Dear Editor:

How ironic (and troubling) that on the very day that the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority breaks ground on its taxpayer-funded $46 million expansion, it also slashes downvalley service by 50 percent before ski season has even ended. This morning (Saturday), I stood outside in the cold for 30-plus minutes waiting for an upvalley bus that never came.

When the next scheduled bus finally arrived, I was told that RFTA had switched to its offseason schedule – even though it was still in-season! Once on the bus, I heard comments up and down the aisle from loyal RFTA passengers who were going to be late to work because of the schedule switch.

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Which bean-counting wizard at RFTA came up with this idea to save money? My choice now is to get up half an hour early and spend $10 and 90 minutes every day riding RFTA, or I can commute in my own vehicle ($4 and 50 minutes) and sleep half an hour later every morning. Is that RFTA’s grand plan to increase bus ridership? Instead of calling it RFTA on steroids, maybe they should call it RFTA on crack.

Willet Mather

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Basalt