November 19, 2020

MTA Announces Virtual Public Hearings on Fare and Toll Policy to Begin Dec. 1

MTA Unveils Proposed Fare and Toll Adjustments for Public Comment

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today announced that a virtual public hearing process, which begins the biennial review of fare and toll policy, will begin Tuesday, Dec. 1. At the MTA’s November board meeting, the agency outlined proposed fare and toll adjustments, which are options to be considered. All proposals will be reviewed by the MTA Board and are subject to extensive public input ahead of an expected final vote on fares in January and tolls in February.

The MTA's Financial Plan assumes fare/toll increases every other year that yield a 4% increase in revenue, the equivalent of 2% per year. Under the proposed options, revenue yields could increase by up to 4% for fares and up to 8% for tolls. The MTA is committed to exploring a wide variety of proposals given the ongoing pandemic.

“The MTA will begin the standard review process for fare and toll adjustments, although we recognize this year is anything but standard, with a series of virtual public hearings,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Patrick J. Foye. “With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we are committed to reviewing a wide variety of proposals and will work to minimize the impact on our customers. The MTA continues to face the worst financial crisis in its history and the best way to avoid these actions is for Congress to provide $12 billion in desperately needed funding.”

The MTA has developed a series of eight virtual hearings to gather the public’s input on the proposals as a result of the pandemic. There are two types of hearings: virtual public hearings and virtual satellite hearings. All hearings will take place on Zoom, with a livestream available for virtual public hearings. You must pre-register to speak at a virtual public or virtual satellite hearing. Registration for all virtual hearings opens on Monday, Nov. 23, at 10 a.m. Registration closes at 5 p.m. the day before each hearing. The MTA Board will also accept written comments on the proposals via the fare and toll hearing website and through the MTA’s Public Hearing Hotline at (646) 252-6777. For more information on the virtual public hearings, please visit: new.mta.info/2020hearings.

Virtual Hearing Accessibility and Language Services

At the virtual public and satellite hearings, CART Captioning and American Sign Language services will be available.

People who are deaf or hard of hearing can use their preferred relay service or the free 711 relay service, and then ask to be connected to the Public Hearing Hotline at 646-252-6777 to speak with an agent.

People who are blind or have low vision can request accommodations on or before Dec. 14, 2020, by submitting a request online or by calling the Public Hearing Hotline at 646-252-6777.

Those who need language assistance or any other accommodations, can submit a request at least three business days before the scheduled hearing date either online, by calling the public hearing hotline or submitting a hearing request. Additional information is available at new.mta.info/2020hearings

2020 Virtual Public Hearing Dates

Tuesday, Dec. 1, at 5:30 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 3, at 10 a.m.
Monday, Dec. 7, at 5:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 9, at 5:30 p.m.
Monday, Dec. 14, at 5:30 p.m.
Monday, Dec. 21, at 10 a.m.

2020 Virtual Satellite Hearing Dates

Wednesday, Dec. 2, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 8, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

View the proposed changes to fares and tolls in 2021 below:

New York City Transit

*Fare Policy Proposals*
*Policy*	*Description*
Base 2%	Increase fares on all ticket types to generate a 2% revenue yield
Base 4%	Increase fares on all ticket types to generate a 4% revenue yield
Eliminate Time-Based Passes	Elimination of 7- and 30-day passes; base fare would not increase
Keep Base Fare Flat	Hold base fare at $2.75 and increase price of 7- and 30-day passes
Eliminate Bus Coinage	In preparation for OMNY roll out with large out-of-system sales network
Discontinue Walk-Up Reduced Fare	Simplify process for joining the Reduced Fare Program. This process was suspended during COVID.
Increase Green Fee	Increase the “green fee” for new MetroCard purchases above the current $1
Eliminate Single Ride Ticket (SRT)	Remove the SRT as a fare option
Single Ride Ticket (SRT) Fare	Increase the base fare for SRT by up to $1

Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad

*Fare Policy Proposals*
*Policy*	*Description*
Base 2%	Increase fares on all ticket types to generate a 2% revenue yield
Base 4%	Increase fares on all ticket types to generate a 4% revenue yield
“No Commutation” Increase	Pilot program to increase fares on one-way and ten-trip tickets, but hold monthly and weekly fares flat
“Flat Fares”	Condense into two zones (City/Suburban) and three fares – City; Suburban to City; Suburban to Suburban
Mail & Ride Program	Distribute Mail & Ride tickets through mobile platform only

MTA Bridges and Tunnels

*Toll Policy Proposals*
Increase crossing charges for passenger vehicles to as much as $6.70 for E-ZPass New York Customer Service Center (NYCSC) customers when using their properly mounted NYCSC E-ZPass tag.
Different crossing charges will apply to non-NYCSC E-ZPass and Tolls by Mail customers, motorcycles, buses, and trucks, as well as to NYCSC E-ZPass customers when not using their properly mounted E-ZPass tag.
Different crossing charges may apply by time of day and/or on predesignated Gridlock Alert Days.
Bridges and Tunnels resident discounts and carpool plans and MTA rebate programs may be affected.

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