Tonia Jones was shocked to learn that Metrolink fares were going up. She’s taken the train regularly for the last seven years, often with her 12-year-old dog. It’s how she commutes between Montclair and downtown for her business and to visit family as she saves for a car while gas prices rise.
She wasn’t prepared for the hike but doesn’t have another option.
“We can’t afford that! How ridiculous,” Jones, 61, said while waiting for her train at Union Station. “I don’t know what to do — just get out of California when I can.”
Metrolink rider Tonia Jones, 61, and her dog, Taz, make their way through Union Station looking for their gate.
(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)
As Metrolink faces budget shortfalls and service reductions, the regional commuter rail network is raising its ticket prices on Monday for the first time in 13 years by as much as 27%. On Sunday, at Union Station, there was little visible notice to riders about the change. The welcome screen at the ticket kiosks noted a “fare adjustment,” with no further information, and no signage appeared anywhere near the main entrance or inside the train depot.
Many riders who regularly rely on the train have voiced their anger over the changes as one-way tickets go up by 14%; daily passes by 27%, from $15 to $19; and weekend passes by 20%, from $10 to $12. Some were unaware of just how much it would cost them.
Patrons buy tickets at a Metrolink ticket booth in Los Angeles’ Union Station on Sunday.
(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)
Gabriel Frias, 38, has taken Metrolink nearly every day for the last two decades to commute to work at a party rental business in Van Nuys and to visit his children on the weekends in Fontana. He was disappointed to learn just how much the fares would increase without any gains for riders, and he questioned the rationale.
“Everyone is struggling. For day-to-day commuters, this is another thing they have to worry about,” Frias said. “One-way tickets all the way up to the weekend tickets? That will affect a lot of people. … It’s more money to fork out for the same ride.”
Adriana Rizzo of Californians for Electric Rail, which advocates for overhead-electric rail systems, is a regular transit rider who has raised concerns to the Metrolink board about recent decisions over service and ticket prices.
“These fare increases will not raise enough to fill Metrolink’s budget deficit,” she told The Times.
“Instead, riders will face a one-two punch of fare increases and service cuts, making Metrolink harder to ride just as Southern Californians are facing record gas prices.”
Metrolink is operated by the Southern California Regional Rail Authority, overseen by members from multiple transit authorities including those of Los Angeles and Orange counties. The agency reduced service earlier this year and has proposed more cuts in recent board meetings.
“Metrolink has worked hard to keep fares affordable while the cost of operating and maintaining our regional rail system has continued to rise,” Metrolink Chief Executive Darren Kettle said in a recent statement. “These pricing adjustments are one step in a broader effort we are taking to responsibly address those pressures and support Metrolink’s long-term financial sustainability.”
A ticketing booth screen warns of fare adjustments starting Monday, without offering specifics.
(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)
The agency’s operator was recently sued by a former executive who was fired earlier this year after raising concerns about train safety. He alleged that Metrolink has not properly maintained its parts, leading to multiple instances of mechanical failure that have endangered passengers and staff.
Board members at Metro, a major funder of Metrolink, have also criticized the agency and its leaders over service cuts and recently approved an audit of the system.