MBTA riders lament proposed fare increases and service cuts during public hearing

By Eric Moskowitz, Globe Staff

NEWTON -- Nearly 300 MBTA riders wedged into Newton’s War Memorial Hall last night to express fear and frustration over the steep fare increases and dramatic service cuts proposed by the T.

At the first of 22 planned transit agency hearings on the proposals, riders called on officials to consider the life-altering impact those changes would bring, particularly to low-income, elderly, and disabled residents.

Barbara Ducey and her husband have relied on the No. 52 bus since he suffered a debilitating stroke, using the north-south link through Newton to access the wider transit system, run errands, keep medical appointments, and visit friends and family.

That bus is one of two dozen in Greater Boston to be eliminated under a plan that would rely more heavily on fare increases than service cuts, and one of about 100 that would be cut under an alternative plan that would balance fare hikes and service reduction to erase the MBTA’s deficit.

“Where would we go? How would we go? Eliminating Bus 52 would ruin our lives and add tragedy upon unspeakable tragedy,” said Ducey, her husband’s full-time caregiver and one of nearly 100 to pen their names on the waiting list to speak.

Ducey called on Governor Deval Patrick and the Legislature to bail out the MBTA, the nation’s most indebted transit agency. “Whoever is responsible for creating [this] shortfall is responsible for finding a creative solution without hurting and in some cases destroying innocent citizens,” she said. “Let us be a beacon of hope and light.”

But those responsible were mostly absent. As the MBTA’s acting general manager, Jonathan R. Davis explained, the T inherited much of its $5.2 billion in debt, plus interest, from Beacon Hill -- to pay for expansions that were politically popular or legally mandated but approved without a funding plan.

And while local and state taxes cover about two-thirds of the MBTA budget, the T’s income from those sources has not kept pace with fuel, electricity, and health insurance costs that have doubled in the past decade. Attempts to raise money and cut expenses in other ways -- selling ads and surplus property, cutting staff, refinancing debt -- are no longer sufficient to balance the budget, Davis said.

Unable to raise taxes on its own, the MBTA has three options: boost fares, eliminate service, or -- the most likely outcome -- combine the two, Davis said. The T last raised fares Jan. 1, 2007.

Davis, normally the T’s chief financial officer, apologized for the coming pain even as he championed public transportation’s benefits and thanked T riders for setting records in recent months, with a weekday average often exceeding 1.3 million one-way trips.

“We do understand that what we’re talking about here is people -- not ridership, not dollars, but people,” Davis said. “However, we do have the stark reality of needing to close [a] $161 million budget deficit” for the fiscal year starting July 1, when any changes would take effect.

Some riders said they understood fare increases were necessary but pleaded for the T to avoid eliminating routes and lines altogether, and to spread fare increases more evenly. Riders who use a standard CharlieCard now pay $1.70 for a subway ride and $1.25 to ride a bus.

Although the MBTA has proposed raising most fares and passes by an average of 35 to 43 percent, it would effectively raise prices for seniors and students by as much as 150 percent.

The T is also considering raising the $2 cost to take The RIDE, door-to-door service for those whose disabilities prevent them from riding transit. It would increase to $3 or $4.50, while the eligibility zone would shrink; those living in outlying areas could pay as much as $12.

“Please consider parity in raising fares,” said Brian Charlson, a Watertown resident who is blind and works at the Carroll Center for the Blind, a Newton institution that relies on the No. 52 bus to teach the visually impaired to ride transit. “These situations are very difficult for you but are more than difficult for us -- they’re our life.”

Some lamented the state of current service. Karla Hailer of Newtonville said she has no choice but to drive to her graduate classes in education at Framingham State because the commuter rail runs too infrequently. Her sons -- Bridgewater State University and Bunker Hill Community College students -- rely partly on night and weekend commuter rail service that may be cut altogether.

“This is a shanda,” said Hailer, using the Yiddish word for “shame.” “There’s no other word for it.”

Secretary of Transportation Richard A. Davey attended but did not speak. Addressing reporters, Davey said he appreciated the public input, encouraged attendance at future hearings, and stressed that the final package of fare increases and service cuts would likely evolve before the T board’s final vote in April.