Joint Committee/Board Testimony
Good morning, I’m Brian Fritsch, Associate Director of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA, PCAC.
I want to start by thanking the workers who have been out through the storm and cold weather, doing their utmost to keep operations moving. It’s been tough sledding, but riders appreciate the immense efforts.
In addition to snow, January brought fare changes, and it’s been satisfying watching two fare incentives PCAC has long advocated for become reality: the extension of the Family Fare to 12–17-year-olds and the expansion of the half-fare discount for Senior, disabled, and Medicare-eligible riders to the AM Peak. We look forward to hearing more about how the implementation of these policies is going, as well as ongoing efforts to make riders aware of these changes.
On the other hand, we were surprised to learn the railroad’s refund policy had also drastically changed with little notice to riders or the MTA Board, as it was not included in the fare changes materials and discussion last year. Shortening the refund window for mobile one-way tickets to a paltry two minutes — which I challenge anyone who doesn’t know the TrainTime app well to complete in that timeframe — and not allowing refunds for Day Pass tickets are some of the particularly onerous rules. Please consider making them a bit more generous.
We’ve also heard from many riders mourning the loss of the 10-day ticket and, more broadly, the loss of flexibility they used to have to buy tickets ahead of time. These adjustments seem particularly painful for riders, and we’ll be interested to see how it impacts ridership patterns over time. Thank you.