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Photograph by vinnie716 on Flickr
In the future, subway travel will be the exclusive domain of the moneyed class, a decadent indulgence enjoyed by only the most privileged New Yorkers. And the future starts now! Today the MTA confirmed that next year the cost of a subway or bus ride could reach $3 for a one-way trip. The MTA faces a serious budget deficit of $1.2 billion next year and wants to increase the overall revenue from fares and tolls by 23 percent.
The MTA is also considering a potential increase in the price of a 30-day unlimited-ride MetroCard, from the current $81 to as much as $105. The fare on express buses could go up a maximum of 25%, from the current $5.00 to $6.25. And the Access-A-Ride paratransit fare could rise as much as 200%, from the current $2 a ride to $6 a ride. In a statement, Gene Russianoff at the Straphangers Campaign says, "The news is awful...As a result, riders could end up paying a lot more for a lot less service."
The MTA revealed the possible increases in an announcement of eight public hearings on the proposal. According to a statement from the MTA, "the notice sets a range of possible changes to allow for flexibility in reaching the 23% increase in revenue from fares and tolls included in the budget passed last week. The actual fare proposal will be released prior to the hearings, and the flexibility in the notice will enable potential changes based on input from the public and the MTA Board." After the jump, the dates/times/locations of the public hearings.
Below are the dates and locations for the MTA's hearings on (deep breath!) proposed changes in fares and crossing charges, levels of service and partial or complete closings of subway stations or of means ofpublic access to stations. All hearings begin at 6 p.m. Registration closes at 9 p.m. More info on the MTA's proposal here.
Wed Jan 14, 2009
Hilton NY, Trianon Ballroom
1335 Ave of the Americas, Manhattan
Directions: E V to 5 Av/53 St, B D F V
to 47 - 50th Sts/ Rockefeller Ctr.; M5, 6, 7
Tues Jan 20, 2009
Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel
Phoenix Ballroom, 135-20 39th Ave, Flushing, Queens
Directions: 7 to Flushing-Main St;
Q12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20A, 20B, 25, 26, 27, 28,
34, 44, 48, 58, 65 , 66, QBx1, N20 or 21;
LIRR to Flushing-Main St.
Wed Jan 21, 2009
The Garden City Hotel, The Grand Ballroom
45 Seventh St, Garden City
Directions: LIRR to Garden City; LIRR to Mineola,
then N40/41 (SB); LIRR to Freeport, then N40/41 (NB)
Mon Jan 26, 2009
College of Staten Island
CSI Center for the Arts, Springer Concert Hall
2800 Victory Blvd, Staten Island
Directions: X10 and 11; S62, 92, 53 (transfer to S62
or 92 at Victory Blvd and Clove Rd), or S93.
Shuttle Bus will be provided between College of
Staten Island bus stop and Springer Concert Hall
Wed Jan 28, 2009
Westchester County Center
Rooms A - C, 198 Central Ave, White Plains
Directions: MNR to White Plains,
then any of these Bee-Line buses: 1W, 5, 6, 13, 14,
15, 20, 40
Wed Jan 28, 2009
NY Marriott at the Bklyn Bridge
333 Adams St, Brooklyn
Directions:A C F to Jay St-Borough Hall, M R to
Lawrence St, or 2 3 4 5 to Borough Hall;
B25, 26, 37, 38, 41, 45, 51, 52, 54, 57, 61, 65, 67,
75 or 103
Mon Feb 2, 2009
Palisades Center, Raso Community Room
1000 Palisades Center Drive, West Nyack
Directions: MNR to Tarrytown, then Tappan ZEExpress
Bus to Palisades Center; Community Center is next to
ice rink.
Wed Feb 4, 2009
Lehman College, CUNY, Lovinger Theatre
250 Bedford Park Blvd West, Bronx
Directions: 4to Bedford Park Blvd - Lehman College
or B D to Bedford Park Blvd; Bx2, 10, 22 ,28;
BxM4A, 4B
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Philadelphia is becoming more and more enticing.
"The actual fare proposal will be released prior to the hearings, and the flexibility in the notice will enable potential changes based on input from the public and the MTA Board."
