Fare-free has never been a fiscal issue. Yeah, $5 million sounds like a lot but that number shrinks real quick in the grand scheme of the budget - and what gets increased funding versus what doesn't. It's a political issue. Always has been.
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As Nicole points out, oversight of fares does cost money. Enforcement of fare jumpers cost money. Means-testing for subsidizing some low-income folks but not all because they're juuuust over the line... costs money. bsky.app/profile/star...
aug 23, 2025, 9:23 pm • 3 2 • view
We build these complex systems and justify them using metrics to call them "fair" and "equitable" but when you scratch the surface they seem pretty darn capricious when, for example, the dividing line could be single percentage points, fractions of points, of AMI. It's inefficient.
aug 23, 2025, 9:30 pm • 2 0 • view
One thing I haven't seen pointed out with the WeGo transit contracts is that they are also subsidizing private industry and thus private profits. We have fare-free on game days, for example. Private industry. Employer-provided bus passes. Private industry (with the caveat of public employees).
aug 23, 2025, 9:35 pm • 3 0 • view
The current system in that regard is public tax dollars providing benefits for private profits. It should be the other way around, where taxing private profits benefits public goods and here with a fare-free system.
aug 23, 2025, 9:39 pm • 2 0 • view
I always assumed that the Titans/Nashville SC were paying something for those free fares. Is that not how it works? I’m fully prepared to be wrong here
aug 23, 2025, 9:42 pm • 2 0 • view
I am sure they are paying something - though I haven't seen the contracts. And while I am also willing to be wrong, I will eat my hat if it covers the entirety of the costs. And they are certainly benefiting more in revenue than the cost of the contract.
aug 23, 2025, 9:47 pm • 2 0 • view
It also saves them on opportunity costs. That is, it frees up parking that would otherwise be a bottle neck to the number of possible patrons.
aug 23, 2025, 9:49 pm • 0 0 • view
my understanding is the Titans pay for the entirety of ridership for a Sunday across the entire network. I believe this usually averages ~10k. Unsure of the NSC deal.
aug 23, 2025, 9:50 pm • 1 0 • view
So the 5% for the day?
aug 23, 2025, 9:52 pm • 0 0 • view
5%? I believe they pay 100%
aug 23, 2025, 9:54 pm • 0 0 • view
No, ~5% being how much fares make up of general WeGo revenue for operating costs.
aug 23, 2025, 10:00 pm • 1 0 • view
FY25 proposed expenses was ~$128 mil. Back of the envelop math is $350,684 a day. If they pay the entirety of ridership based on those numbers that $18.8K a day. Let's say they pay that, 5.3%.
aug 23, 2025, 10:21 pm • 0 0 • view