Dan Graubaskas should be eaten, horribly and ironically, by a shark

[spatch]

From El Glob:

Thursday, November 9, 2006
MBTA board approves fare hike for T, buses and light rail
By Mac Daniel, Globe Staff, and Andrew Ryan, Globe Correspondent

The MBTA board voted unanimously this afternoon to approve the T's second set of fare increases in three years despite the objections of Governor-elect Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino.

...

The increases, slated to take affect in January, are projected to bring in an additional $71 million a year as the MBTA tries to balance its budget after two years of shortfalls.

T officials acknowledge that the fare hikes will drive away an estimated 16.5 million passengers a year. The MBTA carries about 1.1 million passengers on an average workday.

Under the new fares, subway and trolley rides will go from $1.25 to $1.70, and bus fares from 90 cents to $1.25.

They unanimously voted for a fare hike, eh? After all that smoke-and-mirrors regarding "We'll think about hiking prices after we hear what the ridership has to say" and after the ridership spoke up and said "NO"?

Wow, talk about your world-shattering surprises right there.

Then again, after this week's Blue State Bonanza (like Christmas, New Years, Valentine's Day, the Fourth of July and 4/20 all rolled into one for the Democrats except Nevada, where there ain't gonna be no 4/20) I guess I should have expected some bad news to filter up eventually.

Comments

[dcart.livejournal.com]

That sucks, but I gotta give props to the effective use of your earlier set up materials in staging the punch line to this cruel joke.

[spatch]

I like to reward Constant Readers, see.

[coffeebeanben.livejournal.com]

Hmm.

Given the rate the MBTA's been increasing fares over the past few years, the improvements in services and other operational costs... seems the only reason they'd need to hike fares is to pay for the administration costs of implementing the last fare increase.

...wait.

[jadasc.livejournal.com]

I suppose it'd be gauche to mention that, because of how I commute, I'm likely to save money under these new terms?

[marphod.livejournal.com]

Er? How?

[jadasc.livejournal.com]

1. The price of the monthly pass is going down to match the rate of four weeklies.

2. Last I'd heard, the new subway fare includes one free bus transfer, which means I'd no longer be paying $2.15 for that leg of a trip.

[spatch]

The price of the monthly Combo pass is going down; however, they're phasing out the Subway-only passes. The new Combo pass, while cheaper than its current incarnation, will be more expensive than the current Subway only pass.

However, if this turn of events seriously does result in savings for you, you're one of the lucky ones and I salute you, albeit with a pang of slight jealousy. :)

[ron_newman]

People who win with the new fares:

- anyone who takes both a bus and a subway ($2.15 -> $1.70)
- zoned local bus passengers ($1.55 -> $1.25)
- anyone who buys a Combo Pass ($71 -> $59) or Combo Plus ($79 -> $59)
- Zone 1B commuter rail ($2 -> $1.70)
- Newton Green Line D riders ($3 -> $1.70)
- Quincy and Braintree riders ($2.50 -> $1.70)

[marphod.livejournal.com]

anyone who takes both a bus and a subway ($2.15 -> $1.70) In that order.

If your transit is subway->bus one way and bus->subway return, it is 4.30$->4.65$ (2 subways and one bus) roundtrip.

Newton Green Line D riders ($3 -> $1.70)

Assuming you leave the above ground area. Round trip was 3.00$ if you were returning from above ground. Now, its 3.40$. If you stayed in Newton, it was even less. Newton local, with warrant, was 1.50$ out and free back. (and a one-time 1.50$ surcharge to get the warrant).

[ron_newman]

No, your hypothetical round trip would be $4.30 -> $3.40 . $1.70 includes a transfer from bus to subway, OR from subway to bus.

[cosinezero.livejournal.com]

What'd you expect? The carrot we had dangled was lower pike tolls if we voted Healey. We voted Patrick, and this is why we can't have nice things.

[hemlock-martini.livejournal.com]

Extra credit for proper icon use.

[lno.livejournal.com]

Why, sonny, back when I was in Beantown, a ride on the T .. see, we called it the T, because ... well, I forget, but go ask your gramma! And tell her I'm dyspeptic again! Buncha damn good-for-nothin'... they .. my carrots! I was growing carrots, and ..

Right, the T! Quit your whining, kid, life was tough back then! A token cost us eighty-five cents, and we liked it because it was tough! I wanted to buy up all the tokens I could find in 1999 and hang onto them for the next seven years because I thought I could resell them at double the price, but people said I was crazy.

WHO'S LAUGHING NOW, MONKEY-MAN!

Aw, pumpkin, you know grampa loves you. No, he doesn't think you came from a monkey. He thinks you came from THE GODDAMN SPAWN OF SATAN HISSELF OH JESUS GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME

Medication? From gramma? How nice.

[liza.livejournal.com]

Sorry, tokens were phased out. You could melt them down for scrap.

[allicat42.livejournal.com]

Tokens have been phased out here in Atlanta. Altho anyone still having them can use them to buy a one-way Breeze card. (Think Charlie card. Only in Atlanta.)

[terras.livejournal.com]

The sad reality of T financing is that this fare increase is dedicated towards debt service and keeping up with the pay and benefits for T employees and retirees. In the next five years a bunch of T employees are due to retire with a cushy pension and full healthcare -- All for being surly and unresponsive toward their customers. Even better: The Carmen's union is negotiating for a new contract (the old one expired over the summer) and they're asking for raises plus maintaining benefits, which will likely lead to another increase in the next two years.

The T's peculiar habit of letting lightbulbs burn out and installing a new fixture, instead of simply replacing the bulb, stems from the need to perform maintenance out of the capital budget. That capital budget is funded in part by the Feds and the State bond bills, which have no relationship to the fares and are usually earmarked out the wazoo.

I'll put my cranky stick down now, lest I hurt someone...

[ladivinafemme.livejournal.com]

Guess I picked a bad time to move to Zone 8.

:(

[clawdia.livejournal.com]

And yet it's still cheaper than the CTA!