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After his appointed MTA executive director Elliot Sander suggested that a subway and bus fare hike may be possible in 2008, Governor Eliot Spitzer takes up the topic. And the Steamroller says he will do “everything possible” to avoid a hike. Spitzer is not suggesting black magic to help ease an $800 million deficit but - wait, it's a novel idea - to have the state put in more money!
He says, "We will increase state investment in transportation — both capital and operating sides of the budget — because that is the only way to maintain our transportation," but where that increase is coming from is a mystery. Especially as State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli says that the governor's new budget increases state spending too much to be sustainable.
And many people blame the MTA's poor fiscal situation on former governor George Pataki.
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How about raising advertising costs on subways and buses instead? Those people have money to blow---
It is always easy to blame George Elmer Pakaki, however a lot of the blame lies with those who came before him in both Albany and City Hall.
We are still paying the price today for the deferred maintenance and using capital funds to fund operations decades ago.
How about raising income taxes on the truly wealthy. Not Al Gore's top 1% of income earners but the people making seven, eight, and nine figures. How about some new tax brackets. There have been enough Gothamist stories about how the elite love New York. It's not like they are going to leave.
raise the price already. $2 to travel all around the city is mindlessly inexpensive.
The Commuter Railroads shouldn't get a fare hike, since it's obviously expensive as it is.
almost $200 a month from Yonkers to GCT is disgusting.
yeah, Toby make more brackets, LOL... like people in those brackets just wouldn't move their taxable primary residence to their summer home somewhere else and leave the rest of us with the bill. Being rich gives you lots of options when it comes to taxes.
Spitzer is right, there should be no fare hike. He's going to increase state investment BUT he also has to find out who the idiots are in the MTA who can't make a $4.6 billion business profitable.
Patrick: Find me a single public transit agency in the world that is profitable.
$2 is about right for now (it's really $1.70 if you use a MetroCard). But the last fare hike was 2003, and 2008--5 years later--isn't an unreasonable time to bump up the fare again, to say $2.25.
Joe - you should run the MTA. That's just the excuse they love to use. Every other public transit agency in the world isn't profitable so we'll just sit around with our thumbs up our asses and piss away money.
And the "it's really $1.70 if you use a Metrocard" argument is more genius. Because when I put money in the machine, it's always $2. I've tried putting $1.70 on my card but...gee....it doesn't seem to work.
Patrick: So don't buy single rides. If you live in NYC you should know well enough by now that you pay more for them.
Maybe you can run the MTA and make it the first profitable transit agency in the world if you're such a genious. Not saying they aren't wasteful, but expecting them to turn a profit, is, well... stupid.
I can see it now . The MTA board will ban together and publicly broil Spitzer as "To extreme" . It really doesn't matter, The Mta is in such a poor state that anything Spitzer could be to improve the current state of their functions would end up hurt he own cause in the long run anyway .