Commuters traveling between New Jersey and Manhattan are about to pay a little more for their rides. Starting today, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has officially implemented a fare increase across the PATH system. It’s another hit for the wallet, but the increase comes with the most significant service expansion the 118-year-old system has seen in decades.

As of today, the base fare for a single ride on the PATH has increased by 25 cents, jumping from $3.00 to $3.25. This adjustment affects all standard payment methods, including TAPP, SmartLink and Pay-Per-Ride MetroCards.

Multi-trip options still offer a better deal for those looking to save. Bundles of 10, 20 or 40 trips via TAPP cards now average $3.10 per ride, up from the previous $2.85. Senior citizens and riders with disabilities will see a smaller adjustment, with reduced-fare tickets increasing by a dime to $1.60.

This is only the first of a series of increases, however, as the Port Authority has outlined a roadmap of 25-cent increases every January through 2029, at which point a single ride will reach $4.00.

The fare hike is immediate, but the payoff for commuters arrives on May 17, when the PATH restores full seven-day service across all four lines for the first time since 2001.

The highlight of these changes is the return of direct Hoboken–World Trade Center weekend service, ending a nearly 25-year hiatus. Additionally, the time-consuming “Hoboken detour” for Jersey City riders is being eliminated during peak weekend hours. Between 10am and 9pm, the Journal Square–33rd St and Hoboken–33rd St lines will run every 10 minutes, while the Hoboken–WTC line will run every 20 minutes.

Port Authority Executive Director Kathryn Garcia noted that these changes mark a “larger turning point” for the system. The increased revenue is earmarked for critical infrastructure upgrades and system reliability.

“These game-changing service enhancements and improved fare payment options are continuing to provide more frequent and reliable service to our customers,” said PATH Director/General Manager Clarelle DeGraffe. “Having seven-day service on all our lines is a blueprint for more frequent, faster, and more reliable service for our customers.”

Beyond weekend changes, the agency is also tackling late-night frustration; Friday night service will now run every 20 minutes until 2am, finally replacing the dreaded 40-minute wait times.

For the thousands of daily riders, the higher price may be unwelcome, but the tradeoff is more convenience and reliability, and dramatic future improvements. Find out more at www.panynj.gov.

New fares on the PATH trains

• 1-Trip Total Access PATH Payment (TAPP), 1-Trip SmartLink, PATH SingleRide Ticket, Pay-Per-Ride MetroCard: $3.25 per ride
• PATH 2-Trip MetroCard: $6.50, or $3.25 per ride
• 10-Trip on TAPP Card: $31, or $3.10 per ride20-Trip on TAPP Card: $62, or $3.10 per ride
• 40-Trip on TAPP Card: $124, or $3.10 per ride
• Reduced Fare: $1.60, or $1.60 per ride
• TAPP Unlimited 1-Day Pass: $12.50
• TAPP Unlimited 7-Day Pass: $42.75
• TAPP Unlimited 30-Day Pass: $131.50

• Rhode Island is offering state employees up to $200 in reimbursement for costs related to refiling their taxes.
• The reimbursement follows a series of payroll glitches and botched W-2 forms caused by a new state accounting system.
• Problems with the new system included underpayments, overpayments, and incorrect employer information on tax documents.

The McKee administration is offering up to $200 to any state employee who incurred any additional expense in filing, and then having to refile, their taxes because of a series of botched paychecks and W-2s.

How did we get here? On April 15, also known as Tax Day, Patrick Crowley, the president of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, called on the McKee administration to reimburse public service workers who had to refile their taxes because of a series of several payroll glitches.

On May 4, Thomas Verdi, the acting director of the Department of Administration, sent state workers a “Dear Colleagues” email that said:

“We recognize that the W-2 corrections released by the state may have resulted in additional tax preparation costs for individuals who had to amend their tax returns.

“To assist with this expense, the state will provide a one-time reimbursement for up to $200 for tax preparation and filing costs an employee incurred to amend a federal and/or state tax return directly related to the W-2Cs issued by the State of Rhode Island.”

More: How the new, $99M state payroll system put RI at ‘significant risk’

The latest in a litany of financial issues with state’s payroll system

The Department of Administration has not yet responded to Journal inquiries about the projected cost to the state.

But the list of well-publicized problems goes on and on.

They have included underpayments, overpayments, botched W-2s that misidentified their employer as the “Rhode Island Umbrella Company,” and a problem with Health Savings Account contributions where the employer and employee contributions were reported separately, instead of combined and will require new W-2Cs to go out to impacted employees. according to Department of Administration spokeswoman Karen Greco.

And about $220,000 in union dues inadvertently wound up in employee paychecks instead of being withheld from them.