Commuter Alert: VRE Fares Increase Wednesday

Commuters will be pulling more change out of their pockets begin July 1 if they want to get to work on the VRE.

Fares on the commuter trains go up on Wednesday, the beginning of the new fiscal year.

The 4 percent across-the-board fare increase is expected to cover increased operation costs. New expenses include safety measures and contractual increases, according to the VRE.

The increased rate is expected to generate an additional $900,000. Get fair rate information at VRE.org.

Also increasing Wednesday, the step-up rate will go from $3 to $5. The state had funded $2 of the cost of each ticket to encourage more VRE use during the Express Lane construction project on Interstate 95.

The state funding ran out in December, but the VRE board had continued to offset the step-up cost through the end of the fiscal year.