{"id":21460,"date":"2014-04-30T14:33:18","date_gmt":"2014-04-30T18:33:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/raleighpublicrecord.org\/?p=21460"},"modified":"2014-05-01T10:33:56","modified_gmt":"2014-05-01T14:33:56","slug":"bus-fare-increases-planned-in-2014-and-2016","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/news\/transit\/2014\/04\/30\/bus-fare-increases-planned-in-2014-and-2016\/","title":{"rendered":"Bus Fare Increases planned in 2014 and 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"

The second phase of a bus-fare hike has been pushed back until 2016, but riders could still see a 25-cent increase this year. <\/p>\n

Capital Area Transit (CAT) and Triangle Transit Authority (TTA) will hold public hearings on the proposed rate hikes on Monday, May 5 and Wednesday, May 21, respectively. The fare increases are expected to keep up with escalating operating costs and pay for new services and buses.

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Karen Tam \/ Raleigh Public Record<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

For local cash rides, fares could increase from $1 to $1.25 in 2014 and then again to $1.50 in 2016. Regional rides could increase from $2.00 to $2.25 in 2014 and then again to $2.50 in 2016.<\/p>\n

Originally, the second phase of the increase was set to take place in 2015. Raleigh transit planner David Walker said that a federal review of the rate schedule recommended pushing the second phase out a year. <\/p>\n

A Title VI review is required for any program that receives federal funding to ensure that no group or person is overly burdened by the proposed changes. <\/p>\n

“Financially, potentially, it could be too much, too quick,\u201d Walker said. <\/p>\n

If approved by the Triangle Transit board of trustees and the Raleigh City Council, the first round of increases will start this fall.

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Ariella Monti \/ Raleigh Public Record<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

The increases are the first in about eight years for both transit organizations, which took a hit at the height of the recession. Although fare-box rates, the amount collected from riders, have remained stagnant, operating costs have continued to rise. <\/p>\n

The increase is projected to bring in an additional $1.4 million annually. <\/p>\n

Raleigh\u2019s transit administrator David Eatman said that the Raleigh Transit Authority\u2019s main objective is to advance its short-range transit plan, but ultimately how the funding is used is up to the City Council. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere are more things than just transit, we realize that,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Eatman said that it will take a couple of years for the increase in funding to be realized. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou will always have some decrease in ridership due to a fare increase,\u201d he said. \u201cUsually that does rebound over time.\u201d<\/p>\n

CAT\u2019s total operating cost is about $19.3 million, but only about 15 percent is recovered from riders. <\/p>\n

Eatman said that the fare increase will bring CAT up to about 20 percent recovery. In a peer-city comparison, Eatman said the median is about 21 percent. <\/p>\n

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