As Fare Hike Vote Looms, Commuters Fume

IT'S FUNNY HOW EVENTS NATURALLY sync up sometimes. Just as members of the Metro board were preparing for a meeting this morning to consider proposals for raising transit fares, we encountered an unusual amount of commuter frustration on the Red Line.

At the height of the 8 a.m. rush at the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan station, some commuters, including this writer, had to grudgingly let four trains pass — the gap between some trains was as much as seven minutes — before squeezing onto a downtown-bound train.

Our commuting cohorts weren't happy about it. As the platform grew more jammed, one man pounded in frustration on a the side of a packed train car that had no room for him. "And they want to raise fares?", a woman in the crowd grumbled to nobody in particular.

Yes, indeed. For months now, Metro officials and the agency's Board of Directors have been staring at a $109 million deficit in next year's budget and have said that raising fares is the only way to close the gap. Under a plan being pushed by the agency, rush hour fares and parking fees would increase, a prospect that pits suburban riders against those in the District whose commutes are shorter and cheaper. Members of the board's Maryland delegation have an alternate proposal that would reduce the burden on long-distance suburban rush-hour riders.

As The Post's Lena H. Sun reports:

Under both plans, the largest increases would affect rush-hour subway riders, who make up the biggest portion of daily users. Both proposals would increase rush-hour boarding charges by 30 cents, to $1.65 per trip, a 22 percent increase. But the Maryland plan would raise the maximum fare by 60 cents, to $4.50, instead of 80 cents, to $4.70. The Maryland plan also seeks a smaller increase in Metrorail distance charges during rush hour.

Those plans are being discussed by the board today. Metro General Manager John Catoe has urged action before the end of the year. If a fare hike is delayed, he said, any inevitable increase would be higher.

Where is the breaking point for riders? WTOP reports this morning that although Metrorail ridership is increasing overall, the number of riders in Virginia has been declining through the 2006 and 2007 fiscal years, especially at terminal stations like Vienna and Franconia-Springfield. That suggests that perhaps more suburban commuters are abandoning Metrorail for the highways as trains are getting more crowded and service declines.

How might that fit into the fare hike calculus? Stay tuned ...

» "Metro Board to Weigh Proposed Fare Increases" [WaPo]
» "Metro Loses Significant Ridership in Virginia" [WTOP]
» EARLIER: "Alternative Metro Fare Hikes Proposed" [WaPo]

Photo by Gerald Martineau/The Washington Post

Posted By Michael Grass at 11:45 AM on December 13, 2007 Tagged in Free Ride , Maryland , Metro , News , The District , Top Stories , Transit , Virginia

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