Maryland Transit Administration to stop shuttle buses to Ravens,

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), May 16, 2008 by Andy Rosen

At the insistence of the federal government, the Maryland Transit Administration plans to stop its shuttle runs to major sporting events from parking lots around the area June 2.

Transit officials said Thursday that they are required by Federal Transit Administration rules to stop the service, which brings people from "park and ride" facilities and other lots to events such as Baltimore Orioles games, Baltimore Ravens games and the Preakness Stakes.

The MTA charges $10 for the bus runs, which is more than the regular fares for MTA buses, so the FTA classifies the shuttles as a "premium" service. Unless the MTA reduced the price to its normal express fares of between $3.50 and $4, it could jeopardize critical federal funding for the state's transit system.

MTA spokeswoman Juwauna Greene said the state could not afford that. It already subsidizes the shuttle runs, she said.

The FTA's rules aim to spur private participation in the shuttle market, said spokesman Paul Griffo. He said they have been in place for several years, and the FTA is now stepping up enforcement. He said states are allowed to continue some premium service if no private companies are interested.

"The rule is designed to keep a federally subsidized transit [system] from competing with a private-sector business," Griffo said.

James LaRusch, chief counsel to the American Public Transportation Association, said the rule changed drastically beginning in May. It redefined charter service to include services that had been traditionally seen as public transportation and added new penalties.

"It's a substantial change for the agency and it's a real [reworking] of how they do business," he said.

The MTA expects to stop its shuttle service June 2, after the Orioles' weekend series against the Boston Red Sox, and has not yet announced a replacement for the service.

"On the one hand, you have the private sector saying 'great, the government shouldn't be subsidizing this,'" said Greene, of the MTA. "On the other hand, what if no one shows up?"

The change will likely have less of an effect on the Orioles than it will on the Ravens. According to the MTA, shuttles come from four lots for Orioles weekend games and three on weekdays. They typically take fewer than 110 passengers.

An average of about 2,550 fans take public shuttles to Ravens games at M&T Bank Stadium from seven parking lots, according to the MTA. That is fewer than the nearly 5,000 who come by light rail, but more than the 500 who get to the stadium via Metro.

Roy Sommerhof, vice president of stadium operations for the Ravens, said the organization only found out about the change this week, and is studying the issue.

"It does seem as though it could have an impact on those who use park and ride for Ravens games," he said.

Greene said the MTA is well-positioned to find new options before the Ravens begin. They have a preseason home game Aug. 17. She said riders can still use Metro, light rail and city buses if they want to get to a game using public transportation.

This will be an opportunity for the state's privately run charter bus companies, said Ron Eyre, president of Eyre Bus Service Inc. in Glenelg. He said he had not studied the change, but would discuss it with company management.

Still, it would be a challenging business model, and prices would probably go up without MTA subsidies, said Eyre. The company would not know how many people it might pick up, and might have to take reservations in advance.

"It would be complicated to manage, and my question is, do I need this additional headache?" he said.