WTOP says that Metro General Manager John Catoe will announce the details of his plan for a proposed fare hike at a meeting next week. We’ve been expecting this announcement for some time now, though specific details of the increase, which is expected to be put into effect in January 2008, possibly tied to inflation or the consumer price index and increased accordingly every January thereafter, have been scant. How much will the first hike be? Does Metro’s Board of Directors support tying increases to an index? Will the fare hike be big enough to help prevent the loss of popular late-night weekend service, or is it just intended to stop the immediate bleeding of cash?

No answers have so far been forthcoming, but that doesn’t mean we can’t speculate wildly about what the new fare for Metro might be come January. We’ll all find out what Catoe has in mind next week, but in the meantime, what are your expectations right now?

Photo by Liliang