Ahh, the good old days-a trip to Coney Island filled with priceless memories, less than a buck on the D train from Prospect Park, yeah that’s right I said Prospect Park. Oh, sorry, thought you were surprised that line used to run there. You were more surprised at the price! I would be too, even a dollar van costs more than a dollar now a days, and the Metropolitan Transportation Aiuthority (M.T.A.) has plans to more than double the fares of years gone by.

Currently the M.T.A., going anyway, charges a minimum of $2 for regularly priced fares. However, due to the stringent economic times we live in and someone’s alleged poor spending/accounting habits over at the head offices, riders are facing astronomical fare hikes. Even worse is the fact that these fare hikes won’t just affect the rails and the buses but also taxicabs and roadways, and the impact may carryover to unrelated modes of transportation such as the dollar van. Proposed increases on regular fares max out with a single ride costing $2.50, a surcharge increase of $0.50 on taxi rides, and potentential toll increases as well as creating new tolls. It should be noted, that these initiatives are merely proposals at this time, some of which have been allegedly rejected already as part of the talks to establish a new budget.

One of my favorite subway advertisements alludes to the fact that at the current prices for a monthly Metrocard one would expect top notch services like those found at fancy gyms. I often remark that they haven’t yet started serving me cookies and lemonade-hey, with the long waits and heat wouldn’t u want a beverage and snack for your money? Who knows where our money goes. However, it’s all too clear where the money hasn’t gone. Many of us are constantly faced with increasing delays between train arrival times, leaks at indoor stations, poor sanitatioin, and limited access to services for the handicapped, etc. So, one may ask, aside from increasing what we the riders, M.T.A. employers, and taxidrivers put in to the budget, what do we get in return? With the proposed cuts to services, closing of train routes/lines, and termination of bus routes it is definitely not clear where funds have been going within the M.T.A. already.

As users we’ve already seen a loss of clerks at stations, who provided much needed assistance especially when trains are rerouted, from past budget cuts along with other cuts to services while prices continue to skyrocket. At this rate, car insurance and gas may soon be considered as an equivalent option to monthly Metrocard prices. While we wait for the M train we hope the Senate and the M.T.A. will come up with a budget that is more than just rider friendly, but one that will allow for completion of projects, fair wages across the board, and service improvements. In the meantime, don’t you wish you had a token?

NYC Token