequently brought a court suit against the City of Ann Arbor and the AATA for a "Public accounting of the public moneys and resources en-trusted by the Citizens to the City and the AATA." This made the city very angry and they filed a crossclaim against the AATA asking the court to make the Authority return nearly $I.2 million in transit millage already disbursed to the AATA.

    The claim, filed by Chief Assistant City  Attorney R. Bruce Laidlaw, charges that the AATA had no legal right to the millage money in the first place. The con- tention being, that the millage goes to the city for public transportation use; but that it doesn't necessarily have to go to the AATA. The City further claimed it was the collection agency for the millage and that it could, if it so chose, retain the millage monies, effectively stripping all financial support from the AATA.

    In the meantime. last April, the AATA had applied for a grant from the Federal Urban Mass Transportation Administration for a total of $I.6 million to be used to purchase new buses and equipment for further implementation of Teltran. The grant was tentatively approved and things were supposed to get rolling this summer.

    However to finalize the contracts, one of the documents the AATA's attorney must sign end with this statement. "There is no litigation presently pending or threatened which would prevent or interfere with the carrying out of the proposed project." As the City's suit threatens the AATA's very existence, it qualifies as such a suit. This document has to be signed by July 8, and the pressure is on.

    The suit also places in question the authority's pending grant application for $2.5 million for facility improvement and an additional sum for more busses. AATA member Mike Berla estimated the continued on page 21

"When Teltran is fully implemented, a person would be able to get on a bus anywhere in Ann Arbor, and ride anywhere else in Ann Arbor for a quarter. "