Explained: the Ever-Increasing Transit Fare

Boston, Washington D.C., San Francisco, and Los Angeles—all major cities that have mulled transit fare increases in recent months. Eric Jaffe examines the numbers behind the continuous need for transit agencies to raise the price of a fare.

1 minute read

April 10, 2014, 1:00 PM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


“The reason local agencies seem to need so many fare increases is that they do a poor job keeping the price of taking a ride near the cost of providing it,” writes Eric Jaffe. To further examine the gap between cost and price, Jaffe examines new data from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

After concluding that average fares per mile from 2000 to 2010 for the ten largest U.S. transit agencies didn’t change much (just a 1 percent increase a year). Jaffe then compares average fares per mile to the average cost of operating the service per mile over the same period. “In 2000, that [operating] cost was $9.05; in 2010, it had climbed to $10.82. That's an increase of 19 percent — or about 2 points a year — nearly doubling the growth rate of fares.”

In so doing, Jaffe recognizes “an ever-widening gap between what the biggest transit agencies spend running their service and what they recover from riders.” In fact, “In 2000, the top agencies recovered nearly 40 percent of their costs through fares. That figure has since dipped below 37 percent.”

Jaffe also examines the differences in fare recovery for different modes and identifies a culprit in the inability to keep costs down (hint: it’s not salaries).

Thursday, April 10, 2014 in Atlantic Cities

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Map of Haussmann's redesign of Paris in the 1850s through 1870s under Napoleon III.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking

Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

June 30, 2025 - Tom Sanchez

Boston Red Line train with skyline in background.

Massachusetts Budget Helps Close MBTA Budget Gap

The budget signed by Gov. Maura Healey includes $470 million in MBTA funding for the next fiscal year.

15 minutes ago - Smart Cities Dive

View down center of street in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Milwaukee Launches Vision Zero Plan

Seven years after the city signed its Complete Streets Policy, the city is doubling down on its efforts to eliminate traffic deaths.

1 hour ago - Urban Milwaukee

Street with parking protected bike lane and parked cars in downtown Portland, Oregon.

Portland Raises Parking Fees to Pay for Street Maintenance

The city is struggling to bridge a massive budget gap at the Bureau of Transportation, which largely depleted its reserves during the Civd-19 pandemic.

July 8 - Willamette Week

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Associate/Senior Planner

Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development

Senior Planner

Heyer Gruel & Associates PA