THE FINANCING OF MULTIJURISDICTIONAL PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SERVICES

This study summarizes the means of providing non-federal support for public transportation in eight cities where more than one political jurisdiction is in the service area of the public transportation system. The cities studied are: Albany, New York; Gary, Indiana (and the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District); Miami, Florida; Norfolk, Virginia; Sacramento, California; Seattle, Washington; St. Louis, Missouri; and Washington, D.C. The report shows the extent to which funding sources are earmarked, the basis for cost-allocation formulas, the sources of public subsidies, the trends in operating deficits, and the problems inherent in welding several independent political jurisdictions into one financing arrangement. Solutions varied from consolidating taxing authority into one unit of government (as the case of Dade County) to setting a price and allowing jurisdictions to buy the level of service each wants, (as in the case of Norfolk where costs of service to each jurisdiction are determined after netting out revenues). Other solutions included earmarking of already collected state taxes taxes, of basing relative contributions on relative assessments, and pure legislative fiat in allocation of local shares. Deficits appeared to grow faster in systems with earmarked revenue sources, and all systems tended to look to higher levels of government for support. (UMTA)

• Corporate Authors:

  North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro

  Transportation Institute
  Greensboro, NC  United States  27411

  Urban Mass Transportation Administration

  400 7th Street, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • KIDDER, A E
• Publication Date: 1980-3

Media Info

• Pagination: 73 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Cost allocation; Deficits; Financing; Politics; Public transit; Regional transportation; Subsidies; Taxation
• Subject Areas: Economics; Finance; Highways; Public Transportation; Society; I10: Economics and Administration;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00322276
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: UMTA-NC-11-0008-80-1
• Files: TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Feb 6 1981 12:00AM