LC 2.22 Amendment to the Easier Transport for All Act (L 15.6) (Final vote)

[Former President tack50]

A Bill

Easier Transport for All Act

Creating a region-wide bus system to serve as a supplement in rural areas to LincolnRail

Section 1. Creation
1. A new bus transport company owned by the region of Lincoln called LincolnBus will be created.
2. This company will be tasked with designing hundreds of bus routes across the region which service rural regions and connect them with the already existing LincolnRail network.

Section 2. Operation and Design
1. States will bid for inclusion into the LincolnBus network, providing necessary funding for the Government of Lincoln to operate a bus network in each state.
  a. If a state's bid is accepted without the necessary funding to operate a network, the Government of Lincoln will provide the remaining necessary funds on a temporary basis, which will be approved by the Assembly at LincolnBus's request.
2. The company will initially operate a pilot program in the first three (3) states to have bids accepted by the Government of Lincoln. After a period of six (6) months since the first bus route began operation, the Government will accept bids from any other states wishing to apply.
3. The company will design routes connecting stations in the LincolnRail network and regional centers and rural cities by a Design Commission comprised of two members from each constituent state of the network.
4. Once a route is approved, the Government will buy the necessary equipment and materials to maintain the network, along with hiring personnel. until a private operator has been found, as defined in Section 3.

Section 3. Ownership
1. The company will initially be owned completely and subsidized by the region of Lincoln with the cooperation and support of the states of Lincoln. These subsidies by the region of Lincoln shall be sufficient to cover fare for all passengers, fuel and all other related costs and expenditures of LincolnBus.
2. After a period of one (1) year since operation of the first bus route, the company will sell a stake in the company to private bus operators who have bid in the previous year for operation of various sections of the network, ultimately totalling to 75 percent between the various operators.
   a. These operators will be tasked with management of the infrastrcture and hiring of personnel only; branding and ticketing will still be maintained by the region of Lincoln. By the end of five (5) years since the company's creation, every bus route will be maintained and operated by a private operator.
3. If a sufficient amount of operators are not found, the region will continue to maintain the network until a sufficient amount of operators are found.

Section 4. Implementation
1. This bill shall become law upon the signing of the Governor.

Sponsor: PyroTheFox

Debate time for this bill has started and shall last for no less than 72h

[Pyro]

Mr. Speaker,

This amendment strikes out the stipulation in the original law mandating that LincolnBus, a project funded and built by public funds, be privatized. I wholeheartedly support the greater LincolnRail system and place my trust in its engineers, workers and commissioners to proceed with maintaining our transit network without fear of corporate takeover and consolidation. This bill shall ensure that LincolnBus remain always in the public sphere: thereby providing a guarantee to Lincolnites that it will remain efficiently operated and sufficiently funded. We in Lincoln believe that the concerns and needs of commuters outweigh the desires of a for-profit operating agency.

This too shall stipulate that the subsidies granted to the LincolnBus project be expanded as to provide all commuters the opportunity to travel fare-free. Keeping in mind the economic growth of our region and the expansive employment opportunities our region offers, I believe that it is past time we give back to our communities and reduce the burden of travel costs where we can. It is my hope that this fare-free experiment is eventually the mantra of public transit across our region.

[Former President tack50]

Excellent bill Mr. Chancellor! I fully agree that we should not privatize the public transit system in our region; transportation is something that should be ideally kept in the hands of the public sphere as it's a vital part of the commute of thousands of Lincolnites.

I am however a bit more concerned about making all public transit free. It's certainly a worthwhile experiment, though I am afraid of the high cost and wonder whether it will be effective or not.

I am aware of a handful of experiments on this line performed in Tallin, Estonia mostly; though their results have been inconclusive after a quick research. It might end up being an expensive experiment where the region doesn't get much in return. I will say I am in favour of lowering bus ticket prices though.

[Peanut]

Excellent bill!

Transportation is immensely important in our region's citizens' lives, and we as a government must safeguard it for the people if we are to have a prosperous society. Lincolnites deserve to have good, accessible transportation no matter where they are (and where they want to go).

I agree, to a certain extent, with the Speaker, but do think this bill is great and will  do good for Lincolnites.

[S019]

Selling stakes in business is good

Why are we getting rid off it

This is a bad amendment, and does not earb my support

[Pyro]

Selling stakes in business is good

Why are we getting rid off it

This is a bad amendment, and does not earb my support

Public projects and programs should not be privatized.

[Former President tack50]

Wikipedia apparently has an incredibly neat article on Free Public Transport which is certainly worth a read for this bill to consider it's advantages and disadvantages

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_public_transport

So far there have been several experiments, but none even remotely close to the scale of this project, with the largest being free public transit in Luxembourg, just reciently approved in late 2018 (not sure if it's in operation already). However the experiments have generally been found successful more often than not, but there have been some failures as well; and ridership does increase by a significant amount.

Also, reading the bill you could easily construe it as the state paying the fares, but fares still being allowed by operators. No idea if those would flow back to the state as revenue or if they'd go to the pockets of the operators. So even if we actually go with free public transport we still need some rewording to do.

