(The following story by Edie Gross appeared on the Free Lance-Star website on May 7.)
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Commuters who ride Virginia Railway Express trains will pay more for their tickets, two separate boards decided last night.
The Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission and the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, which jointly operate VRE, voted to increase fares three weeks after VRE’s operations board recommended the move.
The price increases, which will generate $1 million for the commuter train service next year, take effect June 28.
The average increase in ticket prices is 6 percent, but commuters from the Fredericksburg area who rely on 10-trip tickets to reach Washington and Northern Virginia will see costs rise 18 percent.
In addition to price increases, commuters face stricter rules when it comes to using Amtrak trains.
Those holding monthly passes and 10-trip tickets for VRE have been allowed to ride certain Amtrak trains, including several weekend trains, for no extra cost. VRE pays Amtrak $10 for each VRE passenger who rides an Amtrak train–or about $1 million a year.
Under the new arrangement, VRE passengers will cover some of that cost by purchasing a $1 “step-up ticket,” in addition to their VRE ticket, when taking a weekday Amtrak train.
A VRE ticket will no longer be good on a weekend Amtrak train. Commuters riding on the weekend–even if they’re going to work–will need to purchase an Amtrak ticket. A round-trip ticket between Fredericksburg and Washington can run about $50.
Rather than pay about $228 for a monthly VRE pass plus weekend Amtrak tickets, commuters who need regular weekend service might want to consider buying a monthly Amtrak pass. That pass costs $288 and is good seven days a week on all unreserved Amtrak trains.
While Fredericksburg-area residents lobbied to keep Amtrak access the same, many VRE riders from other communities supported the changes–largely because Amtrak trains don’t stop in those places, said VRE’s interim chief operating officer, Dale Zehner.
“Everywhere else I heard, ‘You’re subsidizing [Amtrak service] and I don’t get that,'” he said.
Overall, the changes generated a fair amount of controversy among riders, who showed up to public hearings and sent more than 1,000 e-mails, letters and faxes to VRE officials over the last two months.
Many said they didn’t oppose the fare increases by themselves, but they minded having to pay more when VRE seemed to be slipping in service. Riders cited late trains and crowded conditions among the problems.
VRE officials have acknowledged that ridership is at an all-time high–averaging about 15,000 passengers a day–and older equipment on trains and tracks has led to breakdowns.
In other action yesterday:
Both boards agreed to begin negotiations with a candidate for the post of VRE’s chief operating officer. The candidate’s name was not released yesterday. Seventy-five people applied for the job vacated in October by Pete Sklannik, the agency’s chief operating officer for three years.
The PRTC endorsed the construction of HOT lanes along the interstate highway from Washington’s 14th Street Bridge south to Massaponax in Spotsylvania County. The project was put forward in March by Fluor Virginia Inc. of Arlington.
The Virginia Department of Transportation is also considering a HOT-lane proposal developed in September by Clark Construction Group, Shirley Contracting Co. and Koch Performance Roads.
HOT lanes operate like High-Occupancy Vehicle lanes, or HOV lanes, in that cars carrying three or more occupants can use the facilities free of charge.
The difference is that motorists carrying fewer than the required number of passengers can also use the lanes–for a fee. That toll varies depending on how busy the HOT lanes are at any given moment.