MTA Trims Fees for Bike-Toting Riders

In an effort to promote bicycle riding as an alternate way to work, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has eliminated an annual fee to take a bike on the train and has lowered the cost of renting a bike locker.

Bicycle riders will still be required to have a permit to board with a bike and also must sign a waiver of liability, but the $6 administration fee has been eliminated.

Based on an MTA survey of riders, the agency expects to see the number of bike-riding passengers double in the coming year because of the fee changes. Currently, MTA’s Cycle Express program issues about 800 rail permits per year to bicyclists.

“This is considered another viable source of commuting, of transportation,” said Mary Ann Maskery, an MTA spokeswoman. “There are a number of people who travel to work by bicycle.”

To encourage riders to get out of their cars and onto the Metro Rail, the MTA has reduced the bike locker fees by more than 60%. A three-month locker rental is $9, $15 for six months and $25 for one year, and there is a $25 returnable deposit for a key.

There are 150 lockers throughout the Metro Rail system, and another 161 spaces are available in free open racks.

The required permits are intended to ensure that people who board with cycles know safety regulations including the size of the bicycle allowed and the designated areas riders may board with a cycle. Riders also may not board with a bike during rush-hour times, 6 to 9 a.m. and 3 to 7 p.m. weekdays.

For more information, call the MTA’s Cycle Express line at (213) 922-3777.