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WMATA Proposals to Close the FY 2011 Budget Gap

Post Date: 3/9/2010

This blog has been set up to allow interested parties to participate in an on-line discussion regarding WMATA’s proposed MetroAccess changes.

WMATA has released a number of proposals to balance the FY 2011 budget, which include a combination of fare increases, Metrorail and Metrobus service reductions, changes to MetroAccess fare structure and service area, departmental and staff reductions, additional contributions from the jurisdictions that fund Metro, and the use of capital funds to pay for preventive maintenance.

Proposals to balance the budget include the widest array of options possible to help the Board of Directors get the public input they need before they make a final decision on the budget in June. Not all of the options presented are necessary to balance the budget. Any proposed fare increases, service reductions and changes to MetroAccess service would start June 27, 2010.

The full package of proposed Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess service and fare changes can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/wmataproposalfy2011

Alternative formats of this package are posted at: http://tinyurl.com/afadocs

Proposed MetroAccess Changes

1. Align MetroAccess service area with the ADA definition in terms of service hours and locations, and/or charge a premium for service provided to locations beyond the ľ-mile corridor around fixed-route services.

Option 1. Align MetroAccess service area with ADA definition to expand and contract based on the availability of fixed-route service by day, time, and location. This means that no paratransit service would be offered for trips that either start or end beyond ľ mile of existing fixed-route services that would otherwise be operating at the day/time/location of the desired trip.

Option 2. Align MetroAccess service area with ADA definition as in Option 1, except that service would be provided beyond the ADA corridor but at a 400% increase in the premium fare added to the base fare.

Zone 1, up to 3 miles beyond the corridor would carry a $5 premium fare

Zone 2, between 3 and 6 miles beyond the corridor would carry a $10 premium fare;

Zone 3, between 6 and 9 miles beyond the corridor would carry a $15 premium fare; and

Zone 4, more than 9 miles beyond the corridor would carry a $20 premium fare.

2. Align MetroAccess fare structure to the maximum allowed under the ADA definition (twice the equivalent fixed-route fare).

The travel path between origin and destination for each paratransit trip will be measured against Metro’s Trip Planner to identify what fixed-route services would be available and required to provide a comparable trip. Comparable trip shall be defined as any combination of available bus and/or rail services that would facilitate travel between the requested origin and destination for the shortest possible duration. The fare for the paratransit trip will then be calculated as twice the fare of the comparable trip.

Example: A one-way trip from Prince George’s County to Fairfax County involving Metrobus and Metrorail that would cost $ 5.45 would have a MetroAccess fare of $10.90 under this proposal.

3. Align Free Ride Program with conditional eligibility.

Currently, all duly registered MetroAccess customers are permitted to ride free without limitation on Metrobus and Metrorail. The proposed change would limit this privilege to those customers who are found to be conditionally eligible for MetroAccess paratransit service. Conditional eligibility shall be defined as eligibility for paratransit service for certain trips in which prevailing conditions would make use of fixed-route service impossible for the customer in question.

Please let us know what you think about these proposals. In particular:

-Do you have a preference for option 1 or 2 under Item 1 (MetroAccess trips beyond ľ of a mile)?

-Related to Item 1, what issues of parity might there be given that MetroAccess service is the only mode with a proposal for a 400% increase in fares?

-On Item 2, what potential negative impacts do you see for MetroAccess customers regarding their ability to pay? What about for reservationists trying to calculate the fare during the phone call?

-On Item 3, do you have any concerns about limiting the free ride program to MetroAccess customers with conditional eligibility? How about concerns with Metro implementing conditional eligibility for the first time?

Comments:

	RDH - 4/1/2010
These decisions need to be thought through carefully because they will have a direct impact on people's mobility.

	Heittiscigild - 6/8/2010
Great article . Will definitely copy it to my website.

	Nathan Dotson - 6/10/2010
I support a fair hike in Metro Access fees but I don't support charging clients to to ride mass transit when we already pay twice the bus fair for a Metro Access trip:(