Borough President Protests Access-A-Ride Fare Hikes
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Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer is calling on the MTA to nix plans to double the fare for Access-A-Ride customers.
Stringer gathered with other opponents of the proposal outside an Upper West Side subway stop Saturday to protest a move they say will increase the burden on people with disabilities who depend on Access-a-Ride.
"That's the van service that people with disabilities [and] frail elderly use to go to the supermarket, to go to the doctor, to become part of community,” said Stringer. “By doubling this fare, we are about to create a new generation of shut-ins, people who will simply not be able to be part of our society. And that to us is an outrage and wrong."
Under the MTA's proposal, Access-A-Ride fares would cost more than $4 per ride, a fare that opponents say would do little to cut into the MTA's looming deficit.
A spokesman for the MTA said they had to include many painful proposals that they hope they will not have to implement and that the increased fare still only pays for about 7 percent of what it costs the MTA.