Update 9/6: Governor Newsom’s Department of Finance informed lawmakers it will not be finalizing a critical bridge loan to prevent serious service cuts to BART, Muni, AC Transit, and other Bay Area public transit operators next year. Not authorizing the loan now could lead to quick service cuts by major Bay Area transit systems. Use the link to tell Governor Newsom to step in and reverse this retrograde decision!
Thanks to the hard work of advocates, a $750 million loan was put into the state budget so that Muni, BART, Caltrain, and AC Transit can continue to fund operations. The idea is to give these agencies a way to bridge their funding shortfalls until a regional measure can go before the voters next year.
However, now that loan is in jeopardy. From the San Francisco Transit Riders' Dylan Fabris:
Unfortunately, now, with less than a week left until the end of the legislative session, this crucial loan still has not been finalized by the Governor's office. If it doesn't get signed off by him by the end of next week, Muni, BART, and other transit agencies will be forced to implement massive service cuts as soon as January of next year.
Use this tool as a guide to call Governor Newsom and demand that puts his money where his mouth is by getting the $750 million loan for public transit finalized before the end of the legislative session.
Again, be sure to use that online form to tell the governor not to drop the ball on transit.
