Eric Song, Contributing Photographer

Local transit riders may soon face a new set of fare increases.

Earlier this month, Governor Ned Lamont in his proposed budget called for raising bus fares from $1.75 to $2.00. Rail fares would likewise increase by 5 percent in each of the next two years. In December, the Metropolitan Transit Authority approved a new budget that raised fares for the Metro-North commuter rail by 4 percent starting in August of this year.

These changes come in the wake of increased spending needs by both the MTA and the Connecticut Department of Transportation. Lamont’s proposed increases to transportation fares aim to help fund transportation-related infrastructure and operation. The MTA’s fare hike addresses rising workforce costs.

Four local commuters told the News they disapproved of the increases. Central Connecticut State University student and commuter Jabril Bell said that he doesn’t “see the point in increasing the price if the experience of riding the train remains the same.” To travel to his job in Hartford, Bell uses UPass, a flat-fare unlimited-use ticket for students. Lamont proposed increasing the price for UPass from $40 to $50 per semester.

Two other riders also expressed frustration with the existing rail services, citing the hassle of arriving in Hartford by rail and the lack of progress on state construction projects, such as a project to double-track the Hartford Line. Funds for double-tracking of the Hartford Line were delivered in 2023, and construction is expected to be completed in 2027.

Other local residents see the fare increases as a disincentive to the usage of public transportation. 

“If [the transit agencies] want people to take the trains, they should lower the fence, not increase the fence, because the people that use public transit are not the people that can usually afford the increases,” said Bitak Shaw, a regular commuter to New York. Another local added that these policies do not “care about the working people.”

With a budget expanded by $29 million due to the price hikes, the state DOT plans on making improvements for transportation-related infrastructure, including $2.7 billion for bus and rail improvements in the recently unveiled Five-Year Capital Plan, such as new rail stations and pedestrian bridges. However, much of the funding for these plans is subsidized by federal grants, and the proposed fare increases will not wholly offset the projected $177 million deficit for the transportation department.

New Haven Union Station services Amtrak, CT Rail and the Metro-North Railroad.