Sharon Coolidge

scoolidge@enquirer.com

The Federal Transit Authority said Wednesday it does "not dictate the terms of operation" for public transit services like the streetcar.

In other words: The city can set the hours. Federal authorities sought to clarify who sets rules in the wake of comments by Mayor John Cranley that suggested hours could be reduced if operating revenue fell short. Streetcar supporters quickly expressed concern.

"It is a local decision as to how the city moves forward," said Amy Bernstein, who works in the Office of Communications & Congressional Affairs for the Federal Transit Administration. The federal government provided $45 million of the $133 million needed to build the streetcar.

But, Bernstein noted, that FTA's competitive grants for projects like the streetcar are intended to "provide service that is generally available to the traveling public." It is not, she said, for special-event purposes only as Mayor John Cranley suggested in a radio interview.

Cranley said those comments came in response to an "extreme hypothetical" question about the possibility that nobody would ride the streetcar. Those comments, coupled with an Enquirer look at money identified to pay for operations, sparked a community conversation about where the money will come from.

Cranley insists it will not come out of basic services budget.

"The City has articulated its commitment for streetcar service in the competitive grant applications that we are funding," FTA Acting Administrator Therese McMillan said. "The City and its partners can now determine how best to keep that commitment so that Cincinnati can reap the benefits from this new expansion of local transit service."

Cranley outlined the operating where he sees operating costs coming from:

• The Haile/U.S. Bank Foundation pledged $900,000 a year for 10 years. That takes the operating cost gap down to $2.8 million.

• About $1 million a year could come from fares. That would take the gap down to $1.8 million.

• Cranley is proposing that parking – extra meters in Over-the-Rhine and residential parking permits that cost $300 to $400 dollars a year – could bring in another $700,000 a year. That would take the gap down to $1.1 million.

• The rest, Cranley said, should come from Over-the-Rhine residents imposing a tax on themselves. The idea originated with City Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld and streetcar supporters in December. The problem: So far no citizen has initiated creating a special taxing district.

Cranley said absent the local tax, streetcar operations would have to be curbed to match financing.

"Of course we have local control over the frequency," said Cranley, who spoke with McMillan Wednesday.

"She thought we were on the right track; that things we're going great," Cranley said.

Cranley remains hopeful the neighborhood, as many streetcar supporters promised, will put a special taxing district in place.

"I think we can find a solution, whether it's 100 percent of what was promised or not," Cranley said.

The city, in applying for federal grant money for the project, described operations.

On Cincinnati's TIGER application, for which the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $15.9 million in funding, the city stated: "The route will be serviced by a fleet of five modern streetcars operating roughly 16-18 hours per day, seven days per week, 365 days per year."

On its Urban Circulator application, for which the Federal Transit Administration awarded $25 million, the city stated: "The streetcar feasibility study outlined service seven days per week, averaging 18 hours of service per day. The streetcars will operate every 10 minutes during peak travel time, and every 20 minutes in the off peak. These daily and hourly schedules can be adjusted based on demand, for example, during festivals or sporting events."