"The budget presented today fulfills the MTA’s responsibility to put forward a balanced budget for the coming year,” said Elliot G. Sander, MTA Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer.

And regardless of whatever Moses and Rocky did behind closed doors the MTA was created by Legislative action. One big reason the Legislature and Rocky put it together like they did was so that fares COULD be raised without the politicians having to take the blame. The inability of politicians to actually raise fares was what drove the original private operators completely bankrupt. Since then the political resistance to fare increases, understandable though it is, has allowed the advocates for the system to lever service improvements, and since 1994 fare incentives to acquiesce to fare increases.

Each round that has been increasingly brokered by the Tabloids, themselves long bankrupt, this round very bankrupt (including their ideas and reportage). The MTA makes an easy target for reporters, all the information is public and the fact that these budget problems can even pass as news is really a tribute to how badly they do their job at explaining the complex yet critical aspects of transportation political economy. The attention span of the tabloid reader is much shorter than the average blogger and most Daily News and Post readers actually think that the MTA is making money.

The reality is that the actual average TA fare is about $1.35 or so, though you would never know that by reading the paper. Thats roughly the same as it was in 1994. Factoring in inflation, a reasonable thing to do, makes the fare now less than a $1 in 1994 money or about 75% of that benchmark fare.

That is not to say that now is a good time to raise the fare. There is never a good time to raise the fare. But when times were good, in terms of the other funding factors, especially the Mortgage Recording Tax revenues and employement, some of the debts ideally should have been paid. Instead, the hallelujah chorus made sure that fares stayed low. Now with all economic sectors in broad meltdown we are truly fucked.

Fares cannot and should not pay for the entire operating budget but regular moderate increases, somewhat in line with the CPI, are much easier for the rider to take and much easier for the Authority to budget for. However, the political leverage created by spasmodic, huge increases, is lost to the advocates. And the political pinata effect when politician get to whack the Authority to see how many goodies they can make fall out, is lost.

Then blame someone else.

Then have the most profitable parts of the system gradually open, and take credit for "FIGHTING FOR THE PEOPLE" by "ADDING" transit service.

They're scum.

People now understand what the Republicans are -- can someone put Skelos out of our misery? Now they'll find out what the Democrats are. There is a sliver of hope at the national level. Albany? Forget it.