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Fare Hike 2014: Without New MTA Revenue, $137 Monthly Pass Could Happen
With each passing month, the MTA comes closer to the day of reckoning on its unfunded capital plan -- the maintenance work that keeps trains and buses running and the expansion projects that provide more access to the system. While the first two years of the 2010-2014 capital budget were funded, there is a $10 billion deficit in the remaining three. So far, there doesn't seem to be any plan from the city, state, or federal government to find this funding. In fact, between the State Senate's goal of repealing the MTA payroll tax and the House GOP's budget-slashing, there may be more obvious paths to the MTA losing revenue than gaining it.
April 7, 2011
Off-Peak Discounts for NYC Transit: An Intriguing Idea
Discounting off-peak transit service could be a boon to New York City's transportation and quality of life, so long as revenues can be found to make up for the likely farebox shortfall.
October 22, 2009
What If Everyone Drove to Work?
Sure, knocking the MTA is a favorite local past time, particularly for the politicians and press who are practically guaranteed a "Hallelujah!" chorus for every barb (today's scandal: fat cat transit workers poised to rake in cost-of-living allowance!!). But despite the MTA's problems, as Michael Frumin points out on his Frumination blog, the city's streets and highways can't hold a candle to the subways when it comes to moving commuters into and out of Manhattan's Central Business District.
August 10, 2009
Bloomberg Says Bikes Don’t Belong on the Subway
How green is our mayor? Fielding a question on his weekly radio show about using the city's underground tunnels to move freight, Michael Bloomberg this morning went off on cyclists who bring their bikes on board the subway. City Room has the quote:
March 20, 2009
Will the Transit-Riding Public Get a Fair Shake?
Whatever your stance on the Ravitch Commission's MTA rescue plan, the broad inequities of allowing New York transit service to deteriorate while fares rise 23 percent are stunning. The doomsday budget passed earlier this week would affect vastly more New Yorkers than bridge tolls or congestion pricing, burdening those who can least afford the added delay and expense.
December 19, 2008
Nick of Time
While we appear to be hurtling toward a future of less reliable transit service, at least those of us with cell phones will be able to plan accordingly:
November 25, 2008
Trains Under Baghdad
Via Transport Politic, some encouraging transit news from Iraq, where the mayor of Baghdad recently announced plans to move ahead with the city's first subway lines. The Guardian reports:
November 24, 2008
Dear Mr. Brodsky: What Now?
In today's Times, Richard Brodsky weighs in on the pitfalls of shortchanging capital needs in the face of the immediate MTA budget crisis.
November 20, 2008
Is It Time to Swap the 2nd Ave Subway for Bus Rapid Transit?
In today's New York Times, Jim Dwyer poses a question that some city transit advocates have to this point discussed only in hushed tones: "Is it really such a great idea to be digging subway tunnels in Manhattan?"
September 24, 2008