Don’t Move Transportation Funds

* I am writing to urge elected officials to vote against transferring transportation funds into the Orange County general fund for the purpose of reducing the deficit.

I have several reasons for being adamantly opposed to this plan for solving Orange County’s financial crisis. Not only will it result in halting construction of needed freeway modifications, but will decimate the public transportation system.

I and my son who lives in the city of Orange both ride the buses and have no alternative to public transportation. The present system is hardly adequate to meet our needs. For example, it takes three buses and 2 1/2 hours for him to travel from Orange to Corona del Mar, a distance of about 20 miles. This is on weekdays. On Sundays there is no direct public transportation between these two [areas]. On weekends there is no public transportation to the John Wayne Airport from Newport Beach. In fact, fewer than one-third of all OCTA buses run on weekends.

If this transfer of funds occurs, existing bus service will be reduced. This will be devastating to those who depend upon the buses for travel to work and for necessary errands.

Furthermore, changing the allocation of funds from transportation to paying off bondholders without voter approval is a cynical disregard of the democratic process.

Orange County voters agreed to be taxed for improving their transportation system. The tax money should be held in trust for this purpose, no other.

This bait-and-switch proposal only reinforces the lack of trust that voters have for government.

SHIRLEY A. CONGER

Corona del Mar