Optimistic Report Assumes There Will Still Be A New York City To Get Around In Ten Years From Now

“If the M.T.A. keeps raising fares every two years, a 30-day MetroCard could cost $168 by 2023, according to an Independent Budget Office report requested by the Straphangers Campaign and released this morning…. But as the report also notes, the projected increases won’t produce a fare that is particularly big by historical standards. Thanks to all those unlimited cards and free transfers, today’s average fare, adjusted for inflation, is actually less than it was in 1996, when the MetroCard that allowing for unlimited cards and free transfers was first introduced. In fact, ‘If inflation matches IBO’s projections and the recent pattern of 8.4 percent biennial increases continue, the inflation-adjusted average fare paid by subway and bus riders would return to the 1996 level in 2027,’ the report says.”
 — You know what? If we’re not all kayaking through the tunnels in a decade I’ll be happy to pony up whatever worthless currency they’re asking for by then.

Photo by The Eyes Of New York, via Flickr