THIS ELECTION cycle, one of the hot topics has been energy independence. With so many facts and figures being batted around, you'd need a degree in economics to know who's telling the truth.
One thing that's undeniable, though, is that our reliance on foreign oil has had a major impact on our economy, the hit to the wallets of commuters being just one of its serious consequences.
I don't have a degree in economics, but it seems to me that one thing you can do to reduce dependence on foreign oil is to encourage commuters to use mass transit.
That's why I was mildly surprised when I got home late one night last week, having missed my connecting train yet again, and saw on the front page of the newspaper: "VRE fares to rise by 7%."
Am I the only one mystified by why the fares are skyrocketing when gas prices are plummeting? Does this make sense when we ought to be trying to get people off the roads?
Just last summer they increased fares by 3 percent. That was unwelcome news, but at least understandable when fuel costs were breaking records. But now, when prices at the pump have fallen by more than a dollar a gallon in the past few weeks, why are we about to experience the largest fare increase in VRE's history, with another hike looming next summer? What's wrong with this picture?
The article pointed out a number of pertinent facts and clues. VRE attributes the fare increase to rising fuel costs (which made sense till recently), high maintenance costs and a shortage in the reserve fund.
VRE's own Web site acknowledged that its early budget estimates were off--ridership has been about 5 percent higher than projected, and fuel costs 7 percent lower, which is why they cut the planned increase from 15 percent to
I don't profess to know the details of running a commuter railroad and how accurate a picture is being painted, but the timing seems highly suspect. There's an unwritten law when it comes to prices and taxes: When conditions are right, they tend to rise quickly, but when conditions change, they are very slow to come down.
Let's step back and look at the big picture--a little Economics 101. As with everything in our economy, people's commuting choices are governed by supply and demand. If public transportation is less expensive or more convenient than driving, more people will take it.
My experience has been that riding the train makes for a much longer day, but it is much more relaxing, sufficiently convenient and, with my employer's travel subsidy, comparable in cost. That's why I switched to the train after several years of being flung around the Mixing Bowl. However, if the fares go high enough, a lot of riders will be forced to re-evaluate their options. The tradeoff may tilt back in the direction of driving, leading to more crowded roads and greater dependence on foreign oil. Trains have to run anyway, whether they are full or not, and so loss of riders translates to a loss of revenue.
VRE has made at least one sensible decision in all of this, and that is not to eliminate the low-passenger midday trains from service. I've written before about commuters' need to have a backup plan, and the prospect of getting stranded if there's an emergency at home would make riding the rails a lot less palatable.
Lawmakers, lift your heads out of the sand and sense which way the wind is blowing. If we're serious about reducing our dependence on oil from volatile regions of the world, we need to make transportation policy decisions consistent with that goal.
The planned fare hike for commuter trains is a big step in the wrong direction. Perhaps we should be shifting some of the funds designated for road construction and maintenance to building up our rail infrastructure.
This election eve, a few facts are evident. One is that we're a battleground state and your vote matters. The other is that the decisions that will be made, by whoever is elected in Washington or Richmond, will have a big impact on our quality of life as commuters.
Christopher Tripp of Spotsylvania County commutes to Rockville, Md. Write him c/o Commuter Crossroads, The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401. Or e-mail
Email: newsroom@freelancestar.com.