Fun fact: I've actually been studying this exact topic and a couple of other urban transportation projects reciently for an RL test I have! So I can go more in-depth and/or look at my RL notes if needed.

For now I'll just say that income for transportation companies comes in a very large percentage (around 45% usually) from fares. That would need to be covered by the state if we are to make public transportation free.

[Pyro]

Mr. Speaker, I add the following amendment in response to your concerns.

A Bill

Easier Transport for All Act

Creating a region-wide bus system to serve as a supplement in rural areas to LincolnRail

Section 1. Creation
1. A new bus transport company owned by the region of Lincoln called LincolnBus will be created.
2. This company will be tasked with designing hundreds of bus routes across the region which service rural regions and connect them with the already existing LincolnRail network.

Section 2. Operation and Design
1. States will bid for inclusion into the LincolnBus network, providing necessary funding for the Government of Lincoln to operate a bus network in each state.
  a. If a state's bid is accepted without the necessary funding to operate a network, the Government of Lincoln will provide the remaining necessary funds on a temporary basis, which will be approved by the Assembly at LincolnBus's request.
2. The company will initially operate a pilot program in the first three (3) states to have bids accepted by the Government of Lincoln. After a period of six (6) months since the first bus route began operation, the Government will accept bids from any other states wishing to apply.
3. The company will design routes connecting stations in the LincolnRail network and regional centers and rural cities by a Design Commission comprised of two members from each constituent state of the network.
4. Once a route is approved, the Government will buy the necessary equipment and materials to maintain the network, along with hiring personnel. until a private operator has been found, as defined in Section 3.
5. LincolnBus shall charge no fare to passengers.

Section 3. Ownership
1. The company will initially be owned completely and subsidized by the region of Lincoln with the cooperation and support of the states of Lincoln. These subsidies by the region of Lincoln shall be sufficient to cover fare for all passengers, fuel and all other related costs and expenditures of LincolnBus.
2. After a period of one (1) year since operation of the first bus route, the company will sell a stake in the company to private bus operators who have bid in the previous year for operation of various sections of the network, ultimately totalling to 75 percent between the various operators.
   a. These operators will be tasked with management of the infrastrcture and hiring of personnel only; branding and ticketing will still be maintained by the region of Lincoln. By the end of five (5) years since the company's creation, every bus route will be maintained and operated by a private operator.
3. If a sufficient amount of operators are not found, the region will continue to maintain the network until a sufficient amount of operators are found.

Section 4. Implementation
1. This bill shall become law upon the signing of the Governor.

[Former President tack50]

Amendment L 2:48 by Pyro to LC 2.22 Amendment to the Easier Transport for All Act (L 15.6)

A Bill

Easier Transport for All Act

Creating a region-wide bus system to serve as a supplement in rural areas to LincolnRail

Section 1. Creation
1. A new bus transport company owned by the region of Lincoln called LincolnBus will be created.
2. This company will be tasked with designing hundreds of bus routes across the region which service rural regions and connect them with the already existing LincolnRail network.

Section 2. Operation and Design
1. States will bid for inclusion into the LincolnBus network, providing necessary funding for the Government of Lincoln to operate a bus network in each state.
  a. If a state's bid is accepted without the necessary funding to operate a network, the Government of Lincoln will provide the remaining necessary funds on a temporary basis, which will be approved by the Assembly at LincolnBus's request.
2. The company will initially operate a pilot program in the first three (3) states to have bids accepted by the Government of Lincoln. After a period of six (6) months since the first bus route began operation, the Government will accept bids from any other states wishing to apply.
3. The company will design routes connecting stations in the LincolnRail network and regional centers and rural cities by a Design Commission comprised of two members from each constituent state of the network.
4. Once a route is approved, the Government will buy the necessary equipment and materials to maintain the network, along with hiring personnel. until a private operator has been found, as defined in Section 3.
5. LincolnBus shall charge no fare to passengers.

Section 3. Ownership
1. The company will initially be owned completely and subsidized by the region of Lincoln with the cooperation and support of the states of Lincoln. These subsidies by the region of Lincoln shall be sufficient to cover fare for all passengers, fuel and all other related costs and expenditures of LincolnBus.
2. After a period of one (1) year since operation of the first bus route, the company will sell a stake in the company to private bus operators who have bid in the previous year for operation of various sections of the network, ultimately totalling to 75 percent between the various operators.
   a. These operators will be tasked with management of the infrastrcture and hiring of personnel only; branding and ticketing will still be maintained by the region of Lincoln. By the end of five (5) years since the company's creation, every bus route will be maintained and operated by a private operator.
3. If a sufficient amount of operators are not found, the region will continue to maintain the network until a sufficient amount of operators are found.

Section 4. Implementation
1. This bill shall become law upon the signing of the Governor.

Sponsor feedback: Origination
Status: 24 hours to object, otherwise added to the bill

I have to say this amendment works as the rewrite I was asking for. It of course doesn't change the underlying problem (the fact that Lincoln's transportation investment would have to be doubled) but it was needed regardless. Nice job!

In any case, at the very least this will be a worthwhile experiment.

[Former President tack50]

With no objections, the above amendment has been added to the bill

[Former President tack50]

Come to think about it, we probably need some cost analysis for this.

