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PACE proposes raising bus fares, transfer fees Cash fares for regular routes will go up from $2 to $2.25, Ventra also affected BY IGOR STUDENKOV Bugle Staff @BugleNewspapers nweditor@buglenewspapers.com
PACE suburban bus transit agency is planning to raise its fares as part of next year’s budget – a first major fare increase since 2009. Under the proposed budget, the cash fares for regular routes will go up from $2 to $2.25, while Ventra
card fares will go up from $1.57 to $2. The fares for premium routes would increase more drastically, going up from $4 to $4.50. And while transfers between routes currently cost $0.25, under the new budget, they would increase to $0.30. The increases are designed to help make up for the budget shortfall due to the combination of reduced state funding and lower than
expected sales tax revenue. According to Maggie Daly Skogsbakken, PACE ‘s media relations manager, the transit agency is doing its part to reduce the deficit: freezing new hirs, requiring some employees to pay more for insurance and changing the way it makes some payments. If approved, the fare increases will take effect on Jan. 1, 2018. While PACE hasn’t made any major fare increases since 2009, there have been a few changes. As part of the switchover to Ventra cards,
transfers for cash-paying riders were eliminated, and so were 10 Ridge Plus regular and premium route tickets, which allowed riders to buy an equivalent of 11 singleride fares for a price of 10. Effective Jan. 1, 2016, PACE raised cash fares from $1.75 to $2 while keeping Ventra card fares the same. According to a fact sheet provided by PACE , the agency is expecting to face a $12 million budget shortfall. The 2018 budget document indicates that $3.4 million of it was
lost due to declining state funding. PACE is expecting the fare increases to bring in predominately $2.3 million, raising the amount of farebox revenue by 8.4 percent. Regular riders make up the majority of PACE ‘s bus system. In most cases, the transfers function similar as they do on CTA buses and ‘L’ trains – riders are entitled to two transfers for exactly 120 minutes after the riders pay to board. The SEE PACE PAGE 7