What's happening
This bill requires full refunds without fees for unused LIRR and Metro-North tickets returned within a year, and rounds up onboard fare payments to the nearest quarter.
Why it matters
Boosts consumer protections for LIRR and Metro-North riders. by guaranteeing full refunds—without surcharges or fees—for unused tickets, making it easier to recover the full value of accidental or unnecessary purchases.
Encourages confidence in advance ticket purchases,. since riders won’t risk losing money if their travel plans change, potentially leading to greater use of public transit and more flexible travel planning.
Standardizes and simplifies onboard fare transactions. by rounding up payments to the nearest quarter, which could speed up payment processing and reduce confusion or disputes over odd change amounts during fare collection.
Could impact agency finances and fare policy. by eliminating revenue from refund-related fees and possibly increasing operational predictability, but also requiring the railroads to manage higher refund volumes and adjust to slightly higher onboard fare payments.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Refunds for Unused Train Tickets
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
3 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to transportation
- Referred to transportation
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Refund Unused Train Tickets
In Assembly Committee · Corporations, Authorities And Commissions · Sponsor Melissa Miller
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
16
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE (Prefiled)
January 4, 2017
Introduced by Sens. KAMINSKY, LATIMER, PARKER, RIVERA, STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to one-way, round trip or multi-trip tickets and tickets purchased after boarding the Long Island Rail Road and the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The public authorities law is amended by adding two new sections 1266-k and 1266-l to read as follows:
§ 1266-k. Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company; reimbursement. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any one-way, round trip or multi-trip ticket not purchased for a specific month or unlimited travel, but purchased for use on the Long Island Rail Road or the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company shall be valid for one year from the date of purchase and the authority shall reimburse one hundred percent of the purchase price of any unused Long Island Rail Road or Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company one-way, round trip or multi-trip ticket to the bearer of such ticket, provided that such ticket is returned within one year of the date of purchase. The authority is prohibited from assessing any surcharge or processing fee for the return of any such unused one-way, round trip or multi-trip ticket purchased for use on the Long Island Rail Road or the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company.
§ 1266-l. Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company; fare after boarding. Additional train fare purchased after boarding by a passenger possessing a ticket with insufficient fare, shall be rounded up to the nearest quarter of a dollar.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03965-01-7
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation to one-way, round trip or multi-trip tickets and tickets purchased after boarding the Long Island Rail Road and the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company
Purpose
To ensure the validity of any one-way, round-trip or multi-trip ticket, not purchased for a specific month or unlimited travel, for one year from date of purchase and, additionally, to ensure full reimbursement for returned tickets without additional surcharges, intended for tickets purchased, for use on the Long Island Rail Road or the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company.
Summary of provisions
The public authorities law is amended by adding a new section 1266-n.
Justification
Frequent train passengers, who preplan and purchase an extra ticket for future train rides, run the risk of their investments being invalid after a short period of time. A one-way ticket is valid for 90 days, however after 90 days the policy in place does not have the option of reimbursement. This legislation provides an extension to the expiration date of purchased tickets to one year and, additionally, it requires full reimbursement of tickets at its original value without additional fees. Currently there is a processing fee of $10 per transaction.
This legislation would provide relief for riders who present an off-peak ticket or other ticket which must, in MTA parlance, be "stepped up". Formerly the customer was charged the difference in the fare rounded up to the next dollar. This legislation will round it up the next $.25.
Legislative history
S.2088A of 2014 - Passed Senate S.7538 of 2016 - Transportation Committee
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.