MTA revises fare-hike plan, shaves $1 off weekly bus, subway fare increase

Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News on Sep 27, 2025

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NEW YORK — The MTA is revising its fare-hike proposal after weeks of public comment, lowering the price for a week of subway and bus rides.

The new proposal, expected to face a vote by the transit agency’s board next week, would cap the price of unlimited subway and bus rides at $35 over a seven-day period with the OMNY fare-payment system — $1 more than the current $34 threshold, and $1 less than the initial fare-hike plan.

Individual subway and bus rides are still expected to climb to $3, up from the current price of $2.90.

The fare hike is still expected to go into effect in January in an effort to synchronize it with the end of the MetroCard and shift to all-OMNY payments by the end of the year.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s deputy chief for commercial ventures, Jessie Lazarus, said the hike reduction came in response to a public-comment blitz that saw four times as much feedback as the agency received during 2023’s fare debate.

The outreach included three large public feedback meetings, plus 22 different small gatherings throughout the MTA’s region, including eight at commuter rail stations and seven at subway stations.

“We’re really proud of the effort, and the result,” Lazarus said.

The new fare proposal also includes a plan to raise the age of children eligible for the MTA’s “family ticket” on the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North.

Currently, the family ticket allows up to four children under the age of 12 to ride for $1 each, so long as they are riding with a fare-paying adult. The new proposal would extend the family ticket rules to include any child under the age of 18 in the $1 fare.

The remainder of the proposed fare increase is expected to remain the same.

Express bus fares are slated to go up 25 cents — from $7 to $7.25 — and be capped at $67 over a seven-day period.

On the LIRR and Metro-North Railroad, single ticket prices would increase by an average of 4.4%. Monthly and weekly tickets also would go up 4.4%.

The City Ticket, which allows for travel within New York City on the commuter railways, will increase by 25 cents: from $7 to $7.25 during peak hours, and from $5 to $5.25 during off-peak.

Farebox revenue accounts for roughly one quarter of the MTA’s annual operating budget — separate from the five-year capital budget earmarked for large-scale improvement projects and partially funded by New York City’s congestion-pricing tolls.

New York City’s subway and bus fare last went up in 2023, when it rose from $2.75 to the current fare of $2.90.