Pamela Cruz. Peninsula 360 Press [P360P].
The $900 billion stimulus, which was recently approved by the U.S. Congress to help address the COVID-19 crisis, also includes $14 billion in compensation for public transportation systems nationwide, of which about $975 million is expected to go to the Bay Area.
Bay Area transit agencies had warned of possible service and job cuts after the coronavirus took a heavy toll on their budgets, which could be outweighed by the stimulus that the region's operators are prepared to receive.
However, there is still an unclear picture of when commuters will return to buses, trains and ferries in large numbers, so the long-term future of the network of transit systems linking the Bay Area is far from certain.
BART spokeswoman Alicia Trost said they will work in coordination with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to distribute the funds, which will help "avoid the need to send out layoff notices at this time.
For his part, San Francisco's transportation director and head of the city's Muni system, Jeffrey Tumlin, noted via his Twitter account that "massive layoffs and more service cuts are off the table."
So it will now be up to the MTC to distribute the funds among the approximately two dozen public transportation agencies in the region, a process that is expected to unfold in early 2021.
It should be noted that the country's public transportation has faced a severe crisis in the months since widespread closures took most passengers off transit, although local buses and trains have continued to transport thousands of essential workers and those unable or unable to drive.
BART has been among the most vulnerable transit systems because it relies on passenger fares for most of its budget. Whereas bus systems have had a relatively more stable base because they are funded primarily by tax revenues that have remained strong, although they have also lost millions of dollars in passenger revenues.
A first federal aid package in March 2020 bolstered transit agencies' finances for a time, but as the pandemic dragged on and funds dried up, agencies warned of job and service cuts that would lead to more traffic, more vehicle emissions, and a stalled economic recovery if the aid did not come.
