Cummins Plan

[Cock Throppled]

What do you think of John Cummins idea to fund transit with 1% cut in municipal spending?

I thought it was worth thinking about, but holy flying fuck what a reaction from Gregor and a few regional mayors when it was suggested. "Can't be done" "No place to cut" "We're already running a lean operation".

Last year Vancouver had a $1.1 million cell phone bill for city employees. WTF? And there's no room to make cuts?

Cutting spending never seems to be an option with any of our politicians.

 

[twoblues]

Guaranteed anyone of us can walk in and find some fat to trim.

There is an amazing lack of accountability when they spend other peoples' money.

As for the cell phones...what did they do before cell phones? Does everyone of those people require cell phones? Do they cover personal usage? If 4 guys travel together...does each one require a cell phone?

 

[vancity_cowboy]

As for the cell phones...what did they do before cell phones? Does everyone of those people require cell phones? Do they cover personal usage? If 4 guys travel together...does each one require a cell phone?

before the days of cell phones they had a million dollar bill for motorola radios in all their vehicles so they could talk to their employees in the field - cell phones have replaced those radios

and before that they had a big bill for extra supervisors to monitor the field jobs because once the employees left the yard, there was no way of them asking questions or the supervisors hearing about problems on the job

although there are probably people carrying municipal-owned cell phones that shouldn't be, a million bucks toward increasing productivity by the use of cell phones is the least of their worries

 

[agentman]

The politicians and top bureaucrats should take a pay cut as well as get rid of their gold plated pensions to help fund transit.



Vote Libertarian
http://www.libertarian.bc.ca/

 

[badbadboy]

Here is how you fix this mess:

Raise the cost of transit to its ridership. It is too inexpensive now and the ridership should bear some more of the cost. I know there would be howls over this but really, YVR via Canada Line to Waterfront and then Seabus to N Van for $5.50 is too low. At minimum it should be an $8.00 ride.

Either scrap Air Care or drop the cost of it to $20 and give the other $25 to BC Transit. This Air Care thing has just been a boondoggle without substance for years. Only vehicles registered in GVRD have to do it.

Take away the powers of the GVRD board and make a crown corporation like BC Buildings, BC Ferries et al and tell them to make the thing run without asking for a price increase every year. Funding would come from the gas taxes we are already paying + some of the extra taxes already being paid for at the pump. Over 36.5 C/l are already being paid in tax by all drivers in BC.

British Columbia 36.145¢ GST + Includes carbon tax of 5.56 ¢/L as of July 1, 2011 (scheduled to rise to 6.95 ¢/L on July 1, 2012).

Build a proper freeway system with a ring road around Vancouver - Richmond - North and West Vancouver - Burnaby so traffic is not always bumper to bumper everywhere. Constant bumper to bumper adds significantly to the air quality problem. Make the damn traffic move.

Rant off

 

[whoisjohngalt]

There is no doubt that 1% could easily be cut from municipal budgets if the political will were present. The problem is that governments by their very design will always resist cuts and always have a tendency to expand. Any cuts actually implemented are always temporary and short-lived.

The only way to really reduce the size of government is not by "trimming the fat" from existing programs and departments, but by reducing the scope of government. Anything that can be provided by the private sector should be provided by the private sector, unless there are compelling reasons for government involvement, such as the potential for monopoly in an industry like electricity transmission.

For example, the government should not be in the business of liquor distribution, delivery of health services (although remedying this will not be possible until the Canada Health Act is amended or abolished), postal delivery, management and provision of low income housing (can be replaced by a program of rent subsidies or direct cash grants), post secondary education (and arguably primary and secondary as well), agricultural price supports, business subsidies, arts funding, and so many others.

Until we are willing to eliminate some of these types of programs, there can be no meaningful reductions in government spending, and therefore no significant tax reductions. All talk of improving efficiency and eliminating waste of government programs is laudable and worthwhile to pursue but is ultimately not likely to have much of an impact on government spending.

 

[whoisjohngalt]

Raise the cost of transit to its ridership. It is too inexpensive now and the ridership should bear some more of the cost. I know there would be howls over this but really, YVR via Canada Line to Waterfront and then Seabus to N Van for $5.50 is too low. At minimum it should be an $8.00 ride.

Build a proper freeway system with a ring road around Vancouver - Richmond - North and West Vancouver - Burnaby so traffic is not always bumper to bumper everywhere. Constant bumper to bumper adds significantly to the air quality problem. Make the damn traffic move.

I'm with you on both of these ideas. I'd even be in favour of paying higher gas taxes and/or tolls if it would be guaranteed in law that the funds would be designated exclusively for maintaining and upgrading the road system, if it could be shown that the current level of gas taxes were not sufficient.

 

[Cock Throppled]

Cell phone may have increased productivity in some ways, but cost it on others.

Personal calls are taken and made all the time.

Not everyone needs a cell phone.

The plans can be changed to make them cheaper.

People often chat away on cells when they are sitting next to land lines.

The real fat in every level of government is in the perks. Video conferencing can replace probably 90% of face to face meetings. Travel for MLA's, MP's and municipal councillors and staff could probably be almost all eliminated, but it's a perk they want to keep.

The question asked of every expense sheet handed in is if they would have paid for it themselves if they had to. I don't mind paying my share of taxes for police, fire, health, education, worker standards, food safety, etc. I sure as hell hate paying for vacations disguised as "trade missions", retreats to refresh staff or seminars that have flimsy connections to anything we need in BC. Why are these junkets and conventions always held in exotic locations?