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Debate on higher Metro fares could go before public
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Metro riders will be paying a higher fare after officials decide exactly when the hikes will come.
Washington, D.C. (Map, News) - Higher Metro fares could be fodder for public meetings if the Metro board of directors opts for this approach as it weighs its options on addressing fare hikes.
The board is voting Oct. 25 on whether to hold public meetings, but would not decide on a plan for higher fares.
“We all recognize we need to raise fares,” said Elizabeth Hewlett, who represents Prince George’s County on the board. “We are all grappling with finding something we can agree on.”
The board has spent the past month bickering over higher fares, which system officials believe are needed to eliminate a projected $109 million revenue shortfall in the coming budget cycle.
Representatives from the District of Columbia are pushing for higher increases in parking fees and rail fares, while Maryland and Virginia directors favor spreading the increases evenly among bus and rail passengers.
Suburban board members, who represent many riders who drive to rail stations, opposed a recent proposal by D.C. Council Member Jim Graham to increase parking fees by $1.25 and rush-hour rail fares by 30 cents.
Conversely, Graham and other D.C. board members have blocked General Manager John Catoe’s plan to raise parking fees by 50 cents, rail fares by as much as 40 cents and regular bus fares by 25 cents.
City representatives said they believe low-income bus riders cannot afford higher fares and argue that affluent suburban residents who park at Metro stations should pay more.
Several board members are working on compromises. Dana Kauffman, representing Fairfax County, Va., on the board, is offering a plan to increase bus and rail fares, along with parking fees, by about an equal percentage. Kauffman would give free rides to bus passengers paying with SmarTrip cards, however.
“It’s a sweetener for the District, and it rewards people for using the SmarTrip card, which is something we want to encourage,” said Kauffman, who did not have specific figures for his proposal.
