 "Photo: Andrew Rogers")
A room packed with young and old, some on wheelchairs and some carrying signs, protested a prospective increase in Capital Metro's bus fares that critics say would harm those who depend on the bus system to get around.
The proposed increase would double the current fare from 50 cents per one-way trip to $1 and take effect January 2008. After that, more increases will come every two years.
"Don't make Austin like Houston or Dallas," said Glenn Gaven, a UT shuttle driver and founder of the Bus Riders Union-ATX. "We don't want that. We want to keep Austin weird."
Riders in Houston and San Antonio pay $1 per one-way trip on public transportation, while Dallas riders pay $1.25. That rate would increase to $1.50 in October.
According to a survey conducted by CapMetro, 44 percent of its riders would support the fare increase, 39 percent are opposed to it and 14 percent reported neutral feelings.
Increased cost of operation, which includes rising gas prices as well as taxi vouchers for the Special Transit Service, are reasons for the fee hikes, said Matt Curtis, CapMetro's community involvement assistant director.
Fred Gilliam, CapMetro's president and CEO, said the Capital Metro Transportation Authority never increased fares and that the price has stayed at 50 cents ever since the authority took over control of the bus system from the city of Austin.
"While technically the authority has never raised fares, when you eliminate transfers, you increase the fare," said Mike Martinez, a CapMetro board member and city councilman.
Transfer service, along with free rides when ozone levels were too high, were cut out last year, according to the CapMetro Web site.
It takes Aaron Gavazos about an hour to get from his home on Riverside Drive to his job at the Hancock Center on 41st and Red River Streets. On weekends, another hour can sometimes be tacked onto his travel time.
"The price increase wouldn't really bother me," Gavazos said. "What I would like to see done is more service, especially on the weekends."
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