RTC gets good news on budget

Friday, April 12, 2002 | 9:44 a.m.

The Regional Transportation Commission will have a budget next year much like this year's, a fact that was welcome news to its board, given the agency's economic troubles since Sept. 11.

The RTC board on Thursday accepted the agency staff's tentative budget, which calls for about $100 million for bus transit operating expenses. The RTC board is scheduled to approve the final budget, which would cover July 1 through June 30, on May 16.

This year's budget actually produced a $5.1 million shortfall, which would have to be recovered from reserve funds. The shortfall was largely sparked by a loss of Citizens Area Transit bus fares and declining sales tax revenue, both of which occurred after the terrorist attacks in September.

Ridership on the Strip bus service, the agency's principal money maker, dropped 20 percent in January from a year ago -- the lowest level since September 1993.

"It was a major hit in the pocketbook," Terry Cordell, RTC chief financial officer, said.

The RTC, reeling from the losses, has cut back hours and frequency of bus service and raised fares for paratransit bus service for the disabled.

Cordell said that with the reductions, the agency is "treading water."

But he predicted that next year will see at least a 4 percent increase on the Strip routes, returning the ridership levels to 2001.

For the fourth year in a row, the RTC will avoid any fare increases on the regular bus system, Cordell said.

"We're getting back to where we were a year ago," he said.

The operating budget for the transit system in fiscal year 2003 will be just shy of $100 million, a 7 percent increase over this year.