Metrorail Increases Fares [Updated]
Jul 29, 2010 8:11 - 3 Comments
Update: News Channel 8 is reporting that Metro must delay the start of the peak surcharge until later in August due to the “memory limitations of fare gate technology”. Read the story here. You would think they would have known …
This Sunday, August 1, 2010, Metrorail will change some fares and pricing. After checking on their handy Trip Planner, I didn’t find any “discounts”.
Peak Travel Surcharge
If you travel during peak commuter times on weekdays, you’ll have to pay a 20-cent surcharge for your trip. Be prepared for the price hike from 7:30 to 9 AM and from 4:30 to 6 PM. Metrorail opens at 5 AM so early risers can avoid this increase. The surcharge is based on the starting time of the trip when a customer enters the fare gate at a Metrorail station.
As an example:
Rockville to Metro Center during Peak Times will go from $5.00 to $5.20
Senior citizens and people with disabilities who pay their fare with a Reduced Fare SmarTrip® card or a Senior SmarTrip® Card will be charged a 10-cent surcharge during the same peak travel periods.
Metro explains:
The surcharge will generate vital funding, and it will encourage customers who have the flexibility to ride during less crowded times, alleviating congestion during the peak periods.
You might be able to save money and get a seat if you avoid the peak commuter times.
Increased Fares For Paper Cards
Although Metro is touting a 25-cent discount for using a SmarTrip® card instead of a paper fare card, when I used the Trip Planner the result indicated the fare will remain the same for Smar Trip® card users. The price will actually be 25-cents higher if you use a paper card starting on August 1st
As an example:
Rockville to Metro Center off peak hours is $2.75 now and will be $3.00 on August 1st unless you use a Smar Trip® card which will keep it at $2.75.
Lower Price for SmarTrip® Cards
What if you want to take advantage of the lower price? Right now you can purchase a SmarTrip® card for $5.00. But if you wait until August 29th, the price will be lowered by 50% to $2.50. Metro says they are doing this to help customers to take advantage of the SmarTrip® discount. If they REALLY wanted to help, they’d start selling them for $2.50 on August 1st when the fares go up. But I guess we should be grateful since this is the first time Metro will reduce the price of the cards since SmarTrip® was introduced in 1999.
Increase in Price for 3 Passes
The cost of three Metrorail passes will increase on August 1st. The Weekly Short Trip Pass will be $32.35, the Weekly Fast Pass will be $47, and the Transit Link Card for MARC and VRE riders will be $102.
If you want to check, Metro has updated the Trip Planner feature on its web site to allow customers to find the cost of their future trips. Enter your trip information with a date after August 1 to find out how much you will be paying. I didn’t find any discounts off current fares, but let me know if you do.
Speaking of the Rockville Metro, does anyone know why the trees lining the sidewalks to the east entrance of the station were removed? A reader has asked and we can’ t find the answer. Now we’re curious!
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ERCA has a meeting with WMATA on Saturday 7/31. The tree removal will be on our list of questions. FYI I suspect this was a CSX action not WMATA.
Thanks for checking for us Chas! Please let us know any other pertinent info you learn.
As promised, Chas Hausheer passed along the reponsed from WMATA about the removal of the trees on the east side of the Rockville Metro station:
‘WMATA received several complaints over the past few weeks about dead branches falling from the trees along the CSX tracks on to the sidewalk and over the fence on to the CSX platform (not the tracks).
The result of these complaints was that a crew was dispatched to cut down all dead trees.
At some time, as yet to be determined, they will be replaced.”
So the big question is: “Were all the trees removed dead?”