Countywide : Hearing Planned on Fares for Metrolink

A public hearing about proposed ticket prices for a new long-distance commuter train will be held Friday at Camarillo City Hall.

The Southern California Regional Rail Authority will present two proposals for Metrolink fares and seek citizen feedback, said Metrolink spokesman Peter Hidalgo.

The $760-million commuter train system is scheduled to begin operation in late October and will serve Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

About 9,000 people are expected to use the system daily, and about 3,400 will use the 45-mile line in Ventura County, which begins in Moorpark and ends at Union Station in downtown Los Angeles.

Stops on the Moorpark line are planned at Simi Valley, Chatsworth, Van Nuys and Glendale.

One-way, round-trip and 10-trip tickets, as well as monthly passes, will be available.

Frequent riders would save the most money under the proposals, Hidalgo said.

One proposal puts the base fare at $2, and another sets it at $2.25.

The commuter lines will be divided into zones of about 11 miles each, and riders will pay either $1 or 75 cents for each zone they pass through, Hidalgo said.

A round-trip ticket from Moorpark or Simi Valley to downtown Los Angeles would cost an adult $11 or $9.75.

Under both proposals, elderly and disabled riders and those under 18 would pay half the base fare, Hidalgo said.

Children under 6 would ride free with an adult.

An 11-member board representing the county transportation commissions of the five counties is scheduled to decide on a final fare proposal June 12, Hidalgo said.

The public hearing in Camarillo is one of nine hearings scheduled throughout the five counties.

The hearing is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. in the City Hall council chambers at 601 Carmen Drive.