That's to get on the M60 bus, then there's a free transfer to the 5.Don't ask me, I'm an NYC newb.
no, the fare isn't supposed to go up again. at least not in the immediate future. the $2.00 --> $2.25 increase just happened in june.
basically, the way NYC transportation works is like this: you pay $2.25 to take a bus or subway ride. if you need to transfer between buses or from subway to bus or from bus to subway, it's free. you can transfer between subways in the same station for free too, obviously, since you're not exiting the turnstile.
you have to swipe a metrocard to get into the subway, and you can swipe it on the bus too. if you swipe, the transfer will go through automatically. that is: swipe metrocard on M60 bus, get off at lexington ave, go down into subway, swipe again and it won't charge you again.
but if you're coming from the airport, i don't know where you can buy a metrocard (since i always buy them down in subway stations). so you can pay with exact change on the bus and ask the driver for a transfer card. you will swipe this card when you go down into the subway.