Much like the Rent Guidelines Board listens to the public on rent increases. They better get ready to be hit by a lot of people throwing shoes.
And if anyone from the MTA is reading this, why did it take me 40 minutes to get from Houston Street to 72nd Street last Thursday?
^ not really. Septa already costs more than MTA to ride, especially for monthly passes.
Anyway we should all show up at these hearings with bags of shoes to toss at MTA management officials.
They'll have to get rid of those ads that tout how fares today are lower than they were 20 years ago, inflation adjusted.
typically government thinking. they could easily say no more overtime to all their workers while not raising the fare or cutting services.
I'm sorry, but couldn't the country's mass transit systems use a 'bail-out'? There's just so much wrong with prices going up and frequency going down.
Who would have a problem with this kind of 'bail-out'? Especially if we through the LIRR, NJT, and Amtrak in there.
Sure it costs a lot to build and maintain these systems, but at least it's a solid investment for the future of humanity. More so than bailing out bad practicing private corporations. Give the strap-hangers a break, and maybe pay for it by tolling/taxing the hell out of the drivers.
Do something Gov. Patterson!!! Help us!!!
We already got reduced service in the last fare hike. The booth clerks no longer do any work. They don't sell fares, they don't provide change, when the machines say "No bills" or "Exact Change Only" all they do is shrug their shoulders.
I'm buying a bike, hope more people do, F$*K the corrupt MTA.
I think we need to outsource our government to India or China.
just clean out your local goodwill, salvation army or whatever of all their shoes already!!!!
Well maybe if salaries kept up with inflation...
I would bike around except I have read too many stories where experienced bikers get killed by cars, trucks, and buses. It just ain't worth my life.
But yes, a bailout. And yes, no more OT for MTA workers. And no more lost hours, where they goof off for a while, on the clock.
The people I really feel sorry for is anyone with kids who have to travel around the city, not babies, kids. Those fares really add up. It is just cruel.
oh, and @7: unfortunately, they do not just shrug their shoulders, they get all surly, upset that they actually have to put their pudgy fingers to use selling fares, adding value to metro cards, etc. a friend of mine was so pissed that she just followed a fellow rider who jumped the turnstile seeing that there seemed to be no other option when all the machines were broken and the token booth clerk refused to sell a fare.
jump, baby, jump!!!! (or ride a bike)
Said earlier, but it warrants repeating
Where is the bailout. This is a dramatic increase. WE bailout Automakers who sell cars that suck and waste fuel, but we can't turn the tap and release some money for mass transit in NYC
1.2 billion is what, 1/600th of the financial bailout.
Call me crazy but this is crazy
#8 - have fun riding your bike in 20 degree weather. And when you're carrying shit. Or when you're going to a date. They have us by the balls and they know it.
Just scrap the 2nd Ave. subway! Think of all the billions saved. Besides, it's not like Eastsiders have any other options anyway! What are they going to do, drive?
Salaries will always lag behind inflation -- that's the system we have.
Telecommuting, telecommuting. Unfortunately the poorest of us and those in the service industries have jobs that don't feature computers.
I suppose to pay for transit we will require some form of subsidation [sp?] from the feds, which will touch off a new set of battles.
www.forgotten-ny.com
next time gothamist posts listings of public hearings for fare increases, I imagine the subway directions will be replaced with "walk".
Hello, $3 Subway Ride! Goodbye NYC !
Welcome to the beginning of the end.
well time to start practicing my hurdles
Ah, smell the FUD.
"Tell them $3/ride so that everyone will be happy when it goes up to only $2.5."
And it is still cheaper to drive a car!
Heck of a job, Brownie. And MTA and Union and Mayor.
Read closely...the fare will not be $3 for most people. The $3 only applies to people buying single rides or paying by cash on a bus. They're floating around the idea of having a $2.50 fare for people using MetroCards instead.
at that price, I think I will live as well as ride on the subways.
I read/hearing the bonus money which you get from the pay per ride metrocard will cease.
After they raise the fares in June, just watch the MTA start complaining and thinking about a new fare hike in 2010.
I really, realllllly hate the MTA.
