CALIFORNIA - The cost to ride buses, ferries and trains in the Bay Area will increase Wednesday to help cash-strapped transit agencies balance their books.

Fares will increase on BART, the Municipal Railway in San Francisco, AC Transit, and the Golden Gate ferry and bus system.

A combination of falling tax revenue and the state's decision to cut off funding for transit operations hit agencies hard. In addition to raising fares, agencies are looking at cutting service and laying off employees.

"If it wasn't for the worst economic downturn in a generation, we wouldn't be facing these sorts of increases," said Judson True, spokesman for Muni, the region's largest transit system.

The Bay Area is not alone. A survey released this month by the American Public Transportation Association found that the nation's economic mess has meant a loss in state, regional and local funding for 80 percent of the mass transit providers in the United States. Of those, almost 90 percent have raised fares, cut service or both.

"With state and local revenues declining due to the recession, public transit systems are facing severe financial challenges, and America's riders are paying the price," said association President William Millar.