Bus, Subway Fares To Hit $2.75 On March 22, Verrazano Toll Spikes To $16

Commuting anywhere in this city is about to get a little pricier.

The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) board has decided to raise single-fare rides from $2.50 to $2.75 on March 22. As planned, unlimited monthly MetroCards will increase from $112 to $116.50, and weekly MetroCards will go up a dollar, from $30 to $31.

The MTA board held public hearings last month deliberating on whether to increase the single fare by a quarter, or to leave it the same and instead remove the bonus amount added to those MetroCard purchases. Ultimately, they voted for a 25 cent increase on pay-per-ride cards that comes with a boost to the bonus (with a minimum $5.50 purchase) from 5 percent to 11 percent.

The MTA board has also approved a citywide toll hike — by approximately 4 percent — on nine MTA bridges and tunnels, including the dreaded Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, which will go from $15 to $16 on the cash toll, and from $10.66 to $11.08 for E-ZPass rate.

“Obviously nobody wants to vote for a toll increase,” MTA board member Polly Trottenberg and DOT commissioner told the New York Post. “It causes the least damage to the largest amount of folks. It’s as fair as it can be under the circumstances.”