"We asked bus riders to tell County Executive Gulotta and the County Legislature that the community needs the bus service it has and more," said the Tri-State Campaign's Chris Hewitt. "Recent increases in ridership show that Nassau residents want to use buses. They need a convenient, efficient system."

The bus company now serves a record 110,000 passengers per day and has seen consistent ridership growth in recent years. Steady ridership gains over the past five years have increased crowding on many lines, and suggests that even more travelers would choose bus transport if Long Island Bus could afford to offer more frequent service.

The surplus resulted from $25 million in state bailout funds, a one-shot $25 million settlement with the Long Island Power Authority, and $42 million in debt restructuring. But regardless of the source, a small portion of Nassau County's extra funds would be well spent increasing Long Island Bus service. Although a small and essential line item in the County's $2.2 billion budget, Long Island Bus has suffered disproportionately from its fiscal crisis.

County leaders have hit bus riders with big budget cuts over the last two years. County Executive Gulotta reduced the County's $20 million annual L.I. Bus contribution by more than one-third in January, 2000. These cuts threatened to force the agency to scale back service by 35%. The 2001 budget reduces County support for the bus system even further, to $7 million and the long-term budget the County submitted to the Nassau Interim Finance Authority would shut off all County funding for Long Island Bus by 2003.

During the fiscal meltdown, service cuts have been averted thanks to emergency state support secured by State Senator Dean Skelos and Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli, and cooperation from the Pataki Administration. But Long Island Bus still faces crowding and more riders without a stable source of funding.