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Subway Fares May Rise for First Time Since 2005
By Maggie Astor
PUBLISHED OCTOBER 1, 2007
The first subway fare increase since March 2005 may be on the horizon as two competing plans were proposed by the Metropolitan Transport Authority, which operates New York City’s public transit, last Monday.
One plan would raise the current $2 fare to $2.25. The other would raise the fare during undefined “peak travel hours,” and lower it to $1.50 during off-peak hours.
“It could be an incentive for people to travel outside peak,” said Gene Russianoff, staff attorney for the Straphangers Campaign, a subway rider advocacy group. “We’d want to spread out ridership when there is more capacity. It could make riding the subway less of a sardine experience.”
The MTA says the increase is necessary to cover higher operating costs. As usual, the prospect of a fare hike has sparked controversy, but the distinction between peak and non-peak hours in particular, seems to rankle riders.
“I don’t deny the MTA’s fiscal woes,” Russianoff said, “[but] riders are paying more than their fair share.”
The MTA wants to increase revenue by $262 million in 2008, Russianoff said.
The Straphangers Campaign has proposed its own plan, which has riders account for half of the MTA’s financial need, $131 million, and has New York State account for the rest. This plan would involve only a 10 cent fare increase, but according to the MTA, the problem is that the MetroCard machines can’t dispense nickels or dimes.
“Never once during the many, many months that those MetroCard vending machines were being tested, never once did they mention they were buying a model that couldn’t dispense more than two kinds of coins—quarters and dollars,” Russianoff said. “I can’t accept the argument that the machines are making them do it.”
Many riders were outraged at what they saw as an excuse for a bigger hike.
“Are you kidding me?” commuting student Mercedes Mulford, BC ’11, said. “You can’t make a machine dispense more than quarters? Soda machines dispense lower denominations. I could buy a Coca-Cola and get dimes back, thank you very much.”
Maggie Astor can be reached at news@columbiaspectator.com.
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Raising the cost is completely unnecessary. They should be lowering the cost and make up for the loss with subsidies in order to increase use of public transportation. This would be better for the environment and benefit those who have less money.
just because soda machines can dispense nickels doesn't mean every machine can dispense nickels...that's just stupid
i mean im a human being and youre a human being. but i can pee standing up considerably more easily than you can.
that said, that's a pretty stupid reason to raise fares more than you actually need to, though if that is actually the case (which it probably is) that's how it goes
im not really affected though, i always get daddy's driver to pick me up when i want to go anywhere
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