The 2000-2004 Capital Program, approved this spring by the New York State legislature, is $1.503 billion or 13% shy of the projected needs for NYCT, whereas it over-funds both the Long Island Railroad and Metro-North Railroad by $222 million or 6 percent. The MTA did not address how it intends to make up the $1.28 billion gap in its budget or whether all the pain would fall on New York City services.

The MTA document also fails to explain how it will finance both the year-to-year capital expenses and capacity expansion projects in the two capital programs following the 2000-2004 Program. The assessment predicts $16.6 billion of capital needs in 2005-2009 period. If additionally, MTA forwards the $1.2 billion deficit from the current capital plan period, spends $2.2 billion on East Side Access, $5 billion on the Second Avenue Subway and another billion for projects such as LaGuardia Airport Access, the 2005-2009 Capital Program will be $26 billion. Yet according to analysis by the Regional Plan Association, by that time, MTA will have already bonded against all of its existing resources to finance the current capital program with potentially dire consequences - an incomplete LIRR tunnel to GCT and no Second Avenue Subway.

The capital needs assessment falls short on at least three goals of the Empire State Transportation Alliance (ESTA) coalition, a group which includes business interests, unions and advocacy organizations. The document does not describe the number of CNG bus depots that NYCT intends to build. It calls for the purchase of 5,600 buses while ESTA suggested 7,500 buses. It also recommends obtaining 1,130 subway cars instead of the 1,587 cars that would be needed in order to attain 4-minute rush-hour headways or the no-standing during off-peak hour, also ESTA priorities.

Given the hemorrhaging of state and local funds from the last Capital Program, much of the blame must be laid at the feet of the legislature. Funding from New York State dropped from 19% in the first two MTA capital programs to 9% in this one. State and City officials must take the lead in providing funds as well as lists of projects so that subway commuter-rail and bus riders can look forward to reliable service without huge fare increases.