The feds appear ready to bail out the MTA’s big-ticket projects – but riders facing fare hikes will have to look to Albany, not Washington, for help.
Federal politicians have promised the MTA billions of dollars, through the economic-stimulus package, for everything from megaprojects like the Second Avenue Subway to station rehabs.
Sen. Charles Schumer yesterday said he thought the government would send the agency $3 billion, up from the $1.5 billion House members last week said they could secure.
But that money is only for items in the agency’s capital budget, like new construction and buying subway cars and buses.
Unless Albany provides the MTA with funds to close the $1.2 billion for a gap in its operating budget, single-ride fares could jump to $3 from $2, and 30-day unlimited MetroCards could soar from $81 to $103.
And state lawmakers haven’t been too forthcoming about how or when relief will come.
Former MTA Chairman Richard Ravitch’s proposal for a payroll tax has been given conditional support from leaders of the state Legislature.
The first year of that tax could be used to rescue riders from the fare hikes, Ravitch said.
Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith (D-Queens) said he needed more information about the tax.