Gothamist: MTA Talks Fare Hikes for 2009 AND 2011

fauxfetus

Sun, 16 Nov 2008 18:07:00 -0500

Madrid is a smaller city than New York, so no, it does not offer as much coverage. The New York Subway has 468 stations and 656 miles of track. The Madrid subway has 231 stations and 176 miles of track. The Madrid system also charges 1 euro every time you enter a different "zone", and there are no free transfers between trains. Would you rather pay $1.30 every time you go between boroughs or neighborhoods or switch trains on your journey or a flat $2? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madrid_Subway#Fares) The Madrid system also does not operate 24 hours. New Yorkers do get a good deal, but the compromise is a system so large and complex it's hard to do anything beyond maintain the system.

nymichi

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 12:51:33 -0500

** You want a subway system with a base cash fare of $2.50? (Paris) $2.75? (Madrid) $3.25? (Berlin) $8? (London) ** Sorry but in Madrid a single ride cost 1,10€ and thats less than 2$ Yeah, system in Europe doesnt run 24/7 its more expensive than Nyc (not Madrid, but London, where everything is damn more expensive) Come and see the Madrid system, clean, lot of spain, fast, silent, never late, real-time information, and the coverage of the city is as big as the Nyc one..

alonecity

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:11:30 -0500

@sidenote Paris subway is on tires for a smoother more comfortable ride. Plus it is quieter and prevents these awful screeches some of the cars have when they brake at a station. However, it is true that subways are really expensive everywhere, even when they are highly subsidized like in France.

Brooklynbobby

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:50:31 -0500

You're right, Stackmaster. It is definitely time to leave.

stackmaster

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:52:54 -0500

The idea that with a budget of the size they have that they can't trim their own fat is absurdly unbelievable. If they need more revenue, they should abandon idiotic pilots like the BX12 "select bus." If they need more revenue, they should make it impossible for bus riders to skip paying their fare by getting on the bus through the back door, or at least punish bus drivers who don't seem to care this happens as often as it does. People can't afford to live here because our rents are so high, even in the crappy neighborhoods. Now we can't afford to travel anyplace else? What's left but to leave?

Kojak

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:20:15 -0500

I agree JMH. Granted, our system is not perfect, but its a better deal than with most of the World's Subways. Also I'd like to add that no other subway system has dedicated express lines as New York has. And no subway system has anywhere close to this many stations (450+) New Yorkers just like to complain. If all the problems that were posted on these posts were solved, they'd STILL find something to nag about. Somebody Call the WAHHHHHHBULANCE! Wahhhhh boohoo :'-(

Rolltide23

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:30:40 -0500

Eastside Access. You think they are getting crap for the Path station at WTC b/c it only serves 500k a day? LIRR to GCT will affect 160,000 people a day, in a city of 8.25 million. It is costing $6 billion. That is $6 BILLION, for 160,000 people.

JMH

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:41:30 -0500

F+*k MTA! they dont they go to Europe and learn how to manage a subway system????You want a subway system that doesn't run 24 hours a day? (Everywhere except Berlin) You want a subway system with no air conditioning on the cars? (Paris) You want a subway system with variable pricing rather than a flat fare? (Berlin, London, Madrid, others) You want a subway system with a base cash fare of $2.50? (Paris) $2.75? (Madrid) $3.25? (Berlin) $8? (London) Don't get me wrong, I think transit systems in Europe do a lot of things that we could stand to emulate (real-time train info, for instance), but the deal we have ($2 to get anywhere in the system, 24/7) is pretty good in comparison.

thenebula

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:19:41 -0500

"go to Europe and learn how to manage a subway system" Privatize and pay $5 a ride fares? They have nicer looking subway systems because they charge a lot more for rides...and they calculate fares based on distance as well. This is what you want? We're damn lucky already we can go nearly anywhere on the city for $2...I don't know of any other city that can say that.

Toby von Meistersinger

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:13:19 -0500

Part of this is a bit of brinkmanship to get Albany and City Hall to contribute more.

sidenote

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:10:16 -0500

I was in London last month and it was £4 for a single ride. And the Paris subway is barely even a rail - the cars run on big tires. Maybe heavy rail is just a bitch to pay for?

eyekantspel

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:59:13 -0500

I like how they blame it on congestion pricing. For one thing, congestion pricing was a proposal, so they shouldn't have been counting on that money to begin with. For another, the pitch at the time was that congestion pricing was going to IMPROVEMENTS to mass transit in NYC, not just help them stay afloat. The MTA are incompetent thieves and morons who shouldn't be allowed to manage a lemonade stand and, with a few exceptions, TWU employees are the worst of what's bad about unions, lazy, surly workers with full job security who don't even pretend to give a damn.

Tgirl

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:58:58 -0500

disgraceful, an outrage. The city elders should be ashamed.

fugothamist

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:46:36 -0500

f*cking TWU bust the union

agdthefan

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:37:59 -0500

now when you get raped on the subway , it's by the MTA and the rapists. Oh what fun.

MT

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:36:26 -0500

Two words: union concessions

kidicarus

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:31:44 -0500

What pieces of shit.

Steven

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:28:33 -0500

Need money? Cut some bloated salaries.

nymichi

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:11:08 -0500

F+*k MTA! they dont they go to Europe and learn how to manage a subway system????

esquared

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:11:08 -0500

Sure, spiritross, but that's $5 for one way subway ride.

Alex

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:10:03 -0500

Hopefully with all this new gas price drama congress will start providing more adequate funding for mass transit in this country. Right now funding by both washington and albany is woefully inadequate. With an increase in funding, maybe the 2011 fare hike can be avoided.

spiritross

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:57:17 -0500

$5 Subway Ride in 2020? anybody want to start a pool?