New Yorkers Object to MTA Fare Increase

Local residents discussed the impending subway fare hike Saturday at a workshop hosted by the Metropolitan Transit Authority.

The MTA reported a $23 million surplus in 2007, but they predict an almost $1 million deficit in 2008, and a $6 million deficit over the next four years. Director of the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management Allison de Cerreno said the workshop was not a forum for discussing whether the proposed 6.5 percent fare hike was necessary.

“Prices always go up eventually,” de Cerreno said. She urged attendees to focus on which fare increase plan was best out of those being considered.

Still, many attendees criticized the particulars of the proposed hikes.

“They just don’t get it—the impact of a 6.5 percent fare increase on the average working family in New York,” attendee Denise Richardson said.

But attendee Robert Paaseel noted that “the cost of a fare has never equaled the cost of a trip.” He suggested the MTA “raise the single-ride fare to the actual operating cost.”

“In order to have a good, healthy transport system, you need subsidies,” Paaseel said.

“What is the value of your transit trip? How much is it worth to you? And whose responsibility is it to provide the subsidies? That’s the more fundamental question.”

Richardson responded that while the system was indispensable, the MTA should “balance the impact on the public with giving a little bit more in the office.”

“They can’t maintain the infrastructure they have,” Richardson said. “For the amount of money they spend, they’re not getting the most bang for their buck.”

The MTA has set forth two proposals. The first would increase the fare from $2 to $2.25. Unlimited ride card prices would also increase slightly.

The second proposal would keep the fare at $2 during “peak hours”—6 to 10 a.m. and 3 to 7 p.m.—and lower it to $1.50 off peak. However, it would eliminate the 20 percent bonus, as in the six-for-five MetroCard, and raise the price of a single-ride card to $2.25. Unlimited ride card prices would also increase significantly more than in the first plan.

The peak hours plan would “provide incentive for people to ride when the system has capacity, so the people who have to travel at peak have more room,” said MTA Director of Operations Support Fredericka Cuenca.

“I’m sort of attracted to the idea of different fares,” attendee Joe Rappaport said. However, he criticized the definition of peak hours. “It starts too early at both times,” he said.

Elliot Sander, MTA Executive Director and CEO, said that while many New Yorkers would like to “avoid a fare increase until the last possible moment,” delaying the price increase could have serious consequences. The MTA could make it through 2008 without a fare hike, he said, but not through 2009.

Despite the variety of opinions, most attendees felt the event provided them with a better understanding of the MTA’s financial situation and the reasons for the hike. Even MTA officials said they gained a deeper understanding of the issue.

“It’s a tremendously more complex issue than we had realized,” de Cerreno said.

The MTA board will vote on the 2008 budget, which will contain the final proposal, in December.