In effect, Spitzer doesn't have a problem with a fare hike. He only had a problem with the way the MTA was doing it and wanted a minimal hit on his already battered credibility.
This actually doesn't improve matters because most New Yorkers take advantage of the various Metrocard options, which has driven ridership to levels not seen in decades.
As it has mulled its plans, the transportation authority has insisted that each separate branch of the transportation network — commuter rail, bridges and tunnels and subway and bus service — generate the same overall increase in revenues. That means each group of riders, essentially, must pay 3.85 percent more, on average.No matter what Spitzer does at this point, he's in a lose-lose situation.
Because only about 14 percent of bus and subway rides are paid for with the base $2 fare, the biggest increases may fall on a majority of customers who buy unlimited weekly or monthly MetroCards or the pay-per-ride bonus cards.
Mr. Dellaverson said there would most likely be a range of increases for different types of tickets on the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad. But based on the authority’s earlier proposals, it appears likely that most suburban commuters could expect to see their costs going up at close to the 3.85 percent target.
Although officials at the authority did not predict how the new directive would affect tolls, a 3.85 percent increase applied to tolls would mean that drivers who use E-ZPass could expect the one-way toll at most crossings controlled by the authority to increase to $4.15, from $4. Drivers without E-ZPass, who currently pay $4.50 at most crossings, would probably see a higher percentage increase. About three-quarters of drivers who use the authority’s crossings, which include the Midtown Tunnel and the Triborough Bridge, use E-ZPass.
The authority’s original proposal, made in July, called for a 6.5 percent overall increase in fares and tolls. The authority said then that it expected to run a sizable budget surplus this year but it needed the increase to overcome large deficits projected for 2009.
But last week, Gov. Spitzer said that new forecasts showed that improved revenues and lower expenses would result in an additional surplus of $220 million. He said that fares and tolls would still need to go up, but that they would not have to rise as steeply. In addition, he said the base subway and bus fare would remain unchanged.
Unlimited ride MetroCards account for close to half of all subway and bus trips. About 36 percent of trips are made on pay-per-ride MetroCards that carry a 20 percent bonus, giving riders six rides for the price of five. Mr. Dellaverson said that officials were considering changes to the bonus as part of the new fare package.
The MTA needs proper funding to handle the increased demand for its service and to fund critical infrastructure repairs and upgrades, but Spitzer has done such a poor job preparing the political landscape for fare hikes that he's going to get slammed.
He may whiplash to another conclusion once the finger in the air (aka polling) tells him he's losing what little credibility he has left.
The only way fare hikes make sense is that they remain below that of the toll hikes, because you aren't going to convince drivers to give up their cars for crowded buses or trains if the cost differential is insignificant especially when factoring in the convenience of being able to sit in your own car instead of having to share space with other commuters or standing in less space than the MTA even deems allowable.
This being NY politics, logic, reasoning, and fiscal sense are all thrown out the window.
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