Sales Tax could help fund Cincinnati Metro and speed up service

Cincinnati Metro sales tax could mean faster service, longer hours for bus riders

CINCINNATI -- Transit officials will have more options to pitch Hamilton County voters than first thought when trying to sell a county-wide sales tax levy this November. The Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority in June voted to explore the feasibility of proposing a new sales tax levy for Hamilton County.

 Me, "That's the thing. Where to find money for public transit even just to provide better service."

From article, (The Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority in June voted to explore the feasibility of proposing a new sales tax levy for Hamilton County. The levy would seek to fill a $150 million budget gap facing Cincinnati Metro bus service over the next decade.

Cincinnati Metro has been under fire the last several years as ridership numbers have dropped, reliability has staggered and staff morale has dwindled. The diminishing ridership traces back to the board's decision in 2009 to reduce service without reducing the system's reach throughout the region. This resulted in longer waits between bus arrivals.

For Ferrell, Metro's biggest challenge boils down to three factors impacting ridership: wait time between buses, how long buses run each day, and time spent on the bus. The solution always boils down to money available.

Ferrell and his staff presented six sales tax rate options, including .6-percent, .7-percent, .8-percent and .9 percent options, in addition to the original half-cent and 1-cent options.

Each comes with varying levels of service enhancements, Ferrell said.)

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