{"id":21743,"date":"2011-08-02T10:00:19","date_gmt":"2011-08-02T14:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spacingtoronto.ca\/?p=21743"},"modified":"2013-01-21T14:07:54","modified_gmt":"2013-01-21T19:07:54","slug":"keeping-top-transit-chiefs-in-tough-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2011\/08\/02\/keeping-top-transit-chiefs-in-tough-times\/","title":{"rendered":"Keeping top transit chiefs in tough times"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. A far cry, maybe, from how Billy Ocean intended it<\/a>, but this old English proverb loosely describes the state of transit management in North America\u2019s two largest systems.<\/p>\n

Just over a week ago, New York\u2019s MTA Chairman and CEO Jay Walder announced to everyone\u2019s surprise that he would be departing two years into his six-year term for private transit operator MTR Corp. in Hong Kong. Although first seen as simply the obvious career move for an ambitious transit leader, recently reports hint<\/a> at a poor relationship with a Governor disinterested in transit and difficult labor negotiations looming without the hope of new government revenues contributing to Walder\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n

This new twist strikes a curious parallel to the TTC\u2019s Gary Webster, who recently<\/a> found himself in the crosshairs of the Brothers Ford. With support now rushing to his side, it seems less likely he\u2019ll follow Walder overseas \u2014 at least in the short term \u2014 but could you blame him if he did? The challenging state of transit funding in much of the continent has both attracted and cultivated top talent, who have transformed some of the most cash-strapped agencies into extremely efficient organizations. But for how much longer they\u2019ll stick around with booming systems in Asia looking for top talent is anyone\u2019s guess.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

New York may not have been able to afford to keep Walder (his salary at MTR Corp. will likely<\/a> end up being an order of magnitude higher) but the region may not be able to afford to lose him either. Coming from London, England in 2009, where he had played a key role in implementing the Oyster Card, spearheading congestion pricing and the subsequent impressive bus improvements, Walder is credited<\/a> for turning around the aging system with high-tech innovations.<\/p>\n

During his short time at the MTA, countdown clocks have been installed in 161 subway stations, real-time bus information<\/a> and other pilots like smartcards have been started. All while reducing the current capital budget by $4 billion through things like \u201cprocurement efficiencies\u201d without cutting any originally planned projects. Granted, the remaining $9 billion dollars needed to fund these projects is being filled by unprecedented levels of debt many fear will jeopardize all future projects and service. However, it seems Walder is unwilling to let intransigent governments kill long overdue projects already heavily invested in, like the new 2nd<\/sup> avenue subway, track and signal improvements to allow trains to more frequently and the purchasing of new subway cars and buses.<\/p>\n

Sound familiar? That\u2019s because these are exactly the same kinds of projects Webster has been overseeing at the TTC that have been and continue to be under threat<\/a>. More than just fighting for good projects, under Webster the TTC has sustained the highest farebox recovery ratio for an urban public transit operator in the western world. This is a technical way of saying an often-mentioned fact that the TTC requires the smallest share of government subsidies to balance its books than any comparable transit agency less than a fifteen-hour flight from Pearson.<\/p>\n

This fact is worth repeating: of every dollar spent by the TTC to keep the system running, 67 cents is made back almost entirely through fares.<\/p>\n

To put this number in context, the average U.S. public transit operator makes only a third of the money it needs to operate through fares \u2014 half as much as the TTC. Even compared to our nearest competitors, the TTC is way ahead. This includes New York\u2019s MTA (50.5), Chicago’s CTA (55.2, not counting security costs that would otherwise drop it to 46), Montreal’s STM (46.8) and Vancouver\u2019s TransLink (46.3 in 2009). The only large transit operator on the continent with a better score is Toronto\u2019s commuter service GO Transit, which in 2008 recovered an astounding 88 cents for every dollar spent in operations.<\/p>\n

Before patting ourselves too hard on the back, the kind of \u201ctough\u201d management and engineering culture (as opposed to, say, focusing on customer service) that has made the TTC a model for fiscal sustainability is also a commentary on a subsidy-starved system driven to extremes. In Europe, many great systems happily function when fares cover barely half the operating costs. This is because those governments see public transit as a social, environmental and economic engine where the benefits far outweigh the costs.<\/p>\n

Which is what makes managers like Webster and Walder so attractive to new systems flush with cash. Instead in Toronto, already high fares keep getting higher as the TTC continues to do more with less, all while the public is told it\u2019s because of \u201cwaste.\u201d<\/p>\n

Build a Sheppard subway entirely with private dollars? Mayor Ford should take a clue from Walder and pack his bags for Hong Kong. There MTR Corp. is both transit provider and property developer, allowing it to recapture the increase in property values that it caused in the first place and actually make a profit<\/a>. Meanwhile, the TTC is asked to build a line it can\u2019t possibly pay for or operate profitably, only so that private developers and property owners in Scarborough can reap the lion\u2019s share of the benefits while service declines system-wide.<\/p>\n

Losing experts like Walder and Webster is the waste the Fords should be on the lookout for, not the reverse.<\/p>\n

photo by Pixeloflight<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. A far cry, maybe, from how Billy Ocean intended it, but this old English proverb loosely describes the state of transit management in North America\u2019s two largest systems. Just over a week ago, New York\u2019s MTA Chairman and CEO Jay Walder announced to everyone\u2019s surprise thatContinue reading “Keeping top transit chiefs in tough times”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4071,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[50,2],"tags":[18097,6581,18095,1349,18098,431,1128,1174,45,3280,1211,18092,18096,359,426,38,18101,18100,469,1154,3436,18094,18091,89,18099,19,18093,464,506,391,54],"class_list":["post-21743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-infrastructure","category-politics","tag-ambitious-transit-leader","tag-asia","tag-billy-ocean","tag-cent","tag-chairman-and-ceo","tag-chicago","tag-europe","tag-ford","tag-funding-cities","tag-gary-webster","tag-governor","tag-high-tech-innovations","tag-jay-walder","tag-london","tag-mayor","tag-montreal","tag-mta","tag-mtr-corp","tag-new-york","tag-north-america","tag-pearson","tag-private-transit-operator","tag-property-developer","tag-scarborough","tag-there-mtr-corp","tag-toronto","tag-transit-management","tag-united-kingdom","tag-united-states","tag-usd","tag-vancouver"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nKeeping top transit chiefs in tough times - Spacing Toronto<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2011\/08\/02\/keeping-top-transit-chiefs-in-tough-times\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Keeping top transit chiefs in tough times - Spacing Toronto\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When the going gets tough, the tough get going. 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