Political Realities Stalled Fare Hike

"I think [Catoe] probably was relying on what he thought was a very logical argument that made sense to any number of people," said Robert Smith, a former Metro board member for Maryland. "But you can't confuse what would be logic with the politics of the Metro board. It's the politics that prevail, not the logic.

"Politics in the District are very different from politics in Maryland and different from getting elected in Virginia," Smith said. "It causes people to vote in ways that may not be in the interest" of Metro.

Metro directors rarely agree to any politically sensitive proposal -- especially one that calls for a significant fare increase -- the first time it is presented in public. If fare increases are necessary, as several board members have acknowledged, it's often to their political advantage to criticize them in public and press Metro staff for reductions.

"That way it looks like they are looking after the riders' costs," said Charles Deegan, another former board member for Maryland.

Such maneuverings could continue next week. Asked whether it was likely that the Metro budget committee would sign off Thursday to begin the public hearing process based on a smaller fare increase, Jim Graham, the committee chairman, replied: "I think the likelihood of that is zero."

If finance staff members can come up with a reduced projected shortfall for next year, Graham said, there might be less urgency for a fare increase in January. "What's the bum rush?" he said.

Finding a proposal acceptable to all three jurisdictions is a complicated balancing act.

"Each jurisdiction has a different way of how it views what its riders have to pay for a fare increase," said board member Peter Benjamin of Maryland, who was the agency's chief financial officer for 13 years. "Those of us in areas where there tend to be longer rides and more people who park are going to look more carefully at fare increases for someone taking long rides."

Metrorail fares vary depending on the time of day and trip length.

Many suburban jurisdictions also have their own bus systems and are less dependent on Metrobus than the District, which has a significant number of Metrobus routes.

In the District and its closest suburbs, passengers tend to take shorter rides, and there is less parking available at Metro facilities, so the fare focus is more on how an increase would affect short trips and bus fares.

In the proposal Catoe presented Sept. 13, the largest percentage increase would have hit short-distance riders because minimum subway boarding fares during rush hour would have increased to $1.80 from $1.35, a jump of 33 percent.

By contrast, the long-distance rider who parks at Shady Grove and would pay the higher parking fee of $5 instead of $4 and the higher maximum fare of $4.50 instead of $3.90 per trip, would have seen an increase of 20 percent.

Bus riders, who are typically poorer and less likely to own a car, would have seen fares rise 25 cents to $1.50, an increase of 20 percent.

"A balance has to be arrived at by the board looking at the various combinations of what is a fair increase for all those sets of people," Benjamin said.