RailBus63 wrote:I kind of hope that the control board is proposing large fare increases to let riders become outraged and force Beacon Hill to address the debt issue. The state saddled the MBTA with this debt and has forced it to devote an increasingly larger percentage of the authority's operating revenue to pay it off. If the debt was restructured and removed from the MBTA somehow, that would give the T $400 million to improve service and invest in maintenance.
Bramdeisroberts wrote:RailBus63 wrote:I kind of hope that the control board is proposing large fare increases to let riders become outraged and force Beacon Hill to address the debt issue. The state saddled the MBTA with this debt and has forced it to devote an increasingly larger percentage of the authority's operating revenue to pay it off. If the debt was restructured and removed from the MBTA somehow, that would give the T $400 million to improve service and invest in maintenance.
Agreed. This needs to happen, but I have no confidence whatsoever that anyone running the T is savvy enough to pull it off.
fitch77 wrote:This recent Transit Matters blog post http://transitmatters.info/blog/2016/1/31/the-case-against-mbta-fare-increases-and-what-to-do-instead makes a great case for why the MBTA should discount off-peak commuter rail fares, among with other alternatives to the MBTA plan. That blog post has links for contacting MBTA and our elected officials to let them know what you think!
Heavily discount Commuter Rail fares during off-peak periods and on weekends. Chicago and Philadelphia have seen large ridership increases with their $8 unlimited weekend (Chicago) and $12 unlimited (Philadelphia) off-peak passes.
saulblum wrote:SEPTA runs hourly service on most regional rail lines on the weekends, unlike the T. Take a look, for example, at the Fitchburg line North Station departures on the weekend:
8:35, 11:15, 12:45, 3:00, 4:15, 6:00, 8:00, 11:30
And how much more should peak fares rise?
The EGE wrote:That's an incredibly steep penalty for cash-on-board fares, considering that at many stations it is not possible to buy a ticket otherwise without a smartphone (which not everyone has, for a variety of reasons). A surcharge should only be charged if it is easy to buy with cash or credit card - either with fare machines at the station or a nearby retailer.
leviramsey wrote:Nearly everybody between 18-55 has a smartphone, especially if they're riding commuter rail at rush hour into Boston (those being the only people I'd charge the surcharge for outside of stations where the surcharge currently applies).
leviramsey wrote:A $6 cash-on-board surcharge is, in comparison to other systems worldwide, minuscule: Caltrain's is about $240, for example.
MBTA3247 wrote:$240 is not a surcharge; that's a fine for fare evasion. Caltrain's website makes no mention of allowing tickets to be bought on-board.
leviramsey wrote:Nearly everybody between 18-55 has a smartphone, especially if they're riding commuter rail at rush hour into Boston (those being the only people I'd charge the surcharge for outside of stations where the surcharge currently applies).
MBTA3247 wrote:leviramsey wrote:A $6 cash-on-board surcharge is, in comparison to other systems worldwide, minuscule: Caltrain's is about $240, for example.
$240 is not a surcharge; that's a fine for fare evasion. Caltrain's website makes no mention of allowing tickets to be bought on-board.
leviramsey wrote:MBTA3247 wrote:It's exactly the same thing in every important respect. Board a Caltrain without buying a ticket beforehand and the conductor checks you, you're paying at least $240 plus whatever the fare is. Board an MBTA CR train at BBY without buying a ticket beforehand right now and the conductor checks you, you pay $3 plus whatever the fare is. The MBTA conductor gives you a ticket receipt, the Caltrain conductor gives you a citation which you can pay later.
For the record, every passenger I saw on my Littleton train last night had a smartphone.
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