MATA: Why All the Chamber Love and What Happened?
Local & National News | May 06, 2024
Local & National News | May 06, 2024
Written by: Joe B. Kent
There has been an outbreak of Greater Memphis Chamber social media love for MATA. But why? Seems business leaders would be concerned about tanking MATA fixed route ridership and the transit agency’s inability to produce current financials for board review immediately after a $20M taxpayer funded interlocal loan.
The former occurs as MATA fixed route ridership has failed to recover, unlike other peer cities since COVID (Taxpayer). Are local Chamber narrative shapers in President Ted Townsend and Chairman’s Circle leader Bill Dunavant content with a botched public transit system?
I question MATA, while being a supporter of the new Bacarra Mauldin MATA administration and favoring more public transit funding. But more funding only after knowing what happened at MATA regarding non-improving ridership, unavailable financials, a $20M City loan and an abrupt departure of former MATA lead, Gary Ronsenfeld.
Mauldin is indeed cleaning up after Rosenfeld, but the public still needs know what has happened with their tax dollars at $70M public transit agency with a seventy-five cent/28% property tax increase on the table. Where is the public outrage?
Mauldin has greeted the public with a collaborative theme but public collaboration with MATA is impossible with no financial information and a new administration that is not responding to public information requests.
On 3/12/24, I asked MATA for their average unlinked passenger trip cost for each of their fixed routes and services areas. As of 5/3/24, there has been no answer. This needed information gets at network efficiency and potential opportunities to increase transit reliability. And then there is $20M unaccounted for in the FY25 Proposed City of Memphis Budget.
Unavailable MATA information raises concerns regarding FY25 MATA budget increases of $5M+. This FY25 request follows the FY24 Strickland Administration’s $20M cash flow bailout loan of MATA on 11/21/23 (City Council). That’s a $20M interlocal agreement loan to mature by June 30, 2024. Per Rosenfeld committee testimony, payback of the loan was expected as early as April or May of FY24.
Hopefully, Council Budget Chair, Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations member, government efficiency advocate and local businessman Chase Carlise is concerned about $20M. Concerning is the fact that interlocal agreement revenue of $20M is not projected in the FY24 forecast coupled with a $20M outflow to MATA, per the FY25 proposed City of Memphis budget (City of Memphis). In November 2023 committee, Budget Chair Carlisle had no questions and seemed content with loaning MATA $20M.
Asking if the $20M has been repaid to the City by MATA or when payback is expected should be a leading question in FY25 Historic Council budget hearings. During November committee testimony, in an exchange with Councilor Washington, CFO Shirley Ford representing the Strickland Administration said regarding the MATA interlocal loan:
City Council Chair JB Smiley has said that everything is on the table. But will it be? Currently, there is $20M unaccounted for in the proposed FY25 budget and that is a bunch of money, all while bad transit remains a community choice in Memphis, TN.
Bad public transit has been a sustained Memphis community choice for years, whether by local government or the corps of so-called poverty fighting organizations. Ever heard any of the poverty remediation corps question spending $1 billion on stadiums? Or ever seen an opinion column in the local press saying, “Ah maybe $1B on Stadiums is NOT the Solution?”.
So really, $120M for a good college stadium and $230M for a 20yr old FedEx Forum is not good enough? While unscientific based on fan ratings, The Stadium Guide rated FedEx Forum #2 of 29 arenas (The Stadium Guide). Why $550M? $230M should easily vault FedEx Forum to #1.
But the players in the poverty remediation space seem perfectly content with spending $550M on FedEx Forum and higher property taxes, as opposed to a mere $230M cap on FedEx Forum. Such a cap would likely result in $25M more available funding per year for public transit, without increasing property taxes.
Keep in mind, some in the local anti-poverty corps assert they are going to end poverty. Whatever! Forget about ending poverty for a moment. How about just poverty relief? Better public transit is only poverty relief and no one in Memphis seems pissed about spending $1B on stadiums, MATA’s lack of transparency or inability to produce current financials.
Again, bad transit is a sustained public choice. For example, even Mayor Young’s increase for transit fails to deliver mere poverty relief in the near term. Young’s proposed budget puts $5M+ towards the futuristic $136M Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) initiative that promises increased reliability and service along busy corridors. But BRT was supposed to be operational in 2026 but has recently been pushed out to 2031. What the hell happened?
No one is pissed or outraged about the delay. And no one seems to know that BRT implementations around the country have failed to increase fixed route network ridership (Taxpayer). Bad transit is a sustained community choice.
Public transit is expensive. MATA nor, taxpayers can afford inefficient public transit investments. And MATA and Maudlin are only going to be successful with an informed, collaborative, and transparent public partnership. So, what is really going on with MATA? Public transit supporters need to know even if the Chamber business community is oddly content with lacking financials and inadequate public transit.
Meanwhile, at a minimum, the public needs to know about this $20M and MATA’s financial status while getting improved transparency. And also know, the Council has really until July 30th to pass a budget. No hurry as the public needs to know!
