MTA Unveils Two Options For 2017 Fare Hike

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has unveiled two options for needed increase to fares and tolls over the next two years by less than 4 percent – or an average of 2 percent annually, consistent with the financial forecast made in July. The MTA’s continued discipline in keeping costs down has resulted in the lowest increase since 2009, when the MTA committed to a biennial schedule to keep adjustments as small and predictable as possible.

Just over half of the MTA’s $15.6 billion annual operating budget comes from fares and tolls. Yet the MTA has achieved nearly $1.8 billion in 2016 annual savings, with more cost cutting planned every year to hold increases to a minimum.

“The MTA continues to keep its promise to make sure that fare and toll increases, while necessary to keep our system running, remain as low and possible and that they are done in as equitable a way as possible,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas F. Prendergast. “Fare and toll revenue cover just 51 percent the operating budget, which is why this modest increase is needed to ensure that subway, rail, bus and paratransit services continue operate safely and reliably and to fuel the region’s economic and financial growth.”

The proposals will be the subject of eight public hearings across the MTA region in December. The MTA Board will review public input before a final proposal is selected and voted on by the full Board in January. The new fares and tolls will take effect on March 19, 2017.

The following are details of the fare and toll options for each MTA service. Both options generate approximately the same revenue for the MTA.

New York City Subway and Buses

The MTA offers several ways to pay for rides on subways, buses and the Staten Island Railway. Two fare structures are being considered that treat the base fare and bonus rides differently, however changes to 7-day and 30-day unlimited ride MetroCards are the same in both proposals.

Proposed changes are as follows:

Fare Type

Current

Plan A

Plan B

Base MetroCard Fare/ Local Bus Cash Fare

$2.75

$2.75

$3.00

Bonus

11% with $5.50 purchase

5% with $5.50 purchase

16% with $6.00 purchase

Effective Fare with Bonus

$2.48

$2.62

$2.59

Single Ride Ticket (base MetroCard/Cash Fare plus 25 cents)

$3.00

$3.00

$3.25

Express Bus Fare

   Cash

   MetroCard with Bonus

$6.50

$5.86

$6.50

$6.19

$7.00

$6.03

30-Day MetroCard

$116.50

$121.00

$121.00

7-Day MetroCard

$31.00

$32.00

$32.00

7-Day Express Bus Plus MetroCard

$57.25

$59.50

$59.50

Access-a-Ride Fare

$2.75

$2.75

$3.00

Note: $1 fee for purchasing a new MetroCard remains unchanged.

A key distinction between the two options is the size of the bonus and change in the base fare. Currently, the base fare is $2.75 and the bonus is 11% when purchasing at least a roundtrip (61 cents for a $5.50 purchase).

• In Plan A, the base fare stays at $2.75 and the bonus goes down to 5% when purchasing a roundtrip (28 cents with a $5.50 roundtrip purchase) increasing the effective cost of a ride from $2.48 to $2.62.
• In Plan B, the base fare increases to $3.00 and the bonus increases to 16% when purchasing a roundtrip (96 cents with a $6.00 roundtrip purchase) increasing the effective cost for a ride from $2.48 to $2.59.

Approximately 40 percent of trips use the bonus MetroCard. Non-bonus MetroCards and cash on buses are used for 7 percent of trips while single-ride tickets are used for only 1 percent of trips.

The most popular fare payments methods used are time-based; 52 percent of rides are taken using an unlimited ride pass. 30-day unlimited MetroCards increase 3.9 percent under both proposals; 7-day unlimited MetroCards increase 3.2 percent under both proposals.

Fares to ride the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad are based on the distance traveled and are lower during less busy, off-peak times. Significant discounts are available from the one-way and round-trip price by purchasing 10-trip off-peak tickets and weekly and monthly unlimited-ride tickets.

For regular commuters – those using monthly and weekly tickets – the proposed increase is capped at 3.75 percent; monthly ticket increases are capped at a maximum of $15 for the longest trips; weekly ticket increases are capped at a maximum of $6.75 for the longest trips.

Other riders would see a fare increase of 4 percent or lower; however, because increases must occur in 25-cent increments, some single-trip rides would increase by as much as 6 percent (but by no more than 50 cents.)

Fares for travel to, from or within Connecticut are not affected by this proposal. (A Connecticut fare increase is scheduled to be implemented separately on December 1, 2016.)

MTA Bridges and Tunnels

Proposed increases for car tolls for New York Customer Service Center (NYCSC) E-ZPass holders will increase by 4 percent or less. MTA Bridges and Tunnels also offers substantial discounts to residents of Staten Island and the Rockaways.

For non-E-ZPass users, increases are higher in order to encourage drivers to use it and in order to reduce congestion in advance of cashless tolling coming to bridges and tunnels.

Crossing

Current

Proposed

Robert F. Kennedy Bridge

Bronx-Whitestone Bridge

Hugh L. Carey Tunnel

Throgs Neck Bridge

Queens Midtown Tunnel

Car NYCSC E-ZPass

$5.54

$5.76

Car Cash or Tolls by Mail/Non-NYCSC E-ZPass

$8.00

$8.50

Verrazano-Narrows Bridge

(Toll collected in one direction only)

Car NYCSC E-ZPass

$11.08

$11.52

Staten Island Resident E-ZPass >2 Trips/Month

$6.24

$6.48

Staten Island Resident E-ZPass

$6.60

$6.84

Staten Island Resident Token or E-Token

$8.86

$9.23

Car Cash or Tolls by Mail/Non-NYCSC E-ZPass

$16.00

$17.00

Henry Hudson Bridge

Car NYCSC E-ZPass

$2.54

$2.64

Car Tolls By Mail/Non-NYCSC E-ZPass

$5.50

$6.00

Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge

Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge

Car NYCSC E-ZPass

$2.08

$2.16

Rockaway Resident Token or E-Token

$1.86

$1.93

Rockaway Resident E-ZPass

$1.36

$1.41

Car Cash or Tolls by Mail/Non-NYCSC E-ZPass

$4.00

$4.25

Minor Token or E-Token

$2.67

$2.83

Public Review Process

The MTA’s public review process will enable MTA Board members to receive testimony delivered at eight public hearings throughout the MTA’s service territory, through written statements accepted via email and regular mail, and through transcripts of videotaped public comments.

