New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. today issued the following statement after a vote by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) Finance Committee allowing it to move ahead with its proposed 23% fare hike and massive service cuts:

The State Legislature and the Governor have a defining challenge before them: They must put the brakes on massive fare hikes and service cuts that the MTA will otherwise approve on Wednesday, and they must fully fund the next MTA capital program. To do otherwise would result in a huge hit on working New Yorkers.

The Governor and Legislature must meet this challenge by making sure that everyone who benefits from transit pays for transit, including drivers.

I have offered a more equitable way of raising revenue from drivers than bridge tolls. My proposal – a weight-based vehicle registration fee – would save the MTA nearly a half-billion dollars in implementation costs alone over the next five years.

It also would help improve air quality by charging more to drivers of larger, environmentally damaging vehicles. Most important, it means that all drivers from across the entire 12-county MTA region would contribute to transit – not just those in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and upper Manhattan.

Additionally, I am pleased that the MTA has wisely listened to opposition from the disability community, my office and several other elected officials and abandoned its unjust proposal to more than double fares for Access-a-Ride users. This is a start toward fairness.

By doing this, the MTA is complying with the terms of the contract between the City and the MTA that pegged the cost of a one-way Access-a-Ride trip to the transit base fare. My office was the first to produce a copy of this contract in December 2008.

People with disabilities are among the most economically vulnerable New Yorkers.  Most simply cannot afford other transportation options.  Particularly during these tough economic times, the MTA needs to fund our transit needs in an equitable fashion and not unfairly burden those who can least afford it. 

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