LOS ANGELES COUNTY : MTA Asks Judge to Lift Order Blocking Fare Hikes
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Friday asked U.S. District Judge Terry J. Hatter Jr. to lift his preliminary injunction blocking the agency from raising fares for the first time in six years.
Hatter issued the injunction Tuesday, extending a temporary restraining order he imposed Sept. 1, hours after the MTA’s planned fare hike went into effect. The MTA sought to raise the basic fare from $1.10 to $1.35 and to eliminate general monthly passes to help bridge a $126-million operating deficit.
The MTA contends that Hatter’s injunction is costing the agency $110,000 a day in lost revenue. In the request filed Friday, MTA attorneys asked that the judge suspend his injunction or allow the MTA to charge $1.35 while it retained the general monthly pass. A hearing on the request has been scheduled for Tuesday. Hatter has also set an Oct. 17 hearing to decide whether the preliminary injunction should be made permanent.
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