Riders need options, like those embodied in the Freedom Ticket model.

Atlantic Ticket has paved the way for equitable fares in far-flung areas of the city for riders who are priced out of commuter rail service and don’t live close to subways. This is especially important as fares have recently risen and much-needed congestion pricing is on the horizon, which should encourage more people to leave their cars at home and take transit.

Since its June 6, 2018 launch, Atlantic Ticket has increased daily ridership at Atlantic Terminal by 5%, providing much needed revenue along a corridor that was operating trains that were running more than half empty during peak hours – getting more out of an underutilized asset. From what we understand, over 870,000 tickets have been purchased, and that number is continuing to grow – now at about 20,000 tickets sold per week.

Applying the Freedom Ticket model to other areas of the city.

With this success, the NYCTRC is looking beyond Atlantic Ticket to address commuting needs elsewhere in the MTA region to include Bronx stations along the Metro-North Railroad (MNR). Meanwhile, current capacity constraints going in and out of Penn Station during peak hours has made this concept challenging, but once the effects of all the proposed new fare payment discounts agreed to as part of Congestion Pricing are understood, and once East Side Access (ESA) is complete and the East River tunnels are repaired, a Freedom Ticket type fare structure to Penn Station LIRR must be studied and considered; its implementation will be made easier with the new OMNY fare payment system. Until then, applying the Freedom Ticket model to the Bronx for MNR riders will help make for faster and more affordable commutes.

The post Atlantic Ticket is Extended! appeared first on PCAC.

An element of this Corporate Plan is a New Fare Payment System (NFPS); which will be implemented in the first five years of this 10-Year Plan. Since the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee (PCAC) to the MTA has been advocating for advanced fare payment options, we are looking forward to its implementation.  

Over the past couple of years, there have been several announcements highlighting the MetroCard’s replacement with a new contactless fare payment system. The fare collection system that started over 100 years ago with small paper tickets changed to a nickel, then to a dime, then to various tokens, and then finally to the MetroCard will now be walked into the future through contactless cards.  

Contactless fare collection systems consist of two types; closed loop systems and open loop systems. Closed loop systems refer to payment instruments which are used solely for transit fare payments. Whereas in open loop systems; the payment instrument could be used for generic payments along with transit fare payments.

The city of Hong Kong was the first one to experiment with both types. In 1997; Hong Kong launched the Octopus Card; as a closed loop system. Wherein; monetary value stored in the Octopus Card could be used as transit-only funds (like our MetroCard).

Over the years, the Octopus Cards received a major upgrade. The closed loop system transformed to an open loop system enabling commuters to use a single Octopus Card for multiple purposes. This card is linked to the commuter’s bank account and is used just like a debit card. By waiving or swiping the card at the transit system, a restaurant, or a grocery shop, the amount owed is deducted from the commuter’s bank account. These systems generally use contactless technologies for a ‘wave and pay’ or the ‘tap and go’ experience. Commuters can also choose if they want their payment deducted from their debit account or to be added to their credit account.

In 2003, Transport for London (TfL) introduced their Oyster Card, a closed loop ‘tap and go’ system. You can flash your card at the turnstile to gain transit access. Over the years, TfL opened its system to other cards and banks in the UK started introducing contactless debit and credit cards which could be used just like an Oyster card. The transit fee is directly deducted from your bank account. Hence, London has a combination of open loop and closed loop fare payment system.

Besides; open loop systems also involve payments through smartphone applications and tapping your electronic ticket barcode at the turnstile for transit access.

In the June 2018 Capital Program Oversight Committee Book the timeline for the implementation of the new contactless system would be as follows:

May 2019: Introduction of the new contactless system; new turnstiles at limited subway stations that would accept contactless bank cards or mobile wallets. The MetroCard would still be available until the new system has been fully implemented in the year 2023.

October 2020: By this time there is widespread and automatic issuing of contactless bank cards to the New Yorkers. Contactless technologies in place on new turnstiles at all subway stations and on all buses.

February 2021: Introduction of the new contactless transit card and a mobile app to manage the card. These cards would be available with out-of-system stores like Duane Reade and CVS. They will not be offered at the subway stations yet.

March 2022: Installation of kiosks vending the new contactless transit card at all the subway stations, Metro-North stations and the LIRR stations.

July 2023: Removal of the MetroCard from the system. Transit fares are paid through the new contactless transit cards, contactless bank cards, smartphones and the new app.

So, are we ready to bid adieu to the MetroCard and say hello to our new ‘animal’ transit card? Let’s do this New York!

The post Time to bid adieu to the MetroCard? appeared first on PCAC.

This report also serves as a great companion piece to the New York City Transit Riders Council’s (NYCTRC) Freedom Ticket proposal. Providing improved bus connections to Long Island Rail Road stations in Southeast Queens will be necessary to get commuters to and from these stations once the pilot program is underway.

Queens Village, Cambria Heights, and Rosedale: One in six workers is employed in healthcare.

The working-class neighborhoods of Southeast Queens house and employ a significant portion of the City’s healthcare workers. Traveling into and out of these neighborhoods is a challenge by public transit. According to the report, there are over 11,000 healthcare workers who commute from Queens Village, Cambria Heights, and Rosedale requiring more than 71 minutes to get to work, compared to 66 minutes for the average commuter in these neighborhoods. In nearby Jamaica, Hollis and St. Albans nearly 20% of the city’s entire health aide population lives in these areas.

