The Centre Area Transportation Authority may not make proposed service cuts if area municipalities increase funding to the authority.

CATA proposed the cuts last week to balance its fiscal 1991-92 budget.

Factors such as a decrease in state and federal funds prompted the authority to propose several route changes and suggest that its temporary 85-cent fare become permanent.

The proposed changes will go before the Centre Region Council of Governments (COG) finance committee next week.

Members of the State College Borough Council indicated they may be willing to offer more money to CATA if the authority asks.

Councilman F. Dan Winand said he thinks CATA should approach council about the increased funding because the borough's best interest may be to allocate funds to avoid the service cuts.

"I pleaded with them to come in with a sensible budget and let the politicians decide whether or not to finance it," Winand said.

Winand said CATA probably thought the municipalities would not support another funding increase and therefore did not approach them.

The municipalities gave CATA $51,508 in January to balance next year's budget.

Winand said if routes continue to be eliminated and fares increase, less people would use the buses and would find alternatives such as automobiles.

Should such a scenario occur, more side roads would have to be built, more parking garages would be needed and more personnel would have to be employed to direct traffic, which would ultimately cost the borough money, Winand added.

"It may be cheaper to support CATA," he said.

CATA General Manager Kevin Abbey said although the authority did not go to the municipalities for additional funding to cover the route changes, the budget will be reviewed and open for discussion by municipality representatives during a series of meetings this month. The matter of increased funding can be negotiated then, Abbey said.

Councilwoman Jean McManis said she would not support a funding increase until she has studied the issue and all alternatives.

She said the amount of extra traffic caused by the route cuts may not be that great if ridership on those buses was low. In that case, it may be less costly for the borough to provide for commuters rather than allocate additional funding to CATA.

"We would have to look at it very carefully," McManis said.