NEWARK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – The NJ Transit board voted unanimously Wednesday to approve a 15% fare hike on commuters that will start this summer.
The board voted in favor of the fare hike, which will take effect July 1. It's the first fare increase for NJ Transit bus and train riders in nearly a decade.
Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla was among a small group of demonstrators who protested outside the transit agency’s Newark headquarters, where the board met.
NJ Transit officials have said the agency is in a big financial hole because of COVID-19, with ridership around 80% of pre-pandemic levels.
The fare hike aims to close a projected $106.6 million budget gap for the upcoming fiscal year, the agency said in January, when the fare hike plan was first announced.
In addition to the 15% hike, the plan implements yearly fare increases of 3% in perpetuity.
The plan does not include any service level reductions, but it ends the FLEXPASS pilot aimed at hybrid workers and adds a 30-day expiration dates on all one-way tickets.
The agency held 10 public hearings in March, during which roughly 1,000 members of the public spoke out against the plan, including over concerns about its impact on middle class commuters.
More people spoke before the board Wednesday ahead of the vote.
The fare hike was approved just weeks after the MTA board signed off on congestion pricing, which charges a $15 toll on most commuter vehicles entering Manhattan south of 60th Street during the daytime.