MTA Board Approves Limited Fare Increases
In what comes as no surprise. the MTA Board has approved limited fare & toll increases. Here are the details via the official press release I received:
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Board today approved increasing fares and tolls by 4% over the next two years, fulfilling a promise to keep fare and toll increases as low as possible. The new fares and tolls will take effect March 22, and will ensure the MTA can continue providing quality service even as ridership continues to climb.
“The MTA has been able to limit these fare and toll increases to the equivalent of 2% a year thanks to our continued aggressive cost-cutting, while still adding service and improving service quality for our growing number of customers,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas F. Prendergast. “Our Financial Plan assumes modest biennial fare and toll increases, and the Board has chosen options with lower increases for our most frequent customers.”
The MTA has cut $1.1 billion from its annual spending, with more cuts planned every year to bring annual savings to $1.6 billion by 2018.
The Board approved increasing the base fare for the subway and bus by 25 cents to $2.75, while also more than doubling the bonus amount added to MetroCard purchases of at least one roundtrip. The combination of the increased fare and the increased bonus creates an effective fare increase of 4.1%, or 10 cents, for the Bonus MetroCard, which is used for 43% of trips.
The 30-Day Unlimited Ride MetroCard, which is used for 29% of trips, will increase 4% to $116.50. The 7-Day Unlimited Ride MetroCard, which is used for 21% of trips, will increase 3.3% to $31. The remaining 7% of trips are made using non-bonus MetroCards, cash on buses or Single Ride Tickets, which are largely purchased near major tourist destinations.
The following table summarizes these changes. Full details will be posted at www.mta.info.
Fare Type – Current – New:
Base MetroCard Fare/ Local Bus Cash Fare – $2.50 – $2.75
Bonus – 5% with $5 purchase – 11% with $5.50 purchase
Effective Fare with Bonus – $2.38 – $2.48
Single Ride Ticket (base MetroCard/Cash Fare plus 25 cents) – $2.75 – $3.00
Express Bus Fare Cash – $6.00 – $6..50
Express Bus Fare Effective MetroCard Fare with Bonus – $5.71 – $5.86
30 Day Metrocard – $112 – $116.50
7 Day Metrocard – $30.00 – $31.00
7 Day Express Bus Plus Metrocard – $55.00 – $57.25
Access-A-Ride Fare – $2.50 – $2/75
Note: The $1 fee for purchasing a new MetroCard will remain unchanged.
The vast majority of Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad customers will see fares increase 4.25% or less. Fares will rise between 2.2% and 6.1% for tickets to and from Zone 1 on LIRR, to and from Manhattan on Metro-North East-of-Hudson service, and to and from Hoboken/Secaucus Junction on Metro-North West-of-Hudson service. Over 80% of those trips will see fare increases of 4.25% or less, and for monthly and weekly commuters, all fares will increase less than 4.25%.
Some railroad fares will increase more than 4%, because fare changes must occur in 25-cent increments. However, any increase of more than 6% will result in a fare increase of no more than 50 cents per trip. The cost of a City Ticket will increase by 25 cents, and policies regarding the calculation of onboard fares and refunds remain unchanged. The new fares will be posted on www.mta.info.
Tolls will rise 4% on MTA Bridges and Tunnels for over 75% of crossings that are made by cars and trucks using a New York Customer Service Center (NYCSC) E-ZPass. Those car tolls will increase 21 cents to $5.54 at major crossings like the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge and the Queens Midtown Tunnel. Customers who pay with cash, Tolls by Mail or a non-NYCSC E-ZPass will see increases of 6.7% to 10%. This proposal is consistent with the MTA policy to increase the price differential between cash and E-ZPass to encourage E-ZPass use, which reduces wait times and environmental impact.
NYCSC E-ZPass customers will receive discounts off the cash price ranging from 31% to 66%, depending on the crossing, type of vehicle and applicable resident discount programs. These significant discounts are available to customers who use E-ZPasses issued by the NYCSC, which serves the MTA, the New York State Thruway Authority and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Any driver can apply for an NYCSC E-ZPass regardless of where they live. MTA Bridges and Tunnels also offers substantial discounts to residents of Staten Island and the Rockaways.
I can’t wait to see the new ripoff prices that LIRR riders will have to soon pay for the crappy service provided. Oh joy……..
xoxo Transit Blogger
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It’s just so unfair that you cannot see any improvement at all…subways and buses are late….dirty trains and stingking subway…..maybe they should cut down the boards paycheck….it make no sense that they always say that they are going to improve service whick you cannot even see at all!!!