Irate Brooklyn politicians are pulling out the stops to prevent the MTA from raising mass transit fares next year.
“Brooklyn’s position on this has been very clear. …
Now is absolutely not the time for the MTA to raise the fare,” Borough President Markowitz said on Monday night before the state agency’s public hearing at the Brooklyn Marriott.
Markowitz delivered the same message earlier that day, heading down into the trenches — actually, the platform of the Atlantic Avenue–Pacific Street station — to dispense anti-fare hike leaflets.
Markowitz thinks that an increase in the cost of public transportation would come at the wrong time for commuters. At the same time that the mayor is trying to charge drivers $8 to enter Manhattan’s central business district, the MTA would be making it more expensive for them to take subways or buses.
Eighty-nine percent of Brooklynites don’t drive to work, according to city statistics.
The MTA is considering two pricing schemes that could begin next year to offset looming budget deficits. One idea is to raise prices across the board to $2.25 per ride, as well as increase the cost of unlimited Metrocards by about four percent.
An alternate formula would establish prices for peak and off-peak hours.
Neither idea is palatable to Assemblyman Jim Brennan (D–Park Slope) and state Sen. Tom Duane (D–Manhattan), who have drafted two bills to provide the MTA with $684 million in public money.
The first bill, which is very unlikely to pass, calls for the city and state to each come up with $323 million in additional operating funds for public transit.
The other bill would make the state reimburse the MTA for the full cost of reduced fares for New York City students.
But the MTA says it can’t wait for Albany to vote on the long-shot legislation. It has already asked the state for $1.5 billion for operating costs and special projects for the next two years.
“The MTA made an enormous ask from Albany that they have not committed to, so it would be unreasonable to ask us to wait again,” said spokesman Jeremy Suffin.
