MTA Board Votes To Raise Fares And Tolls

New York – The cost of your commute is going up. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority board voted Thursday to raise fares and tolls.

“I’ve recommended the fare and toll change options that are most favorable to our customers who use the services the most, our core constituency,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Tom Prendergast.

Base fares on subway and bus rides will go up by 25 cents, from $2.50 to $2.75. The 30-day unlimited MetroCard will increase by $4.50, from $112 to $116.50, and the seven-day unlimited card by $1, from $30 to $31.

The board also elected to keep MetroCard bonus discounts. Currently, riders receive a 5 percent bonus for every $5 they spend. That bonus will increase to 11 percent.

As a give back cash bonuses for using MetroCards will go up.

Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road fares will increase 4 percent.

Average fares will increase about $10.

For example traveling from Rockville Centre to Penn Station on the LIRR a monthly pass goes from $242 to $252 a month.
Bridge and tunnel tolls will also go up by 4 percent for E-ZPass users and about 6 percent to 10 percent for cash customers.
Prendergast called these increases modest, saying that they will preserve the health not just of the MTA but of the entire region, CBS2’s Dave Carlin reported.

“It’s never a good time to raise fares, but even so, we’d like to express our gratitude to MTA Chairman Tom Prendergast for cutting the fare hike in half and sticking to that decision despite voices telling him otherwise,” said Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign.

The new rates take effect March 22.

Read more at CBS NEWS YORK.

{Matzav.com Newscenter}