Friday, 30 Dec 2011 – Kyle Cheney – State House News Service

BOSTON, Mass. (WWLP) – State transportation officials will hold more than 20 meetings on proposals for MBTA fare hikes and service cuts, the Patrick administration disclosed Friday, offering the clearest insight yet on a process that T Chief Richard Davey has said will almost certainly lead to an increase in the cost of subway, bus or commuter rail service.

A spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation said the 20-plus public meetings will follow a series of meetings by the agency’s board and subcommittees next week that could include the release of potential fare hike and service cut scenarios. The number of meetings contrasts with the 16 meetings that were held in 2006, the last time the MBTA raised fares.

“The Secretary is counting on public comment to help shape the final proposal,” said the spokeswoman, Sara Lavoie, in an email to the News Service. “A vote by the board is not expected until the spring.”

Davey warned earlier this month that the MBTA’s fiscal woes had grown so stark that it would take a 60 percent fare hike to solve them, although he quickly added that an increase of that size was not under consideration. The agency faces a $161 million budget gap in the fiscal year that begins July 1.

Davey said a more moderate hike in combination with service cuts is a more likely scenario. Even with a fare hike, he said, the MBTA’s financial problems are not a “one-year issue” and will require further fixes in the years ahead. The former MBTA general manager, who took over as secretary of transportation in September, described the possibility of avoiding fare hikes next fiscal year as “almost impossible.” He said at the time that the public meeting process could stretch into March.In 2009, the Legislature and Gov. Deval Patrick raised the sales tax to 6.25 percent and earmarked new revenues to the MBTA to help it address its funding gaps.

Davey said more state funds for the T appeared unlikely next year, noting he’s been cautioned that costs of so-called safety net programs for the needy are growing faster than state revenues.A group representing MBTA riders has pleaded with state officials to eschew fare increases or service reductions, which they argue would be disproportionately borne by individuals who can least afford them.

Copyright Kyle Cheney, State House News Service