Metro’s new proposal to raise fares across the board is going to dip into riders’ wallets but won’t necessarily improve their commutes. The budget proposal from General Manager Richard Sarles, slated to be presented to Metro’s board of directors on Thursday, calls for riders to pay more for each rail ride, bus trip and parking spot starting in July. The plan also will pay for more construction work on the system.
That will mean fewer unplanned meltdowns eventually, the agency says, but will translate to weekend shutdowns, long waits for single-tracked trains and more stalled escalators amid the repairs.
| Metro’s fare proposal |
| Metro is proposing raising fares to help close a projected $116 million gap in the $2.6 billion budget that begins July 1. The public will have a chance to weigh in during public hearings slated for February or early March, then the board of directors makes the final decision by June 30. |
| Under the initial proposal: |
| No more peak-of-the-peak 20-cent surcharge |
| Using a SmarTrip card |
| • Bus: Up from $1.50 to $1.60. |
| • Metrorail peak fare: Minimum fare up from $1.95 to $2.10, with a maximum of $5.75 per one-way trip. |
| Paying cash for bus/paper farecard |
| • Bus: Raise from $1.70 to $2 for local bus. |
| • Metrorail: Riders pay $6 for peak trips, $4 for off-peak trips. No more paper surcharge or unlimited one-day rail pass. |
| Parking |
| • Daily fee: Up 25 cents. Rates currently vary from $3.25 to $4.75. |
“We are a transit system that is digging ourselves out of a deep hole of underinvestment,” Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said. “Better isn’t free.”
Metro now plans to replace 94 escalators over the next five years, up from an initial plan of 12 replacements, he said.
That’s good news for riders — five years from now. But meanwhile it means lots of queuing up to hike up stopped escalators, as riders did when the agency replaced the Foggy Bottom units. In some areas, entire station entrances could be closed, as the Dupont Circle southern entrance will be starting Feb. 1 for the replacement of three escalators.
Still, even with the work and the higher fares, the transit agency has no estimates on when it can return to running its trains automatically instead of the herky-jerky manual operations it has used since the deadly 2009 Red Line crash.
It also has no end date for when riders can expect to see all escalators running or when they won’t have to take a bus shuttle during a track shutdown.
“The work will never be completely done,” Stessel said. “It will diminish over time.”
Still, he said, some service will improve somewhat when fares rise.
The agency is planning to reroute some service to make way for the Silver Line. Stessel said that will mean more Orange, Green and Yellow line trains for some riders. But Metro has acknowledged that the realignment will reduce service for other riders.
