Sun Metro - New Fares Become Effective January 1, 2011

El Paso, Texas—Sun Metro fares for standard, military and student passengers will see an increase beginning Saturday, Jan. 1.

Sun Metro hosted several public hearings throughout the city, as well as an informational booth throughout the month of June. The City Council, in its capacity as the Mass Transit Department Board, approved the new fare structure on Aug. 24, 2010.

The new structure is:

type of fare	current fare	new fare
regular fare	$1.25	$1.50
student fare	$0.75	$1.00
military fare	$0.75	$1.50
senior/disabled fare	$0.30	$0.30
transfers	$0.25	FREE
day pass	$3	$3.50
regular weekly pass	$10	$12
student weekly pass	$6	$7
senior/disabled weekly pass	$2.50	$2.50
regular monthly pass	$40	$48
student monthly pass	$25	$30
senior/disabled monthly pass	$10	$10
LIFT (paratransit)	$2.50	$2.50
Full-Fare Tokens (10/pkg)	$12.50	$15
Full-Fare Tokens (100/pkg)	$125	$150
Student-Fare Tokens (10/pkg)	$7.50	$10
Student-Fare Tokens (100/pkg)	$75	$100

Under the new fare system, passengers no longer have to pay 25 cents for a transfer. Senior, disabled and LIFT (paratransit) fares will remain unchanged.

Sun Metro’s funding is based in part on sales tax revenues, which has declined significantly while the cost to provide service continues to grow, as well as the demand for modern amenities.

“We recognize the financial burden this places on our passengers and we’d prefer that the fares weren’t going up,” said Sun Metro Director Jay Banasiak. “The city is growing and to meet the existing and future needs of our community we must grow, too, and not allow ourselves to travel backward.”

Over the last two years Sun Metro has seen drastic improvements. In 2010, the city experienced a variety of enhancements to include, the completion of three state-of-the-art transfer centers, the significant completion of one new transfer centers, and the placement of more than 160 new shelters. Sun Metro also completed an alternatives analysis to develop a Bus Rapid Transit System along Alameda Avenue, Mesa Street, Dyer Street and Montana Avenue. Alameda Avenue will be the first corridor to come online in 2013.