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The fares will increase for monthly and weekly ticket holders traveling between Rye or Port Chester Stations and Manhattan by an average 2.5 percent, Metro-North said. There will also be an increase in fares for travel between Rye or Port Chester and a limited number of other stations.
These fare adjustments were previously approved by the MTA Board but phased in so fares at Rye and Port Chester would not exceed those from Greenwich. In March 2013, while the overall average New York fare increase was 9 percent, Rye and Port Chester station fares were raised only by about 6.5 percent.
The remaining 2.5 percent average increase for travel to and from Rye and Port Chester stations will go into effect Jan. 1.
The increased fares will also be implemented along the New Haven Line and Shore Line East, affecting all riders who travel between Connecticut and New York and between stations within the state. That includes on the Danbury, New Canaan and Waterbury branch lines.
“Does it make me happy? Of course not, but what can you do?” said James Kingsley, who takes the train from Westport to Grand Central Terminal every day. “I can either pay the higher fares or I can drive over an hour in miserable traffic every morning. Personally, I’d rather continue to take the train.”
News of the fare hike comes only a week after a Metro-North train derailed in the Bronx, killing four passengers and injuring another 63. The Dec. 1 accident wasn’t the only trouble to afflict Metro-North this year.
Back in May, about 60 people were injured when one Metro-North train derailed and clipped a second one on the Fairfield/Bridgeport border. In the fall, service on the New Haven Line was severely disrupted for 12 days after a Con Edison power failure in Mount Vernon left an 8-mile stretch of the line without electricity.
“I think they’ve got nerve milking us for more money considering the year they’ve had,” said commuter Helen Frankel. “I wouldn’t mind so much if service was more reliable, but that’s not the case.”
But an increase in fares is necessary to keep up with rising operating costs, Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner James Redeker said.
“This fare increase is the third in nine years,” Redeker said in a statement. “During that time, operating expenses continued to grow due to inflation and service has been increased on weekdays and weekends on both the New Haven Line and Shore Line East.
"We held several hearings throughout the state prior to adopting the phased implementation of fare increases over three years.”
Train riders who will feel the fare increases the most are those who purchases monthly rail passes. Monthly tickets on sale for January will reflect the new fares.
To see a sampling of the new fares, click here.
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