TRENTON, N.J. – NJ Transit’s proposed 15% fare increase is tantamount to increasing fares by nearly 3% since Gov. Phil Murphy took office, and Assemblyman Christopher DePhillips wants people to know it.
“After years of taking credit for no fare hikes, the Murphy administration is not only raising fees, but also making up for lost time,” said DePhillips (R-Bergen), a member of the Assembly Transportation Committee and the GOP conference leader. “Murphy’s proudest NJ Transit talking point has just been wiped out with one stroke.”
DePhillips noted the plan would not only allow for the steep increase this year, but install 3% increases indefinitely.
In 10 years, the Northeast Corridor Line – NJ Transit’s busiest – will cost $25.11 from Hamilton Station to New York Penn Station. The immediate increase for a one-way ticket will be $2.44, from $16.25 to $18.69.
Tickets on NJ Transit’s Mainline would increase by $2.10, from $14 to $16.10 initially, for a rider traveling from Mahwah to NYC. In 10 years a ticket would cost $21.63 for the same ride.
Both examples are a 55% fare hike over ten years.
“The Murphy administration’s instinct is always to take more money from people,” continued DePhillips. “A better approach is to find ways to restructure the agency for cost savings before raising fare hikes. Instead, his administration nibbles around the edges, leases an unaffordable new NJ Transit headquarters from a friend, and raises ticket prices. It’s wrong.”