CHICAGO — New Metra fare hikes will be kicking in next week as the commuter rail line works to update infrastructure and safety systems.
Beginning Monday, Feb. 1, riders will begin paying more for one-way tickets, 10-ride passes, monthly passes and for tickets purchased on the train, Metra said in a statement Tuesday.
The fare hikes were approved as part of Metra's 2016 budget that included a percent net increase in ticket revenue that officials hope will generate $6.5 million in new revenue, Metra said.
Here's how the fare increases will impact riders:
• Customers who buy one-way tickets will pay a quarter more per ticket, amounting to an added cost of $7.50 a year for customers who ride the train 30 times a year, Metra said.
• Customers who buy 10-ride tickets will pay $1.75 more starting Feb. 1, which amounts to an increase of 17 cents per trip, Metra said. The increase will cost a rider who takes the train to work about half the time an additional $42 per year.
• Monthly passes will cost $2.50 more per month, Metra said, an increase of $30 a year.
• Reduced-rate 10-ride tickets will increase in price by 75 cents. Reduced-rate monthly passes will cost an additional $1.25 per month.
Also, the surcharge assessed to customers buying a ticket on-board will change from $3 per person to $5 per group, Metra said. This change was originally slated to roll out in 2015 but was postponed until mobile ticketing via the Ventra app was launched, Metra said.
Even with these increases, Metra's one-way and monthly passes remain the lowest of any its "peer railroads" in the country, Metra said in a statement.
