On Thursday, New Jersey Transit approved an average fare increase of 11.5%, down from the 15% increase originally proposed by the agency.

Now it is up to NJ state legislators to finish the job by dedicating a revenue stream to help fund NJ Transit’s operating budget in the years to come. NJ has the largest transit operating system in the country that doesn’t have a tax of some sort dedicated to subsidizing its operating expenses.

Transit has seen relatively flat allocations from the state in recent budgets, while it has incurred new costs associated with operating Secaucus Junction, the new station in Ramsey, the River Line, the extended Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and increased ‘Mid-Town Direct’ service. Now is the time for NJ lawmakers to ensure that fare hikes do not become an annual rite of spring for N.J. Transit riders.

That is in all of NJ’s interest. Every person that chooses to take a train or bus to get where their going is one less person on crowded roadways. 

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