When the Class of 1983 arrived in Cambridge, it cost a quarter to ride from Harvard Square to Braintree, or Boston College, or Boston College, or anywhere else on Boston's subway network Two years later, though, the ride is three times as costly, thanks to a fare increase approved in mid-summer by Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) officials.

The fare increase--expected to generate between $20 and $24 million in added revenue--should prevent a shutdown of the system like the one that occurred in December of last year, and may allow restoration of some of last year's cutbacks in service at the debt-plagued "T," officials said last week.

"We wanted to prevent another shutdown and provide fuller service," Paul DiNatale, chief spokesmen for the MBTA, said last week. "This year is looking very good. The budget problems have been settled this summer... We will not run out of money."

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Long lines outside token booths, and a few disgruntled passengers, greeted the new fares when they took effect in August. "Some people come up with a dollar for two tokens, and what can I do except point at the sign with the price?" one Harvard/Brattle station attendant said.

If the lines and prices decrease ridership on the "T" by more than 10 per cent, the fare hike will automatically be revoked, DiNatale said, adding that preliminary studies of passenger load are being conducted throughout the early fall.

Meanwhile--despite a summer halt to construction due to a statewide carpenter's strike--construction on the Red Line extension currently underway in the Square may have passed its "most disruptive" point, spokesmen said.

Construction on the Square portion of the $600 million project is now taking place mostly underground, and hence there will be fewer changes in traffic patterns through the congested area, Steven Murdoch, construction manager for the extension project, said last week.

The carpenter's strike halted all work on the project for 45 days in early summer, until contractors agreed to raise wages by $5.60 per hour. One worker helping build the Porter Square station of the new route was killed in a cave-in just weeks after construction resumed.