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In an announcement that surely pleases voters, State Controller Thomas DiNapoli released a report saying the MTA should think again before raising its fares and tolls. DiNapoli said that the MTA hasn't made enough internal budget cuts yet to warrant an increase in fares and tolls. The proposed increases in fares and tolls is 6.5% in 2008 and another 5% in 2010. With the MTA set to vote on the fare increase in December, DiNapoli's report says the vote is premature because it comes before Governor Spitzer's 2008-09 budget and before the findings of a commission on congestion pricing. The budget and congestion pricing both affect MTA's funding.
In his report, DiNapoli says:
"The MTA should put New York’s commuters first. Before the MTA asks for more money from straphangers, it should develop a coordinated strategy with the State and City to balance its operating budget and to finance the next five-year capital program.MTA spokesman Jeremy Soffin says they've already taken what DiNapoli said into consideration, but the agency still needs to raise fares.The MTA has taken some good first steps to develop a long-term plan for its future fiscal health. But talk of a fare hike is premature. The City is trying to reduce congestion and encourage greater use of mass transit. Any fare increase should be the last piece of a comprehensive plan, not the first."
While the MTA will probably ignore DiNapoli's input, there's one thing that stands out in the comptroller's findings: "The MTA saved only $12.3 million from management actions planned for 2006, which is just 41 percent of its target savings." If the MTA is going to raise fares, it would be nice to see them at least meet their own targets for savings before passing the buck on to commuters.
You can read the full report from the Comptroller's office here (136kb .PDF file). Earlier this month, City Comptroller Bill Thompson also released a report saying that the MTA doesn't need to increase fares.
Cartoon by Mikhaela Reid via flickr
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A 3 dollar train fare would still be fair in this town. You can go a REALLY long distance on 3 bucks.
I forget the exact figures, but I think 12 or 13 bucks a fair would be the full, unsubsidized rate for riders all things considered.
Train riders are getting off easy.
how about the commuter railroads? They are very expensive to begin with especially when you travel during the "peak" times and don't have a monthly ticket.
Tick tock tick tock gothamist what's happening in the city today?
Where does everyone get $3 fares from? A 6% increase on a $2 fare is $0.12.
Right now you get 12 rides out of a $20 metrocard ($24 with the bonus) for $1.67 a ride. If you take away $2 of the bonus, you get 11 rides for $20 at $1.82 a ride. That is equal to a 9% fare increase.
A $76 unlimited metrocard would cost $81 with a 6% increase. Hardly unreasonable considering things like inflation.
#3 Guest STFU. Try reading the articles instead of complaining about what you perceive as a lack of NYC information. Everything I have seen posted today has an impact on NYC.
Actually NYer's pay 60% of the cost of running the subways -- the highest percentage for any mass transit system in the USA.
http://www.straphangers.org/farehike/newsday3.htm
12 or 13 bucks would buy a mighty fancy ride!
commenter #1 is an absolute idiot. i hope he's drafted to iraq.
we pay much more than we should need to pay for train service, because the MTA charges for service. if they did not, then it would be cheaper. you wouldn't need to service the metrocard machines; nor would you need to pay the useless token booth operators, who are often sleeping anyway. this ends up costing commuters much more money.
Ha...commenter #1 - if he's really as stupid as what he wrote we don't need him to get drafted to Iraq, he probably already signed up.
#5 you are a douchebag.
If you compare almost any major Transportation system in any other on earth, comparable to size to the NYC Subway system, you will find that we pay quite possibly the cheapest for Mass Transit. An extra 12 cents is not going to break the bank, even for the least fortunate New Yorkers.
(Not including the LIRR, Metro North, NJ Transit. As Steven said, thats $)
And when was the fare hiked to $2 anyway. Do you realize that the subway fare is actually cheaper in value than it was when it was hiked? Inflation can do that.
Plus the MTA needs the extra cash to somehow fix this decrepit transit system.(And yes, smarter use of the money that is on hand works too) and yes the state can pay for it, BUT, guess where that money comes from...
"The MTA saved only $12.3 million from management actions planned for 2006..."
You can be almost certain that MTA, like so many organizations both public and private, has too much management. Managers create work for each other, most of it useless bureaucracy. Eliminate management positions and you'll save much more than just their salaries. You may even have some money left over to hire more people who do actual work.
where is the money going?
actual improvements? repairs? cleanup?
or more money grubbing by the union mafia?
Actually #1 has a point, I think he's referring to a London style system where travelling further involves paying more. Staying in zone 1 (the very centre) is only $2.50 but while one can travel from Port Authority to Coney Island for $2, travelling the same distance in London would cost $14.
And #1 says that if you look at the London system, the average price paid by all the riders (some riding far, others not) is around $12. I think that's a little high, the average must be closer to $7ish, but we shouldn't ship him to Iraq quite yet.
Just use the money from the dog poop tickets!
Or the cigarette tax!
Or all those other 'quality of life' summons'...
or the soon-to-be congestion tax.
ok!
The fare has been a political issue since the fare was five cents. Decades of political pressure to keep the fare low bankrupted the IRT and BMT, which of course skimped on upkeep of trains and stations.
As for distance based fares, they are more trouble then they are worth, since you need to have people use their fare medium to swipe out of the system. Can you imagine the chaos that would occur with people trying to swipe out while others swipe in?
how about some alternative advertising? not just on trains and walls, but floors, ceilings, subway skins (outside of subway)...
maybe some advertising in the waiting area before entering the subway itself...
I wouldn't mind paying more if the train actually worked. An F train was stalled somewhere resulting in everyone leaving the Carroll Street station and walking or overfilling buses.
By the time I walked to Jay Street it was pulling up next to me, but I took the C just in case.
It really does seem like that train is breaking down more and more then before.
Right on guests 10 and 17.
I don't care about the money. Heck, I've lived in Japan. Just make it clean and efficient.
ditto guest above.
Transit rider report card below. Better make your voice heard:
http://enterprise.mtanyct.info/survey/english/letters_new.asp
The MTA needs an independent audit. Everytime they bitch and moan about a projected shortfall they end up having plenty of money - remember the free rides around x-mas time a few years ago. I think they keeps two sets of books or they are just bad at math.
Since the straphangers seem to think shaping public behavior through congestion taxes is such a great idea... How about a more significant increase in fares during peak "congestion" times?
If I was sure that increased fares means they will fix the broken subway system, then I'm all for it.
It doesn't mean that though, and the system is just bad and getting worse by the day. This is why there is strong resistance