That success led to calls by the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA for the ticket option to be expanded to select Metro-North stations, and eventually to every commuter rail station in New York City.Ĭomptroller Scott Stringer has also prodded the MTA to better integrate itself within the city’s transportation system, by calling for a $2.75 fare and free bus or subway transfer for every intra-city trip on the LIRR and Metro-North station in the city. Most notably, the agency’s Atlantic Ticket, a $5 fare for travel between Atlantic Terminal and southeast Queens, was so popular that it netted the MTA over $10 million in revenue in under two years. The MTA has moved very slowly to provide fair fares on commuter rail inside the city for the actual population that lives here. No wonder Southeast Queens resident Samuel Santaella called the commuter rail system a kind of transportation apartheid in 2020. On Metro-North, a rush hour ride between Riverdale and Grand Central costs $9.75 (off-peak is $7.25). Even a reduced-fare LIRR trip taken entirely inside the city typically $7. Intra-city service on the MTA’s existing commuter rail lines is, frankly, expensive. The governor should overhaul the commuter rail fare structure within city limits to build ridership and create equitable access to opportunity.” “But the service needs to be brought within economic reach of Bronx riders to make it a worthwhile project. “Penn Access is very important for East Bronx communities with long subway or bus-plus-subway rides to Midtown,” said Riders Alliance Policy and Communications Director Danny Pearlstein. But with those stations set to open in 2025, advocates reminded the MTA that it’s high time to create an equitable fare structure for intra-city commuter rail riders. The new stations, in Co-op City, Morris Park, Parkchester and Hunts Point, will give tens of thousands of people new access to commuter rail service to Penn Station along a new stretch called Hell Gate Line. The bad news? The governor didn’t mention anything about ensuring that the fares are affordable to the very people he hopes to serve. Cuomo said on Thursday that the COVID-stalled Metro-North Penn Access project, which will add four new Metro-North stations in the East Bronx, is back on schedule.

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