Posted by ABA President & CEO Peter Pantuso
August 20, 2008

The number of factual errors in the media about the new charter rules that took affect May 1st is quickly approaching those committed by bad outfielders.

The Federal Transit Agency’s May 1 decision upholds a 35-year law prohibiting taxpaying-subsidized transit systems from providing shuttle services if independent bus companies are available to do so. Until the new rule went into effect, all citizens, including those on fixed incomes, were paying a transit tariff whether they used game-day transportation service or not. Past illegal practices unfairly allowed taxpayer subsidized transits to fleece independent bus operators out of the competitive process.

The new rule merely enforces the law prohibiting taxpayer-subsidized transits from using your hard-earned tax dollars to force small, independently operated bus services (who get no taxpayer subsidy) out of the marketplace. Nearly 80 percent of ABA operator members have 10 or fewer coaches in their fleets, so if you choose to use game-day charter shuttles. Fans can be sure they will receive exemplary customer service and a fair price based on the true cost of those services in a free and open competitive environment.

Many responsible baseball and football team owners have already stepped away from the past illegal practice of using taxpayer subsidized transportation and are competitively bidding this service to thousands of independent bus companies across America.

The good news is ABA operators can now compete fairly. The challenge remains whether the media will report fairly.