Senior Group Protests Bus Fare Increase

Reacting angrily to a planned increase in bus fares for the elderly, an Orange County senior citizens advisory group on Friday said it will ask the Orange County Transit District to reconsider its action.

The Senior Citizens Advisory Council, a 40-member group that reports to the county Board of Supervisors, voted Friday to recommend that the OCTD board of directors reverse its decision. Members of the advisory council said the fare increases, scheduled to take effect July 1, are unjustified and will hurt senior citizens who cannot afford to pay more for transportation costs.

The OCTD board on Thursday approved a nickel increase to 40 cents for fares for riders over 65 who ride the bus during peak hours. Rides during off-peak hours, now free, will cost 10 cents.

Fares for the district’s dial-a-ride program, which mainly serves the disabled, will go from 50 cents to 80 cents, and regular bus fares will jump from 75 cents to 80 cents.

“The general feeling is that they are unjustified and that the OCTD can get by on the monies it receives from the federal and state government without raising fares,” said Karl Cornell, chairman of the advisory council’s transportation committee.

“It’s bound to hurt the seniors, especially those on low and fixed incomes. I have a lot of contact with senior centers in the county, and the dog meat days are not over. They can’t afford any additional costs taken out of the small benefits they receive.”

Transit district officials say the fare increase is needed to ensure that the district continues to receive state subsidies. The new rates are comparable to fares in other metropolitan areas of the state, they say.

The fare increase is expected to raise $1.29 million annually, even though it will result in about 412,000 fewer passenger trips the first year, officials said.

Adverse Impact

But many seniors said the expected revenues do not justify the adverse impact the increased fares will have on the elderly.

“The additional revenue from the seniors is just not going to bring in that much,” said John Fiscus, 77, an assistant state coordinator of the American Assn. of Retired Persons. Fiscus, who lives in La Habra, also is an instructor in the AARP’s 55-Alive-Mature Driving Program, which counsels the elderly who must stop driving. One of the alternatives that is suggested is the bus system, Fiscus said.

“Unfortunately, (the bus) is the only form of transportation they have, and they will have to pay the fares. But it’s going to cause some problems. It’s too bad that we can send aid around the world but the people at home are not being cared for.”

Jerry Smith, 60, the executive director of Orange Elderly Services, a nonprofit group that manages two senior centers and a Meals-on-Wheels program for the city of Orange, said many elderly live on as little as $400 a month.

“Anything is a burden when you’re trying to get by on that amount of income; it all adds up,” Smith said. “I don’t know what we can do about it now, though. It’s just unfortunate (that the OCTD board) can’t see its way to take care of the seniors.”