Citing a “dismal budget climate,” TCAT raised some fare prices and eliminated several bus routes in its plan for the spring of 2012, which went into effect on Sunday.

Although not all passengers will see price hikes, many who travel in TCAT’s “Zone 2” — comprised of the area’s rural periphery — will pay an additional dollar. This increase will raise the price of a ticket from $1.50 to $2.50 for Zone 2. 

The new plan also includes more frequent service for TCAT routes with high passenger demand, such as Route 10 and Route 30.

Additionally, TCAT announced on Thursday that Tompkins County Legislator Pam Mackesey ’89 (D – 1st District) was appointed the new chair of TCAT’s Board of Directors. In a statement, Mackesey struck an optimistic tone about the future of the not-for-profit bus corporation.

“In 2012, we must redouble our efforts to make sure that this gem of a transportation system not only survives, but thrives and grows,” Mackesey said. “TCAT has developed a solid organization with excellent employees who know how to get the job done.’’

Mackesey is assuming her new position as TCAT struggles with plummeting state aid and contract disputes.

On Nov. 30, TCAT workers voted to reject a contract agreement between their union, United Auto Workers 2300, and TCAT management. Following a “sickout” in which one third of TCAT bus drivers called in sick to protest, the vote marked another setback in the negotiations.

 In the aftermath of the Nov. 30 vote, both TCAT management and union leadership blamed the other for failing to reach an agreement that workers would approve.

Both sides, however, acknowledged the challenge of striking a balance between increasing wages and maintaining generous health benefits. TCAT emphasized that budget constraints require all employees — both agreement and unionized workers — to make compromises. 

In a statement on Thursday, Hank Dullea, outgoing chairperson of the TCAT Board of Directors, recognized the challenges posed by TCAT’s difficult budgetary constraints. He noted that appropriations from New York State, TCAT’s largest source of revenue, have declined precipitously in the last three years.

“With expenses once again exceeding our annual revenues, we dipped into our fund balance to maintain service in 2011 and authorized modest fare increases, service reductions and other forms of belt-tightening for 2012,” Dullea said in the statement. “Support from New York State and the federal government will once again be key determinants of TCAT’s resources as we strive to continue our high quality of service in the years ahead.”

Rebecca Harris contributed reporting to this story.