Thursday, January 28, 2010

WMATA to increase fares on MetroRail, MetroBus

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's board of directors approved a 10-cent fare increase Thursday to cover the agency's fiscal deficit.

Peter Benjamin, chairman of WMATA's Board, stated Thursday that "We heard from our customers that they would rather increase fares than reduce service," adding, " Not a single member of this Board wants to increase fares or decrease service, but we need to take this temporary action to balance the budget this year.”

The new fares will go into effect on March 1st, and will stay at their heightened levels through June 30th. The increase applies to all common fare types, including Regular, Reduced, and Senior/Disabled tickets. Those customers utilizing other ticket types, such as Week Passes and SmartStudent Passes, also face increases of varying amounts.

Facing a $40 million budget shortfall, the public transit authority has taken a number of steps to put itself back in the black. The fare increase will provide a $9.6 million revenue boost to the troubled agency. The WMATA's board hopes that the increase, combined with austerity measures across the organization and a possible $10 million grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will return the system to a more solid fiscal footing.

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