Q&A
Recent fare increases and pricing structure for NYC Ferry
1:18:15
·
123 sec
Council Member Brooks-Powers inquires about the recent fare increases for NYC Ferry and the rationale behind determining fare prices. James Wong from EDC explains the decision-making process and goals behind the new fare structure.
- Regular ticket prices increased from $4 to $4.50, with corresponding increases for 10-ticket bundles and discounted fares.
- EDC aimed to differentiate between regular commuters and occasional riders in their pricing strategy.
- The new structure allows occasional riders and tourists to pay more while keeping costs relatively consistent for regular riders.
- The goal was to increase fare revenue without negatively impacting overall ridership.
Selvena Brooks-Powers
1:18:15
I'm glad to move on to the fair increase.
1:18:17
So ticket prices for the New York City ferry increased yesterday with regular ticket prices rising from $4 to $4.50.
1:18:24
Bundles of 10 10 tickets rising from 27.50 to $29, and discounted prices increasing from 135 to 145.
1:18:34
Can you please walk the committee through how you determine vary prices?
James Wong
1:18:39
Absolutely.
1:18:40
So we take fares really seriously because this is one of the most important things that people experience when they're deciding to ride NYC Ferry.
1:18:50
What we saw in our previous fare change was that by increasing the single ticket price, we were able to and allowing there to be a 10 trip bundle It really allowed us to create some differentiation between those who are commuters, those who are using NYC Ferry on a regular basis, and people who are just, you know, maybe going out for an occasional ride.
1:19:11
Having those 2 different fare products really helps us target our drive towards affordability to make sure that commuters for example are paying the same as they pay on the subway or bus and that if you are riding that once in a while ride that you're able and willing to pay a little bit more.
1:19:27
So when we did our fair analysis based on the last year and a half year and a half to 2 years of data, we really looked at who was riding more frequently, who was how did this impact ridership.
1:19:38
And there were, while we saw overall ridership growth, there was information sort of in between that we had to take a look at where we've learned that people who are using the 10 pack, they are riding more often.
1:19:49
People who are riding, who are using the single trip, they are riding a little less often, but they were paying more.
1:19:54
And so all these factors really went into the analysis where we had set forth an objective to increase fair revenue without negatively impacting the overall ridership of the system.
1:20:05
So we got to our levels at $4.50 $2.90 by really targeting how we can allow people those occasional riders and tours to pay a little bit more while holding the costs fairly consistent for our regular riders.