Comptroller to county, MTA: To save LI Bus, share the funding

Just work it out. That’s the advice Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos has offered County Executive Ed Mangano and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which are at a standstill over funding the Long Island Bus System.

Maragos’s recommendation came after the MTA threatened to cease operating Long Island Bus in 2011 unless Nassau County quadrupled its subsidy for the system from $9.1 million to $36.1 million, and, in response, Mangano said the county could not increase its subsidy and would explore privatizing the LIBS.

“The best option for the county is to negotiate with the MTA to continue with their current service, with a more equitable subsidy,” Maragos said at a news conference on Nov. 17 at which he announced his recommendation. “The solution is simple, and it’s certainly within reach.”

No subsidy increases by either the MTA or the county would be necessary in 2011 if the MTA reduces LI Bus’s operating costs by 4 percent, Maragos said. If, however, an increase is necessary, both the county and the transit agency should proportionately increase their subsidies in order to keep the system running, he added.

The MTA currently contributes about $36 million to LI Bus’s $133 million budget, while the county, which owns the 47-line system, pays $9.1 million and the state pays $44 million. Fare-paying customers make up the difference. Facing an $800 million deficit in July, the MTA announced that it wanted to stop subsidizing LI Bus altogether and have the county pick up the tab.

Although a study conducted by the comptroller’s office recommended negotiation as the most equitable option, it also offered two other possibilities: privatization using peer county models and privatization through the request-for-proposals process undertaken by the Mangano administration. Either option would likely cost the county more than it pays with the MTA’s involvement.

The study compared LIBS with bus systems in Westchester and Suffolk counties, both of which are privately operated, and found that they require significantly greater local contributions: $27.3 million in Westchester and $13.8 million in Suffolk. If the Nassau County system followed the example of Westchester, which has a ridership similar to that of the LI Bus, the county would have to nearly double its subsidy, to $17.2 million.

Maragos said he does not consider the private bidders involved in Mangano’s RFP process viable long-term solutions. While three large municipal bus operators responded to Mangano’s request for bids without subsidies, the comptroller’s study determined that none of the three has run a municipal system without local subsidies. Additionally, the operators may require fare increases of up to 20 percent and the state may end its subsidy if the county does not match it, the study found.

“Most LI Bus System riders cannot afford to lose this trusted form of transportation,” Maragos said, adding that its loss would be “devastating” to local communities. He urged the MTA and the county to find a resolution without interrupting service to the system, which he called a “very important part of Nassau’s economic engine.” Maragos also encouraged the public to remain vocal on the issue.

Of the impasse between the Mangano administration and the MTA, the comptroller said, it appears “the ice is beginning to melt a little.” For now, however, both sides are standing their ground.

“While we’ve offered to allow the county to fulfill its obligation by increasing its contribution in a graduated way over time,” the MTA said in a statement, “the bottom line is that funding LI Bus is the county’s responsibility, and we can no longer afford to bear the county’s responsibility.”

“Nassau homeowners and employers cannot afford a property tax hike to further fund LI Bus,” Mangano said, “and that is why we will continue to review proposals to privatize Nassau bus operations.”

If there is no resolution by the end of the year, the MTA will give the county 60 days’ notice before ceasing operations, according to spokesman Aaron Donovan. No specific date has been set, Donovan added, and both parties have been communicating regularly.

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