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Don't Bother Hoarding Unlimited Metrocards Before March 1 Fare Hike
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 26, 2013
Modified Jan 26, 2013
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Flickr User dmnyc
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 26, 2013
Modified Jan 26, 2013
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In case you forgot, the MTA's latest round of fare hikes is right around the corner—they officially kick in on March 1st, 2013. And if you've been plotting ways of ripping off the system during the transition period, you'll be sad to learn there are no Punch-Drunk Love-esque fine print loopholes. All monthly and weekly Metrocards bought before the fare increases must be swiped by March 11th in order to get their "full value." So don't bother trying to hoard Metrocards, unless you want to end up like the guy in the video below.
Monthly MetroCards bought before the hike won’t be valid after April 9th, while weekly ones will expire on March 17th. To be fair, the MTA is giving people an 11-day window with monthly—if you time things out right, you can at least maximize your last monthly. But for anyone buying single rides, you'll get no sympathy: the .25 cent hike will be deducted from pay-per-ride cards starting on March 1st, regardless of when the cards were bought.
And don't forget: the MTA is adding a $1 fee to all MetroCards bought after March 3rd, as a way to encourage people to recycle their cards instead of getting new ones. To review, here's all the other basic facts of the upcoming fare hike: a single ride will now cost $2.50 if you spend more than $5 on a MetroCard you will be awarded a 5 percent bonus, 7-day unlimited ride MetroCards will cost $30, and 30-day unlimited ride MetroCards will cost $112.
And by our math, that means: you need to spend just $11.90 to get exactly five rides. You must ride the subway 13 times (two rides per workday and three on the weekend) to make a 7-day MetroCard worthwhile. And you must ride the subway 48 times (two rides per workday and eight on the weekend) to make a 30-day unlimited MetroCard worthwhile.
And for the record, $20 bills still are not accepted substitutes for Metrocards.
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Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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