Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, July 17, 1990 TAG: 9007170288
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ELLIE SCHAFFZIN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"I like it," Clark said. "You don't get something for nothing. Prices don't bother me," he added.
One-trip fares rose Monday from 75 cents to $1, and the fare for elderly and handicapped passengers rose from 35 cents to 50 cents. Not all Valley Metro customers were as pleased as Clark.
"Too much. Too much," said James Jones. Jones, who said he rides the bus to meet his friends and hang out in town, said he would stop riding the bus as a result of the increase.
"I guess my ma or my friends" would give him a lift, he said.
Steve Poindexter said he would not stop taking the bus, but said he was "not enthused" with the new fare, and thought the state should help fund the costs for the customers who have no other means of transportation.
"A lot of people who are riding it don't have much of a choice," he said.
One passenger said she had no choice but to ride the bus, and said she felt the price rise was "ridiculous."
"That's quite a big chunk out of your pay. . . . It goes up, where does it end?" she said.
According to a Valley Metro ticket window employee, customers were not very upset with the new fare. Some passengers, she said, had been paying a dollar already.
"Most people give a dollar anyway, and the bus drivers don't have change. I think a lot of people are used to it," she said.
Many passengers said they were not happy to part with an extra quarter, but they understood the price increase.
"I think they should've stayed at 75 cents. That's life!" Tonya Smith said.
One Valley Metro bus driver said her passengers were relieved that transfers would remain free. City Council rejected a proposal to charge for the transfers.
Another driver agreed there was little protest from customers who were asked to pay the new price Monday morning.
"I think it's fair - everything else has gone up. I haven't heard anybody complaining," he said.
Waiting for the bus, Clark proudly waved his dollar's worth. He thought the price he had paid for the ticket was just fine.
"A lot of people cry unnecessarily. You can't die and take it with you. You've gotta do something with it," he said, pointing to his money.
Fellow passenger George Otey agreed.
"People are going to complain about anything with dollars. . . . Where else can you ride around the city in air conditioning?" he said.
by CNB