(The following article by Pete Donohue and Greg Gittrich was published my the New York Daily News on May 1.)
NEW YORK — The steepest fare hike in New York transit history is on the line today.
A Manhattan Supreme Court justice will hear arguments this morning from a transit watchdog group and the MetropolitanTransportation Authority before deciding whether the bus and subway fare hike, set for Sunday, will roll through.
The Straphangers Campaign filed a last-minute lawsuit yesterday to stop the increase, saying the MTA used bogus financial books to dupe the public.
“It’s time for a do-over,” said Gene Russianoff, a staff lawyerfor the Straphangers Campaign. “It’s time for the MTA tolevel with the riding public.”
Chairman Peter Kalikow predicted the lawsuit would fail. But he acknowledged the MTA should have explained its finances better.
“The books were kept honestly. They were kept correctly,” he said. “The area we probably failed is we didn’t make it simple to understand, which we want to change.”
A hearing has been set for 11 a.m. today before Acting Supreme Court Justice Louis York. The lawsuit asks the court to delay the fare hike until after new public hearings. City bus and subway fares are scheduled to rise 33% Sunday, to $2 from $1.50. A 25% increase on commuter rail lines starts this morning. “[But] I may stop it after the arguments,” York said.
The lawsuit cites the findings of state Controller Alan Hevesi, who last week released a report charging the MTA concealed more than $500 million to justify the fare hike. He said an increase may have been prudent, but the public debate was tainted by misleading financial information. Originally published on May 1, 2003