Also, since both LincolnBus and LincolnRail were quite vague I believe, I think this will be hard to put a price on.

[Former President tack50]

Wow, this bill has been sitting for 12 days! Oops :/

Anyways, let's get this done with. I motion for a final vote, 24h to object

[Former President tack50]

Councillors, a FINAL vote is now open on the following legislation

A Bill

Easier Transport for All Act

Creating a region-wide bus system to serve as a supplement in rural areas to LincolnRail

Section 1. Creation
1. A new bus transport company owned by the region of Lincoln called LincolnBus will be created.
2. This company will be tasked with designing hundreds of bus routes across the region which service rural regions and connect them with the already existing LincolnRail network.

Section 2. Operation and Design
1. States will bid for inclusion into the LincolnBus network, providing necessary funding for the Government of Lincoln to operate a bus network in each state.
  a. If a state's bid is accepted without the necessary funding to operate a network, the Government of Lincoln will provide the remaining necessary funds on a temporary basis, which will be approved by the Assembly at LincolnBus's request.
2. The company will initially operate a pilot program in the first three (3) states to have bids accepted by the Government of Lincoln. After a period of six (6) months since the first bus route began operation, the Government will accept bids from any other states wishing to apply.
3. The company will design routes connecting stations in the LincolnRail network and regional centers and rural cities by a Design Commission comprised of two members from each constituent state of the network.
4. Once a route is approved, the Government will buy the necessary equipment and materials to maintain the network, along with hiring personnel. until a private operator has been found, as defined in Section 3.
5. LincolnBus shall charge no fare to passengers.

Section 3. Ownership
1. The company will initially be owned completely and subsidized by the region of Lincoln with the cooperation and support of the states of Lincoln. These subsidies by the region of Lincoln shall be sufficient to cover fare for all passengers, fuel and all other related costs and expenditures of LincolnBus.
2. After a period of one (1) year since operation of the first bus route, the company will sell a stake in the company to private bus operators who have bid in the previous year for operation of various sections of the network, ultimately totalling to 75 percent between the various operators.
   a. These operators will be tasked with management of the infrastrcture and hiring of personnel only; branding and ticketing will still be maintained by the region of Lincoln. By the end of five (5) years since the company's creation, every bus route will be maintained and operated by a private operator.
3. If a sufficient amount of operators are not found, the region will continue to maintain the network until a sufficient amount of operators are found.

Section 4. Implementation
1. This bill shall become law upon the signing of the Governor.

Please vote AYE, NAY or Abstain
This vote shall last for 48 hours or until all Councillors have voted

[Dipper Josh]

Aye

[lfromnj]

Do we really need to increase spending when we already have to fix a major deficit?

Nay

[Pyro]

AYE

[Former President tack50]

Aye

I have concerns about funding, but overall this is a good idea and a worthwhile experiment. We should revisit this bill in a handful of months or a year to see how it's doing though.

[S019]

Nay

As I said earlier, companies should be allowed to sell stakes in businesses, if they wish, As the provision banning that still exists, there is no universe, in which, I can support this

[Adam Griffin]

Aye

[Former President tack50]

The FINAL vote on LC 2.22 Amendment to the Easier Transport for All Act (L 15.6) is now closed

Aye: 5 (Dipper Josh, thr33, Pyro, tack50, Griffin)
Abstain: 0
Nay: 2 (lfromnj, SNJC)
Not voting: 1 (Zaybay)

So this bill passes

[Peanut]

A Bill

Easier Transport for All Act

Creating a region-wide bus system to serve as a supplement in rural areas to LincolnRail

Section 1. Creation
1. A new bus transport company owned by the region of Lincoln called LincolnBus will be created.
2. This company will be tasked with designing hundreds of bus routes across the region which service rural regions and connect them with the already existing LincolnRail network.

Section 2. Operation and Design
1. States will bid for inclusion into the LincolnBus network, providing necessary funding for the Government of Lincoln to operate a bus network in each state.
  a. If a state's bid is accepted without the necessary funding to operate a network, the Government of Lincoln will provide the remaining necessary funds on a temporary basis, which will be approved by the Assembly at LincolnBus's request.
2. The company will initially operate a pilot program in the first three (3) states to have bids accepted by the Government of Lincoln. After a period of six (6) months since the first bus route began operation, the Government will accept bids from any other states wishing to apply.
3. The company will design routes connecting stations in the LincolnRail network and regional centers and rural cities by a Design Commission comprised of two members from each constituent state of the network.
4. Once a route is approved, the Government will buy the necessary equipment and materials to maintain the network, along with hiring personnel.
5. LincolnBus shall charge no fare to passengers.

Section 3. Ownership
1. The company will initially be owned completely and subsidized by the region of Lincoln with the cooperation and support of the states of Lincoln. These subsidies by the region of Lincoln shall be sufficient to cover fuel and all other related costs and expenditures of LincolnBus.

Section 4. Implementation
1. This bill shall become law upon the signing of the Governor.

[lfromnj]

On second thought I do regret this vote. It was a merely test. I would have voted against the final thing but I think I judged it too harshly.