NYC subway and bus fare hikes delayed to July or August by bogged-down budget in Albany

The delay in passing New York’s state budget has a silver lining for straphangers — a reprieve until July or August on expected fare increases.

New Yorkers had previously been told to brace for a roughly 5.5% fare and toll hike in mid-2023. MTA deputy CFO Jai Patel told the agency’s board she’d expected the increases to start in June.

“Obviously, that’s not going to happen,” Patel said at a board hearing this week.

“It will be a fluid sort of process — maybe July, [maybe] August will be the timeline,” she added.

The MTA’s funding hangs on the ongoing budget talks in Albany, where lawmakers as of Wednesday were expected to be 25 days behind schedule.

Under the talked about 5.5% increase, the bus and subway fare would rise to around $2.90 from the current base fare of $2.75. But that figure could change, depending on the MTA budget and the state budget.

MTA chairman and CEO Janno Lieber warned in February that fares could climb higher — along with service cuts and possible layoffs — if the agency’s revenues from fares and other sources fall short.

Democratic lawmakers sought to forestall any fare increase at all last month, proposing higher corporate taxes, surcharges on Uber, Lyft and other rideshare services, and new New York City parking fees to halt the hike.

Legislative leaders have signaled they’re getting close to a deal on the state budget, despite passing a fifth budget extender Monday.

But even a state budget passes this week, it would take the MTA about a month to formally propose a fare hike. Once the fare hike is proposed, state law requires a 30 day public comment period.

“Depending on what the executive budget includes ... we would start the process of informing the board of what the fare and toll increases could be up to, and then start the public notice process,” Patel said.

Those two steps would put a final MTA vote on the fare hike into July or August, Patel said.