MAYOR GIULIANI URGES NEW YORKERS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ONE CITY, ONE FARE PROGRAM
ADVISES COMMUTERS TO AVOID LONG LINES AND BUY METROCARD TODAY!
The announcement was made this afternoon at the 71st and Continental Avenue subway station on Queens Boulevard in Forest Hills, where the Mayor was joined by Department of Transportation Commissioner Christopher R. Lynn and Bob Burke, President of Queens Surface Transportation. Commissioner Lynn, who oversaw the installation of electronic MetroCard fareboxes on the City's fleet of 1,100 franchise buses, said that completion of the automated collection farebox installation helped pave the way for private City-subsidized bus riders to take advantage of the One City, One Fare program.
"The One City, One Fare program is a significant milestone in the history of New York City's mass transit system," said Mayor Giuliani. "Today, the era of a two-fare system is a thing of the past. New Yorkers who live in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island now have 'travel-equity' with their neighbors in Manhattan. The elimination of the two-fare zone is an historic achievement for subway, bus and private bus riders. And it will certainly make New York City an even more attractive place in which to live and work.
"The One City, One Fare program will be such a terrific success, I'm sure that when New Yorkers head back to work after this wonderful holiday weekend, they'll find longer than usual lines at token booths. So I urge all commuters to buy their MetroCards today and avoid long lines and travel delays on Monday," the Mayor concluded.
Transportation Commissioner Christopher Lynn said, "The installation of the MetroCard fareboxes on the City-subsidized private bus lines is a very important development for improving mobility throughout New York City. As the City's subsidized franchise bus operators provide express and local service for over 300,000 riders daily, Mayor Giuliani's One City, One Fare initiative will make mass transit a more attractive travel option for New York City's residents and visitors."
DOT administers a subsidized surface transit program that includes seven franchise bus companies, operating a total of 91 express and local routes throughout the City. With an average weekday ridership of some 300,000 (43,000 express and 257,000 local), DOT franchise network is North America's 10th largest bus system. In addition to providing nearly half of the local bus service in Queens, the subsidized companies also operate almost two-thirds of express service citywide.
The seven City subsidized private bus companies include: Green Bus Lines, Jamaica Buses, Queens Surface, and Triboro Coach, which all provide a variety of local and express bus service in Queens; Command Bus Company, which operates mostly express service between Brooklyn and Manhattan; and Liberty Lines Express and New York Bus Service, which operate express service between The Bronx and Manhattan.
The Mayor also reminded New Yorkers that on the 4th of July, under the One City, One Fare program, the 50 cent fare was completely eliminated for all foot-passengers riding the world-famous Staten Island Ferry -- even without the benefit of MetroCard. The Ferry has been operated by the City of New York for more than ninety years, and today carries more than 60,000 riders each day on the 25 minute route between the St. George Ferry Terminal in Staten Island and the Whitehall Ferry Terminal at the Battery in Lower Manhattan.
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