The PCAC, the LIRRCC, and the MNRCC objected strenuously when in August of last year the MTA proposed shortening the time that commuter rail tickets remain valid to as little as seven days and imposing refund fees of $15 for unused tickets. We stated that these shorter validity periods were nothing short of a money grab designed to compensate for failure to properly collect tickets and that processing refunds is an integral part of providing customer service. We repeated this message to the MTA Board at six public hearings as well as a regular meeting of the Board, warning them of the rider anger that would result from these changes. Despite the efforts of our members and other advocates, the MTA Board approved this proposal with minor changes, setting the minimum ticket validity period at 14 days and imposing ticket refund fees of $10.
We remain opposed to these changes, as do riders who are increasingly impacted by them. LIRRCC member Gerry Bringmann recently spoke to Arnold Diaz of Fox 5 News about these changes and the resentment they are creating among riders. Click here to see the interview.