@25
If you read the PDF file, it says they're considering upping the bonus to 35%. I think the bonus percentage will vary, depending how much money you put in a card. I'd guess the more you put in the card, the higher the bonus will be.
and i have been here 12 years and i am outta here
Get Obama to pay for the 2nd Ave., fire all the ugly fat miseries that do nothing at the MTA, and make Rikers inmates clean the platforms. Saves big $$ and keeps that extra wadded up dollar in our pockets.
27
Glad to hear to hear the MTA is keeping the bonus.
Time to buy a moped and bundle up.
...budget deficit of $1.2 billion...
That sucks but, ya know, it's a fraction of a fraction of the financial bailout crap. (And I haven't noticed any belly up executives riding the trains, seems like, even at $3 a ride that would save a few bucks.) And, I suspect, $1.2 billion is going to be a tiny of fractions of the tax breaks and services offered to firms to stay in NY next year.
Reasonable political leaders, assuming we had some of those, would reduce the fair by ten cents (a bargain for the free publicity and good will) and also dump, oh, $100 million into better/more bike lanes and free helmets. And, all the while, point out that good public transportation improves everyone's quality of life and is a better investment of public money. A smart politician would point out that helping the MTA, rather than giving handouts to bankrupt firms, will lead to more jobs staying here.
You still might have to restructure the MTA--it's not the best run institution in the world--and, of course, the Manhattan Institute would be all over your ass but, screw 'em, it's a smarter move than increasing the fare to $3.
"and i have been here 12 years and i am outta here"
if i can pay ten bucks for a pack of cigarettes i can deal with another 20 bucks per month for my unlimited.
this is all assuming of course that they're NOT horribly corrupt, that this deficit ISN'T just smoke and mirrors (remember that surplus two years ago? where did that go?)
what should happen is as someone said above, BAILOUT.
but thanks to giuliani and bloomberg, this city has become a place where you can put the financial burden on the backs of the poor and nobody will say anything because "crime is down".
To those of you who keep saying "stop building the Second Avenue Subway," that won't do anything.
The MTA has two budgets: an operating budget and a capital construction budget. No money can be transferred from one to another. Fares fund the operating budget. The Second Avenue Subway is in the capital budget. Plus, if the Second Avenue Subway construction stops, the MTA loses out on Federal funding for it.
It's not as simple as you think. But still, I might have to start walking everywhere.
$105, fine. But when it hits $150, I'm gonna be pissed.
What a value! Right now we have:
1) Fifteen minute wait times when the "schedule" says trains are running every five.
2) Years of construction delays late night and weekends to make the trains run better during the week, and THEN delays during the week.
3) Trains that skip local stops to run express - it's called a battery run and it's a royal pain in the ass.
4) You can't get a seat even if you live at the beginning of a subway line.
I can't wait to see what's next.
Ridership is up 11%. Where is that money? The entire mobbed-up MTA board needs to be rounded up and jailed.
I'd pay for that.
"have fun riding your bike in 20 degree weather. And when you're carrying shit. Or when you're going to a date"...I just brought my Christmas tree home in 20 degree weather before heading to the bar to meet up with the boyfriend, and it was really fun. And free. As for the fear of death, that's why we need some money for bike-friendly infrastructure.
Just to inject a bit of reality here - I did a quick fare check on the subway systems across the country: Boston-$2; San Fran-from $1.50 to $6.60; LA - $1.25; Chicago - $2.25; WashDC - from $1.65 to $4.50; Atlanta - $1.75. So fare-wise, we're actually doing pretty good, especially when you talk about getting unlimited ride MetroCards (I figured my per-ride cost to be well below $1.00). And we are the only system operating 24 hours a day, and by far the most extensive system and the system that gets you the farthest for the lowest fare. Is the MTA really that corrupt? Maybe if the federal government did their share like in other countries we wouldn't rely so much on the fare box - oh, wait, that would mean higher taxes and you all don't want that, either. You all want the money to pay for the system to just rain down from heaven, I guess.
The MTA is the most pathetic organization ever.
Completely inept.
I can hear Al Goldstein's voice on public access now:
"MTA, Fu*k You!"