No Fare Deal

The T is such a basic part of most of our lives that we almost take it for granted. Boston's public transportation system, formally known as the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), is the oldest and one of the most extensive in the country. Like most public transportation systems, the MBTA is heavily state-subsidized; the state's contribution will top $750 million this year.

Change may be coming to the system soon, though. In response to the T's rising costs, the Massachusetts House of Representatives approved a bill earlier this month that would overhaul the MBTA's finances. The bill's most controversial provision calls for a fare hike, from 85 cents to $1 by 2001 and $1.25 by 2006. The Senate is leery of the bill, which passed the House by a 124-28 vote, and Governor A. Paul Cellucci opposes the fare hike.

As it is, MBTA riders pay one of the lowest fares in the country. Most subway system charge well more than a dollar; in Philadelphia, the fare is nearly double Boston's, at $1.60. Still, there are good reasons to oppose the fare hike, and while it's painful to agree with the governor, in this case we do.

Supporters of the bill see the fare hike as an important component of rescuing the MBTA's finances. This reasoning depends on a dangerous assumption, that bus and subway riders should be responsible for financing the public transportation system themselves. Practically speaking, this is impossible: fares make up about 20 percent of the MBTA's budget, and for the system to be self-sustaining, rates would have to rise far more than 15 cents.

More importantly, though, the system should not even be expected to sustain itself. Mass transit serves a public good from which every citizen, even one who doesn't ride the T, benefits. Public transportation keeps cars off the streets, curbing pollution and traffic. It brings people who don't own a car into the city, including the thousands of students in the metropolitan area. And, though its effect on Boston's quality of life is impossible to gauge, the T certainly contributes to a culture that does not revolve around the automobile the way so much of America does.

It is appropriate that the cost of the system be shared by everyone who benefits from it, and not just those who ride. The extra 15 cents would not hurt, but the precedent that the system should pay for itself would. Other parts of the bill, including a provision that would more fairly charge the towns that benefit from the MBTA for service, should be adopted. The fare hike, though, should not. The legislature must make it clear that the burden of supporting public transportation does not fall on the backs of riders.