There will be one public hearing in each of the five boroughs of New York City and one each on Long Island and in the northern suburbs east and west of the Hudson River. The hearings will be held at fully ADA-accessible locations until the scheduled ending time or all registered speakers have spoken, whichever is later. Members of the public can register to speak in advance by calling (646) 252-6777 between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. To enable all members of the public to testify, the MTA asks that all remarks be kept to three minutes or less.

The dates and locations of the hearings are as follows.

Monday, December 5, 2016:
Queens – The Milton G. Bassin Performing Arts Center at York College, Main Stage Theater, 94-20 Guy R. Brewer Blvd, Jamaica, NY. Registration period is open from 4 to 8 p.m. Hearing begins at 5 p.m.
By Subway:  to Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer
By Bus: Q20A, Q44-LTD, Q111, Q112, Q114-LTD

Tuesday, December 6, 2016:
Staten Island – College of Staten Island, Center for the Arts at College of Staten Island, The Williamson Theater Bldg 1P, 2800 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island, NY. Registration period is open from 5 to 9 p.m. Hearing begins at 6 p.m.
By Bus: From St George Ferry Terminal take the S62 or S92-LTD bus
From Brooklyn: Take the S93-LTD to College of Staten Island. Or take the S53 and transfer to the S62 or S92-LTD at Victory Blvd.

Wednesday, December 7, 2016:
Long Island – Hilton Long Island/Huntington, Salon C & D, 598 Broad Hollow Road, Melville, NY. Registration period is open from 4 to 8 p.m. Hearing begins at 5 p.m.
By LIRR: Nearest station is Farmingdale, or take LIRR to Amityville Station, then take the S1 bus north, or take LIRR to Huntington Station, take the S1 bus south.

Thursday, December 8, 2016:
Manhattan – Baruch College, Baruch Performing Arts Center, Mason Hall, 17 Lexington Avenue at 23rd Street, New York, NY.
Registration period is open from 4 to 8 p.m. Hearing begins at 5 p.m.
By Subway:  to 23 St,  to 23 St
By Bus: M23, M101-LTD, M102, M103
Bus Transfers: M1, M2, M3 (all northbound bus routes to Baruch College)

Tuesday, December 13, 2016:
Bronx – Hostos Center for the Arts and Culture, Main Theater, 450 Grand Concourse at 149th Street, Bronx, NY
Registration period is open from 4 to 8 p.m. Hearing begins at 5 p.m.
By Subway:  to 149 Street-Grand Concourse
By Bus: Bx1, Bx1-LTD, Bx13, Bx19

Thursday, December 15, 2016:
West of Hudson – Crowne Plaza Suffern, Montebello Ballroom, 3 Executive Blvd, Suffern, NY. Registration period is open from 4 to 8 p.m. Hearing begins at 5 p.m.
By Metro-North: from Hoboken Terminal New Jersey to Suffern Station where taxi service is available

Monday, December 19, 2016: 
Brooklyn – Walt Whitman Theater at Brooklyn College, 2900 Campus Road (near the junction of Nostrand Avenue and Avenue H), Brooklyn, NY. Registration period is open from 5 to 9 p.m. Hearing begins at 6 p.m.
By Subway:  to Flatbush Av-Brooklyn College
By Bus: B6, B11, B41, B41-LTD, B44, B44 SBS, B103, Q35

Tuesday, December 20, 2016:
Westchester – New York Power Authority, Jaguar Room, 123 Main Street (Enter on Hamilton Ave.), White Plains, NY. Registration period is open from 4 to 8 p.m. Hearing begins at 5 p.m.
By Metro-North: to White Plains Station

Members of the public who wish to submit comments via email can do so through our website at www.mta.info, or by letter to MTA Government Affairs, 20th Floor, 2 Broadway, New York, NY 10004.

Customers may also visit the satellite facilities on the dates and times listed below where comments will be videotaped. All comments will be transcribed and made part of the permanent record of these hearings. Please note there is a 3-minute time limit for each individual’s videotaped session, and there will be no opportunity for question-and-answer.

NYC Transit Headquarters, 3 Stone St., Manhattan
Tuesday, December 13, 2016, 9 a.m. to noon
By Subway:  to Whitehall St;  to Bowling Green;  to South Ferry
By Bus: M5, M5-LTD, M15, M15 SBS, M20, X1, X10

LIRR Hicksville Station
Tuesday, December 13, 2016, 6 to 10 a.m.
Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) bus service to Hicksville Station: N20, N20L, N24, N48, N49, N73, N74, N78, N79, N80, N81

LIRR Ronkonkoma Station
Thursday, December 15, 2016, 6 to 10 a.m.
By Bus: S57 bus to Ronkonkoma Station

Metro-North Poughkeepsie Station
Wednesday, December 7, 2016, 5 to 8 p.m.
Pedestrian Overpass Waiting Room