Sup. Chiu: “I don’t want Muni used as an ATM”

SFMTASupervisor David Chiu is preparing legislation to reject the MTA’s budget due to the very high amount assigned to work orders to other city departments, notably the SFPD ($18 million for how many cops on buses?) and 311 ($1.96 per call). This follows weeks of hearings in which riders opposed service cuts and urged the MTA to reject the work orders, and Sup. Dufty’s initial push to get them reduced.

As long as the rejection doesn’t lead to more deferred maintenance and unplanned, random service cuts, this could be a good way to force other City departments to stop raiding mass transit to cover their own deficits.