11月3日公投Measure RTM：五县销售税上调0.5%至1%、每年筹约9.8亿美元救BART等公交系统
加州旧金山湾区选民将于11月3日就 Measure RTM 作出抉择。该措施拟在 Alameda、Contra Costa、Santa Clara、San Mateo 四县及旧金山市（县合一）将销售税上调0.5%至1%，为期14年，预计每年筹集约9.8亿美元，用于支持 BART、Oakland 的 AC Transit、Muni、Caltrain 及多家地区公交机构。
BART 是此次公投的焦点。BART 发言人 Christopher Filippi 告诉 The Center Square，BART 疫情前约71%的运营预算来自票款与停车费，2026年这一比例已降至32%，该系统2027年面临约3.75亿美元预算缺口。BART 客流虽已较去年增长约14%，仍只有疫情前平均水平的约一半。BART 表示，若无 RTM 资金，自2027年1月起将被迫大幅削减运营：列车服务时长削减63%、停车与乘车费用上调30%、裁员600人。
支持方、气候正义组织 350 Bay Area Action 的 Sara Greenwald 表示，无新资金时公交班次将大幅减少、部分巴士线路取消；该组织估算，旧金山以外居民平均每月成本约8美元。反对方、Contra Costa 纳税人协会主席 Marc Joffe 主张公交机构应先削减不影响乘客的开支，并认为销售税属累退税，在生活成本高企时对低收入居民负担更重。Greenwald 亦承认销售税并非最公平的税种，但认为公交系统破产的损失更大。
Voters to Decide Measure RTM on Nov. 3: A 0.5% to 1% Sales Tax in Five Counties Raising About $980 Million a Year for BART and Other Transit Systems
San Francisco Bay Area voters in California will decide on Measure RTM on November 3. The measure would raise sales taxes by 0.5% to 1% in Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties and the City and County of San Francisco for 14 years, generating an estimated $980 million annually to support BART, Oakland's AC Transit, Muni, Caltrain and several other regional transit agencies.
BART is at the center of the vote. BART spokesperson Christopher Filippi told The Center Square that fares and parking fees covered about 71 percent of BART's operating budget before the pandemic but only 32 percent in 2026, and the system faces a 2027 budget deficit of about $375 million. Ridership has risen roughly 14 percent from last year but remains at about half its pre-pandemic average. BART says that without RTM funding, starting in January 2027 it would have to cut train hours by 63 percent, raise parking and ride fees by 30 percent and lay off 600 employees.
Sara Greenwald of the climate justice organization 350 Bay Area Action, which has endorsed the measure, said buses and trains would become much less frequent without funding and some bus lines would be canceled; the group estimated the average cost for non-San Francisco residents at $8 per month. Marc Joffe, president of the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association, which opposes the measure, argued transit agencies should first cut expenses that do not affect riders, and said a sales tax is regressive and weighs more heavily on lower-income residents amid high living costs. Greenwald agreed a sales tax is not the most equitable option but said the loss of the transit systems would be worse.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：加州大学伯克利分校停车与交通部（BART 列车资料图）
GSM Global · 本篇英文版 English edition of this story
