The MTA board voted Wednesday to raise bus and subway fares by 15 cents or a reasonable 5.4%. The board also benevolently agreed to make five bus routes — one per borough — free! However, the MTA has decided that some disabled riders need to pay more — much, much more for a typical fare. Participants in what had been an innovative pilot program offered by the authority’s Access-A-Ride (AAR) service, which serves disabled riders, are facing an incredible 45% increase in their fare in August. Does anyone at the MTA really think that charging an already marginalized group of citizens more — for less — will increase access and equity?
