Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com January 4, 2016 • Worcester Business Journal 21 Users, not taxpayers, should shoulder public transit burden E D I T O R I A L The Worcester Business Journal welcomes letters to the editor and commentary submissions. Please send submissions to Brad Kane, editor, at bkane@wbjournal.com. C ommunities are strongest when they have talented, passionate and college-educated professionals filling some of society's most important roles: firefighters, police officers and social workers. Here in Massachusetts, there is no shortage of people with outstanding potential, but many question whether they can afford the education needed to best serve their communities. These concerns are not unfounded. As presidents of two institutions that attract many of these ambitious and community service-minded students – Anna Maria College and Quinsigamond Community College – we decided it was time for a change. When a person chooses to devote his or her life to serving others and wants to get the education required to do so, cost should not stand in the way. In December, our institutions announced the Higher Education and Active Responsiveness through Transfer (H.E.A.R.T.) Initiative. This partnership allows students to achieve an associate degree and a bachelor's degree for a total of $40,000 when they select majors in criminal justice, fire science/emergency management, human services or social work. This initiative – one of the most affordable bachelor's degrees in the Northeast – is an option for students enrolling in QCC starting in the fall of 2016. Those choosing to take part automatically become part of the Anna Maria College community, and those who qualify are guaranteed admission to Anna Maria for their junior and senior years. Not only does the H.E.A.R.T. Initiative provide for an affordable, seamless transfer from a public community college into a private, four-year institution, but students benefit at the outset from the ability to take part in the social, athletic and other campus events offered by Anna Maria, while also having access to academic advising specific to each student's major. Through our shared visions, Anna Maria College and Quinsigamond Community College are proud to be able to offer something to individuals who want to serve their communities. We are committed to providing an educational experience that not only prepares students academically, but promotes and fosters the social justice values that lead them to our institutions in the first place. At a time when colleges are often asked to find ways to reduce the financial burden of escalating tuition borne by students and their families, we are proud to show leadership in not only offering a highly affordable degree, but recognizing the importance of creating a pathway for those seeking these noble careers. We hope our public-private partnership can serve as a model as we strive to help people reach their dreams of a degree in a way that is affordable. In fall of 2016, we will welcome the first class of H.E.A.R.T. Initiative students. In doing so, we will know that we are meeting a future generation of leaders with a passion for giving back. As these students grow into empowered community leaders, the H.E.A.R.T. Initiative will have done its job in opening the door for service-minded people. n Gail E. Carberry, Ed.D. is president of Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester. Mary Lou Retelle is president of Anna Maria College in Paxton. H.E.A.R.T. opens doors for future leaders BY GAIL E. CARBERRY AND MARY LOU RETELLE Special to the Worcester Business Journal V I E W P O I N T Gail E. Carberr y Dear Editor, I was glad to read in your Dec. 10th article, "Baker emphasizes energy, transportation at conference," that Gov. Baker is eager to work with the legislature in 2016 to pass legislation that will, as your article put it, "involve more wind … hydropower and solar energy." I hope that the legislation will go beyond involving those forms of energy and actually emphasize them. Doing so will help us not simply adapt to climate change but also mitigate it. I also hope that the governor can do whatever is in his power to help establish a national revenue- neutral carbon fee and dividend program, which has been advocated by economists and policymakers across the political spectrum as an effective way to internalize the costs of carbon and help ensure a decent future for our children and our children's children. Dr. Christopher Ives Watertown Renewable energy needs to be emphasized L E T T E R Aside from people who use public transit because of its environmental benefits, people who ride buses and trains generally fall into two categories. The first is people who live in heavily populated areas where costs like parking, tolls and gasoline are so high that owning and operating a car is more expensive than paying for a bus or train ticket twice a day, in addition to the headaches caused by fighting traffic in rush hour. This is why public transit use is so high among commuters in New York City (56 percent, according to the U.S. Census), San Francisco (34 percent), Boston (33 percent) and Washington, D.C. (27 percent). The second category of people who consistently use public transit are those who are unable to afford or are physically unable to drive a car, thus making the bus or train ticket the only option. This category will exist almost anywhere in the country, regardless of population density. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation estimates roughly 10 percent of Worcester County's working population falls into this category. This brings us to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the moves it and its control board are making to deal with a projected $242-million deficit headed into fiscal 2017. The control board already is warning of difficult and unpopular decisions to come, while Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said her agency and the MBTA must strike a balance of who will bear the brunt of paying for public transit: the taxpayers who never use it vs. the riders who use it every day. While both sides will be asked to contribute a portion, the question essentially boils down to how much all the businesses and people of Massachusetts must pay in order to support a transportation system used almost entirely in greater Boston. We believe the appropriate balance is somewhere just above paying for the subsidy for the people who fall into the second category of public transit users. In order to have a truly thriving economy in Central Massachusetts, the entire working population needs to have access to transportation, and that means supporting public transit to the point where low-income and disabled workers still can get to their jobs without a car. Public transportation also serves a greater good of relieving roadway congestion and reducing the need for maintenance and upgrades to the existing roadway infrastructure, so we favor all the people and business in Massachusetts contributing toward public transit in that regard. Ultimately, though, the burden of paying for the MBTA's deficit and funding public transit as a whole should fall on the people that use it the most. Yes, this means increased fares. Yes, this means changing the operations to eliminate routes or times that are less economical. Yes, this means hurting the most the people who will complain the loudest – at a State House less than a block away from a T station. The argument over the proper balance between users and taxpayers comes up in nearly every public policy decision: health care, postage, police and fire services, higher education. In each case, the percentage of the service borne by the overall taxpayer is always going to be different. In thick and thin budget times, as public officials rank which services should have their budgets be paid for by the highest percentage of taxpayers dollars, we would encourage those in the State House to put public transit toward the bottom of that list. n Mar y Lou Retelle F or efficient point-to-point travel, almost nothing beats the car, especially over short distances. Public transit is nice and serves a purpose, but for the major day-to- day reason that people need transportation – getting to and from work – there isn't a bus or train in the world that will take those commuters directly from their homes to their workplaces, without stopping, at exactly the right time they need them.

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