(The following article by Larry Higgs was posted on the Asbury Park Press website on December 14.)
NEWARK, N.J. — NJ Transit officials said the commuter agency will not increase fares for the rest of fiscal year 2006, despite spending $22 million more than budgeted to cover fuel price increases.
“Now, we are not planning on a fare increase,” said H. Charles Weidel, assistant executive director for finance, Tuesday after the final NJ Transit board meeting for 2005.
“We will try and do what we can to minimize the cost impacts of this extraordinary increase (in fuel prices).”
But officials made no predictions for the coming fiscal year’s budget, saying it is too soon to tell.
NJ Transit spent $22 million more on fuel for diesel locomotives and buses than the $49 million budgeted in fiscal year 2006, which started in July and runs until the end of June.
Justin Beller, 15, of Ocean Township was glad to hear the news as he waited for a NJ Transit bus at the Red Bank train station.
“That’s good for me,” said Beller, who takes the bus to the Westside Christian Academy. “My parents pay for my bus pass, and this will help them.”
Executive Director George Warrington said the agency will compensate internally to handle current fuel price increases and use revenue generated by increased ridership resulting from additional services and money made from third-party real estate transactions.
But he declined to predict if fuel price increases next year would affect fares.
“I can’t speculate about the next fiscal year’s budget, it’s way too premature to predict,” Warrington said.
The fiscal year 2006 fuel budget rose by $15 million from the original $35 million, said Dan Stessel, NJ Transit spokesman.
Now, the agency is paying $2.44 a gallon for low sulfur diesel bus fuel, which cost $1.71 per gallon six months ago and $1.91 a year ago, Stessel said.
NJ Transit used 2.3 million gallons of diesel fuel to operate its bus network in fiscal year 2006.
Diesel fuel No. 2 for locomotives is costing NJ Transit $1.77 a gallon, increased from $1.48 six months ago and $1.49 per gallon one year ago, Stessel said.
The rail system used 12.6 million gallons of diesel fuel last year.