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Posted on Sat, Aug. 30, 2003 U.S. time
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Date Posted: 6/09/03 1:06:49pm
In reply to:
Aug 11 2003
's message, "Confirmation of San Francisco at or around the time of the annual report is just Mr Fogarty's style." on 1/09/03 9:33:35pm
Posted on Sat, Aug. 30, 2003
BART's TransLink balk has cards faring poorly
By Lisa Vorderbrueggen
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
BART leaders have rejected a deal that would have ended the transit agency's dispute over the operation of TransLink, the region's first universal fare card
The agency won several concessions but the elected directors sought stronger assurances that TransLink managers would retrofit ticket vending machines in BART's stations.
The draft accord between the top managers of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and BART consented to a retrofit but did not guarantee a source of cash to pay for it.
"Our customers must have the ability to add fare on their TransLink cards inside BART stations," said BART Director Dan Richard of Walnut Creek.
BART on Thursday sent its staff back to the negotiating table with the commission, which manages TransLink. It rescheduled the matter for its Sept. 25 meeting.
The directors also asked staffers to evaluate what Richard called serious allegations of problems with the management of TransLink and its contractor, Australia-based ERG.
"I don't want to spend millions of dollars retrofitting BART ticket machines for a card that never comes," Richard said.
Commission spokesman Randy Rentschler assured commuters that TransLink will open.
But BART's action further delays the start date. The commission had hoped to open TransLink within the year on selected transit systems and within two years on most agencies.
TransLink cards feature an embedded computer chip that commuters wave past a reader, which triggers a computer to deduct fares from prepaid accounts.
The commission had intended to open TransLink first on Golden Gate buses and ferries, followed by San Francisco MUNI, AC Transit, CalTrain and Santa Clara Valley Transit.
The commission has already ordered the equipment from ERG. Its staff has scheduled a board vote in late September to officially proceed with installation.
But without BART, estimated to generate a third of TransLink users, the farecard program is unlikely to go anywhere.
Worried about more delay, MTC Commissioner Mark DeSaulnier of Concord has requested a high-level negotiation session next week.
"After all this time for BART to try and pull the plug simply cannot happen," said DeSaulnier, also a Contra Costa County supervisor.
"We have to all get together in the same room and fix this."
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Lisa Vorderbrueggen covers transportation and growth. Reach her at 925-945-4773 or lvorderb@cctimes.com.
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