Public transit in Southeast Queens has not kept pace with the rapidly growing healthcare care sector. Without nearby subway connections and dwindling hope that new lines will be built, health aides here are in desperate need of better transit options.

Long Island Rail Road: An underutilized asset running through Southeast Queens

While these neighborhoods lack subway connections, there are six LIRR stations (Rosedale, Laurelton, Locust Manor, St. Albans, Hollis, and Queens Village) within reach. The LIRR lines traveling through Southeast Queens to Atlantic Terminal are currently running half empty. However, due to high peak-hour fares of $10.25 per-ride, many working-class residents cannot afford the costs, especially when combined with transit fares ($2.75 per-ride) to complete their journeys. Commuters wishing to use both the LIRR and NYC Transit subways and buses have to pay up to $347 per month in order to reduce their travel times. These high fares create a financial barrier that many simply cannot afford.

In 2015, the New York City Transit Riders Council (NYCTRC) proposed Freedom Ticket, which would reduce city LIRR fares and provide a free transfer to NYC Transit subways and buses. Freedom Ticket would address this steep financial barrier by reducing combined fares by as much as 36%, and be able to drastically reduce outer-borough commute times. One-way commute times into lower Manhattan could be reduced from nearly an hour and a half down to just 55 minutes.

Required departure times from Rosedale, Queens to arrive at Fulton Center by 9:00 AM

In addition to the recommendations put forth by the Center for an Urban Future, Freedom Ticket would be able to address the following:

• Make transit more affordable for low-income workers
• Make it a priority to improve transit service in the four boroughs outside Manhattan
• Explore strategies to target the needs of home health aides

Access to affordable, efficient, and reliable transit is paramount on all modes be it subway, bus, or commuter rail. Where deficiencies in one exist, the others must pick up the slack in order to support working populations. Healthcare workers are an integral part of our urban fabric and require improved transit to perform their much needed roles. Let us turn these unhealthy commutes into commutes that help to achieve healthier New York communities for all.

The post Southeast Queens Healthcare Workers Need Freedom Ticket Now! appeared first on PCAC.

Out of the 30 largest metropolitan areas, New York City is the only city where average weekly commutes exceed five hours, according to New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer. New Yorkers on average, commute 6 hours and 18 minutes every week. This problem is even more apparent in outer boroughs neighborhoods like in Southeast Queens, where weekly commutes can consume over eight hours; about a third above the average for the City.

Although New York City Transit’s subway system is massive, there are still places it doesn’t reach including the neighborhoods of SE Queens. Just getting to work or school can be a chore, because getting into Manhattan often requires multiple combinations of transit all of which have different fare structures and payment methods.

 New York City Transit Riders Council releases Freedom Ticket Report

On Wednesday, December 2, the New York City Transit Riders Council (NYCTRC) proposed a solution to outer borough commuting woes in its new report, The Freedom Ticket: Southeast Queens Proof of Concept.

The Freedom Ticket, as the name implies, would give commuters the freedom to use any MTA mode that meets their needs, be it bus, subway, or commuter rail within the City at one universal price.

A financial partnership between the City of New York and the MTA is required for Freedom Ticket’s success.

As has become painful apparent in the past few months as the MTA fought for passage of its Capital Program, the MTA struggles financially to provide service to nearly 8 million riders every day. Therefore, a financial partnership is key in providing Freedom Ticket to areas of the city where the subway is difficult to reach and where commuter rail is available, but priced out of the hands of many.

The Proof of Concept would allow commuters to use the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), which has six stations in SE Queens, at a cheaper price.

The reduced fares would make the railroads more accessible, which would drastically reduce travel times for commuters in transit-underserved SE Queens.

Currently, if SE Queens commuters want to take LIRR to reduce travel times, they have to purchase tickets for both LIRR and the NYC Transit. If they are buying monthly passes for both this option runs $334.50 a month making this option prohibitively expensive for most. Instead many choose cheaper and often longer travel time options such as connecting to the subway system by local buses or commuter vans. The maximum price of a Freedom Ticket monthly pass would be $215, saving riders over $100 in addition to the substantial time savings.

Just as an example of how much time you could save, we did a quick calculation of when you would have to leave in the morning if you lived in Rosedale and worked around Grand Central.

What would you do if you had an extra 20, 40, or even close to 60 minutes in the morning?

Over 20,000 empty LIRR seats pass through SE Queens during both peak periods.

By reducing the current cost of a LIRR ticket in the city limits, city riders could be attracted to fill those seats. Travel times of those city riders could be reduced by 45 percent and the MTA could fill non-revenue producing seats.

LIRR is an underutilized asset running through the backyards of SE Queens.

Residents of SE Queens endure some of the longest travel times in the nation.

New subway lines are not getting built any time soon in SE Queens. But they don’t have to be because we are not fully utilizing our current assets. New York is a city that everyone wants to live in and as a consequence, population is booming. Because our subway system does not cover all parts of the city and is becoming increasingly overcrowded, we must find innovative and efficient solutions to move our growing population around. One advantage of the MTA network is commuter rail which could help make up for the deficiencies in our subway system. Now is the time to strengthen that network.

We would like to hear your thoughts on this crucial matter!

Are you a city resident far from subway service and near a commuter rail station?

Would you use the commuter railroads if it were cheaper and could get you to your destination faster?

Tell us what you think!

Plus, here are links to our full report and various media articles regarding the report…enjoy!

Freedom Ticket Report: Freedom Ticket

Freedom Ticket in the media: Freedom Ticket in the media

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