Fares are up all around. Here’s a cheat sheet to help you decide if your usual
MetroCard purchase is still the best value for your needs.
Base Fare: $2.50
30 Day Unlimited:
$112
Is it worth it? You must ride the subway 48 times
in 30 days for this card to be worthwhile. That’s two rides per work day and eight on the weekend. If you’re not anticipating that much
travel, stick with a pay per ride card.
7 Day Unlimited: $30
Is it worth it? You must ride the subway 13 times
in 7 days for this card to be worthwhile.
Again, If you’re not anticipating that much travel, stick with a pay per
ride card.
Pay Per Ride
The pay per ride bonuses are dropping from 7% to 5%. If you want your card bonus to work out
to an exact amount of rides, purchase a $50 metro card and your balance will
return to zero rather than 75 cents or some other awkward amount.
** If you want to get your balance down to zero, you can put
your card in the machine and select “Other Amounts”. Manually type in the difference needed to get to the base
fare of $2.50.
NEW CHARGE! $1 fee for every new MetroCard you
buy!
Time to start refilling your old MetroCards. If your old
card is damaged or expired (they expire every two years), go to the window and
turn it in for a new one free of charge.
Times to Reconsider
Your Usual MetroCard Purchase:
- - When you’re scheduled to leave town for more
than a couple of days. If you wind up with an extra week or even an extra day or two on your unlimited, pass
it off to a friend or someone on the street. They’ll appreciate it.
- - If your commute changes. New job. New apartment. New
locations. Will it change the
frequency with which you’ll be taking the train?
-
- - If your schedule changes. Working freelance and things are
quiet? Maybe opt for a pay per
ride for “as needed” trips and spend some time building your business from
home.
- - If the weather changes. As temperatures start to rise and we
enjoy a few glorious spring months you may want to opt for walking (if it’s a
possibility) or biking more often.
For additional information about the new fares visit the MTA’s
site.
I have t say your math on this is incorrect. The monthly metrocard is $112 for 30 days. That's $3.73 a day as opposed to $5 if you ride twice. Or to look at it another way $2.50 per ride x 44.8 rides = $112. If you ride the subway more than 22.4 days out of the month than it is worth it. But if you have the luxury to not leave your apartment for over 7 days out of the month than totally not a deal. ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks. The numbers in this post were from Metro newspaper. I'll have to double check them :)
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