Heather Curtis
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON — (WMAL) Metro’s falling off the financial cliff fast, and General Manager Paul Wiedefeld said there’s only so much he can do to balance the budget.
For the financial year starting in July Wiedefeld has proposed fare hikes, service cuts, getting rid a total of 1,000 employees, and more money from the jurisdictions to close a nearly $300 million budget gap.
He’s also putting a plan in place to make sure people out on extended medical leave are legitimately sick, as well as instituting a hiring and spending freeze on expenses not related to safety.
“What I’m trying to do is maximize everything we can in terms of efficiency in terms of right-sizing, both internally and externally, but at some point, there’s nothing left for me to go to, and we’re fast approaching that, and I think that’s why in the 18 budget and going forward, the region has to comes to grip with that,” Wiedefeld said during a conference call Wednesday.
With ridership down 12 percent over the last six months alone, the transit agency’s financial troubles won’t be getting better any time soon.
“We are not gonna let Metro be starved for money, but before we spend money, we want a plan,” said Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe.
He said he has confidence in Wiedefeld but hasn’t yet seen the financial plan he’s looking for before the state gives the transit system more money.
Metro’s finance committee meets today for a financial update. A vote on the proposed budget for the financial year starting in July will be taken in March.
Copyright 2017 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (photo: WMATA)
