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Commuter rail train hike eyed for '07
By Emelie Rutherford / Daily News Staff
Saturday, February 25, 2006
The price of riding the commuter rail could jump as much as 25 percent next year under a proposal to increase fares through the MBTA’s system of trains, buses and subway cars.
A proposed fare increase Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority General Manager Daniel Grabauskas unveiled Thursday would include commuter rail trains, T spokesman Joe Pesaturo confirmed yesterday. The proposed fare hike is not finalized but likely would be in the 25 percent range, though there could be variations throughout the MBTA system, he said.
Fares on the 13-line commuter rail system now range from $1.25 to $6, with monthly passes costing from $106 to $198.
"I think it’s a little bit too much," said Southborough commuter Magdi Ishak, after exiting the train at the Ashland stop. "I’d rather not drive, and I don’t have anyone to carpool with."
Commuter rail fares were increased last in January 2004.
The MBTA is seeking the fare increase as it grapples with more than $8 billion in debt, rising fuel costs, flat ridership and the need to renew 29 union contracts this year.
Clark Waterfall, a Hopkinton resident who works in downtown Boston, said the rate hike "is probably warranted" because the MBTA has been operating in the red for years.
He said he would continue to commute by train, noting that it would cost him more than $400 a month to park in the city but only $185 to ride public transportation.
The fare hike would need to clear several hurdles before being implemented, possibly next January.
"It’s all subject to a very intensive public process," Pesaturo said.
For the fare increase to go through, the MBTA board of directors would have to vote to start the fare increase process next month. If the board votes to go forward, a proposed fare increase would be made public in the spring, followed by public workshops and hearings in May and June. The final fare increase would be announced in the summer and the board would cast a final vote in November or December.
Under this schedule, the fare increase would start in the beginning of 2007. Now, the base subway rate is $1.25 and bus fare is 90 cents.
"I don’t have a choice," said Abhijeet Singh of Southborough. "You can’t really drive because parking in Boston is too expensive."
News of the MBTA’s financial struggles should not alarm MetroWest commuters hoping to see a large project to double the number of commuter rail trains running from Worcester to Boston come to fruition, Pesaturo said.
The fate of the project with a price tag estimated as high as $75 million is dependent largely on appropriations of state and federal dollars.
A Daily News analysis of commuter rail records last October revealed lengthy delays for commuter rail trains in MetroWest, with average delays of 23 minutes on the Framingham/Worcester line and 20 minutes for the Franklin line over the previous five years.
T Director of Railroad Operations Anna M. Barry last October said the Framingham/Worcester line is the "worst-performing" on the 13-line network. Most delays on this line were caused by track repairs during the five-year period, according to The Daily News review.
The MBTA is working to ensure its commuter rail trains are on time 95 percent of the time, though for the previous fiscal year -- 2005 -- they were on time just 92 percent of the time, Barry said.
Daily News staff writer Emelie Rutherford can be reached at 617-722-2495 or erutherford@cnc.com.
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