Word: hiked
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Change may be coming to the system soon, though. In response to the T's rising costs, the Massachusetts House of Representatives approved a bill earlier this month that would overhaul the MBTA's finances. The bill's most controversial provision calls for a fare hike, from 85 cents to $1 by 2001 and $1.25 by 2006. The Senate is leery of the bill, which passed the House by a 124-28 vote, and Governor A. Paul Cellucci opposes the fare hike...
...MBTA riders pay one of the lowest fares in the country. Most subway system charge well more than a dollar; in Philadelphia, the fare is nearly double Boston's, at $1.60. Still, there are good reasons to oppose the fare hike, and while it's painful to agree with the governor, in this case...
Supporters of the bill see the fare hike as an important component of rescuing the MBTA's finances. This reasoning depends on a dangerous assumption, that bus and subway riders should be responsible for financing the public transportation system themselves. Practically speaking, this is impossible: fares make up about 20 percent of the MBTA's budget, and for the system to be self-sustaining, rates would have to rise far more than 15 cents...
...just those who ride. The extra 15 cents would not hurt, but the precedent that the system should pay for itself would. Other parts of the bill, including a provision that would more fairly charge the towns that benefit from the MBTA for service, should be adopted. The fare hike, though, should not. The legislature must make it clear that the burden of supporting public transportation does not fall on the backs of riders...
...Greenspan is watching. Just as nearly everyone expected, the Fed passed on an interest-rate hike Tuesday; however, it did shift its "policy bias" from neutral to slightly worried. "While the FOMC [Federal Open Market Committee] did not take action today," the Fed said afterward, "the committee was concerned about the potential for a buildup of inflationary imbalances that could undermine the favorable performance of the economy." Though they couldn't have been surprised, stock marketeers did gulp a little, sending the Dow down 50 points or so after the afternoon announcement. By the end of trading...