Per Supervisor Pat Bates newsletter, dig a little deeper for your ride to work beginning next week:
New Bus Fares Effective Sunday
A bus fare increase approved by the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) in November is scheduled to go into effect Sunday. Cash fare for a bus ride will rise from $1.50 to $2, according to OCTA. A day pass will go from $4 to $5, and a monthly pass will increase from $55 to $69.
For seniors and people with disabilities, cash fare will increase from 60 cents to 75 cents. A day pass will be raised from $1.25 to $1.50, and a monthly pass will go from $18 to $22.25.
OCTA is mostly funded by the state and is required to collect 20 cents from passengers for every dollar spent on bus service. Without the fare increase, the agency would be at risk of losing state funds. The rate increase will also help offset rising bus operating costs. To help offset the effect on passengers, OCTA is offering a discounted five-ride pass for $9, a 10% discount that works out to $1.80 per ride. OCTA also will offer a 10% discount on prepaid day passes.
The agency has been doing extensive community outreach to alert riders of the upcoming fee increases. It has reached out to libraries, employers, senior centers and other entities, and it has had information about the rate increase on its buses.
OCTA last increased fares in January 2009. The agency predicts the fare increase will result in $6.4 million in additional revenue.
We reported on this in BOHICA! September last.