PATH to increase fares, service on all lines starting in 2026

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NEW YORK - The Port Authority has announced massive expansion plans for PATH train service over the next few years, including trains on every line, seven days a week. But with increased service and major construction come fare hikes.

PATH increasing trains, raising fares

What we know:

The Port Authority announced the plans on Thursday as the next step in their plans to overhaul the century-old rail system. 

The agency has spent more than a year replacing and repairing tracks, updating stations and trains and more. Those projects are expected to be done by March 2026. After that, PATH will expand service on all four of its lines, with trains on every line, seven days a week for the first time in 25 years, according to the Port Authority.

By the numbers:

The agency also announced proposed rate hikes starting in the summer.

Fares would go up 25 cents sometime in summer 2026, then another quarter every January from 2027 to 2029, bringing the cost of a ride up from $3 now, to $4 by 2029.

The Port Authority says the proposed rate hikes are to help sustain the service increases, and that right now, fares only cover about a quarter of the cost of each ride.

A person boards a PATH train at the World Trade Center station on August 26, 2022, in New York City. (Photo by Gary Hershorn/Getty Images)

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Timeline:

Starting in March 2026, the Port Authority is increasing the number of trains on all lines. Here's what it will look like.

March 2026:

• The Journal Square-33rd Street line from Hoboken will double the number of trains between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. on the weekends.
• On weekdays, the Hoboken-World Trade Center line will increase trains to every six minutes during rush hour.

May 2026:

• Weekend service from Hoboken to the World Trade Center and 33rd Street will return for the first time since 2001.
• The Journal Square-33rd Street and Hoboken-33rd Street lines will operate every 10 minutes between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekends.
• The Hoboken-World Trade Center line will operate every 20 minutes between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekends.
• Late-night service will double on all lines from 11:30 p.m. on Fridays to 2 a.m. on Saturdays.

March 2027:

• Increased service on the Newark-World Trade Center and Hoboken-World Trade Center lines from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m on weekends.
• The Newark-World Trade Center line will increase trains to every four minutes during morning and evening rush hour on weekdays.

Dig deeper:

The service increases are part of the Port Authority's new 10-year, $45 billion plan to update the region's transportation infrastructure. More than $2 billion of that will go to PATH service and station upgrades.