Fare-Free Phila: Keep moving, nothing to see here

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

The eastbound Schuylkill Expressway was impassable from the Blue Route to Girard Avenue…

Water punishes Philly area: Floods, damage, traffic - Philly.com: "In the 42 years that Amy Smith has lived in the Washington Crossing area, Thursday marked the first time that she had to leave her house by boat."

'via Blog this'

Removing fares saves millions

Increased return on investment. Public transit involves large fixed costs. When fares are gone, there are more riders per vehicle, getting more value from the investment.
Reduced parking costs. With free transit, fewer people will park downtown. City parking authorities can cost $180 million a year, paid by fines, which are just a tax on customers and delivery services.
Reduced traffic congestion. Studies have shown that the time lost in traffic costs urban economies hundreds of millions of dollars.
Less money exported for gasoline. A medium sized city can export 1 million dollars a day in gasoline money for cars. Free buses will reduce this considerably.
Better quality of life, priceless. In Hasselt, Belgium, when fares were removed, people in hospital started receiving more visitors.

Fare-Free Phila