NEW YORK - The subway fare hikes in New York City took effect on Sunday, with the price of a single subway/train ride or one-way bus trip rising 25 cents to 2.25 dollars.

Before New York State approved a bailout last month boosting mass transit subsidies, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority of New York (MTA) once considered a 3-dollar base fare, a 100-dollar-plus monthly MetroCard and service cuts such as axing dozens of bus routes.

The roughly 10 percent fare hikes were initiated as part of the state legislature's financial rescue of the MTA, which was moving toward a 23 percent increase in fare revenue and widespread service reductions so as to narrow its budget gap.

The state-approved financial plan includes a new payroll tax paid by employers in the MTA's 12-county region, higher vehicle registration and parking fees. Fares and tolls are rising about 10 percent, according to New York Daily News.

The funds are reportedly needed to help plug massive budget gaps partly caused by sinking revenues and soaring expenses during the recession, officials said.

This fare tick-up leads to a rare back-to-back series of hikes, taking account of MTA's upward fare adjustment in March 2008 in New York.