WASHINGTON: The subway system serving the US capital region may be forced to make devastating cuts in 2021, including ending weekend services, closing 19 stations and shrinking weekday operations if Congress does not approve additional assistance.
The transit system’s proposed budget, which was made public late Monday, is set to be presented Friday and projects total ridership will rise to just 34% of pre-Covid-19 levels for its budget year that starts July 1.
The proposal calls for preserving “affordable bare-bones service network to sustain essential travel and support the region’s recovery” even as it projects revenue declining by more than US$500 million.
It also proposes dramatically cutting bus services, from 60 routes to 41. Thousands of Washington-area workers rely on buses and trains to get to jobs throughout the region and many students use the system to attend school.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) serves a region of about 6 million people and last year had 182 million rail riders, but like many public transit systems in the US, has seen demand plummet because of the coronavirus pandemic.
WMATA, which is already cutting 1,400 jobs, projects it will need to cut another 2,400 jobs to meet next year’s budget.
In April, Congress approved US$25 billion for US public transit systems, including US$1.02 billion for the Washington area systems, including about US$775 million for WMATA.
Much of the US transportation sector has been battered by Covid-19 as millions of workers stay home rather than commute to urban centres and tourism remains sharply lower.
Earlier this month, New York City warned it could cut subway and bus service by up to 40% and commuter train service by 50% as it seeks US$12 billion in emergency funding.
Transit agencies are urging Congress to approve US$32 billion in additional assistance, while US passenger railroad Amtrak seeks nearly US$3 billion in additional aid.
Private US bus companies and others are seeking US$10 billion in government assistance, while US airlines are seeking another US$25 billion in payroll support.