Gov. Patrick: MBTA Funding Should Go Beyond Fares

 will be needed, but Gov. Deval Patrick said he does not want to see service cuts as a way to balance the T’s budget. 

Patrick appeared at a Garfield Street home in Watertown Thursday evening to speak to a gathering of about 50 to talk about politics in Massachusetts, and his work to get President Obama reelected through the Together PAC – created by Patrick himself.

Some of those at that gathering, which a Patrick spokesman called a grassroots house party, worried about , and hoped for other ways to fund the transit system. The governor said he has heard .

“Consensus is ‘We get the fare increases, but not the service cuts,’” Patrick said. “Some of the (chopping) blocks are incredibly important for people.”

Earlier in his time as governor, Patrick said he proposed a 19-cent gas tax, but it proved unpopular and did not pass.

The Big Dig debt has been a burden on both the MBTA and the Massachusetts Turn Pike, Patrick said.

Patrick said he sees the question one of people’s priorities.

“People need to decide exactly what they want government to do, find out what does it cost and how do we raise the money to cover it," Patrick said.

He suggested people tell their state representatives and senators what they as the most important services.

Legislators' View

State Senator Will Brownsberger, D-Belmont, said he would support a gas tax to help pay for the T.  

State Rep. Jonathan Hecht said he believes the T cannot be solely responsible for its funding.

“Transportation finance is not just public transportation,” Hecht said. “Putting all the burden on public transportation is not right.”

Registrar of Motor Vehicles Rachel Kaprielian, a Watertown resident, said businesses pled with the Department of Transportation not to close the T during Hurricane Irene.

When the impact of the fare increases and service cuts are felt, Hecht said, he thinks people will be more willing to looking for other sources to fund public transportation.

Campaigning for Obama

As part of is work for his Together PAC, Patrick has been traveling to battleground states in the Presidential race to help Obama’s campaign. He has been to Colorado, Florida, Wisconsin and New Hampshire and this weekend he will head to North Carolina. The governor said he is spreading word of the successes in Massachusetts.

“We are growing jobs at the fifth highest rate in the country, up from 47th in 2006, unemployment is well below the national rate, health care is excellent and is available to everyone,” Patrick said. “None of this is happening by accident.”

Part of the success in Massachusetts, Patrick said, is the help he has received from the Legislature when making the state budget.

“They don’t always give it to me the first time, but over and over and over the Legislature steps up,” Patrick said. “Think of what would happen nationally if we had a Congress that would work with our President.”

The budget Patrick released this week calls for loss of state jobs and possibly the elimination of some programs, but Patrick said he wants to continue invest in a few key areas: education, innovation and infrastructure. If government invests in those areas, he said, it sets the stage for improvements and growth in the future.

The race for the White House comes down to opposing philosophies of what the role should government play.

“Now in America, we have to choose our view of the world. Are we a country where everybody is on his or her own, or in fact are we working together … Working to leave the country better than we found it," Patrick said.