This week’s announcement of likely fare hikes on NJ Transit brought mostly angry reaction from those who use the public buses and trains.

“They need to help us, instead of taking from us,” said Fatima Kone.

Kone commutes into New York on NJ Transit and slammed its proposed 15% fare hikes as unfair and unaffordable. The agency says it needs the money to fill a roughly $100 million budget hole in the next fiscal year, but Kone told advocates taking rider surveys at Newark’s Penn Station that there are deep-set problems already.

“It’s always dirty,” she said of the services. “It’s not convenient and then raising the price on top of that. That’s ridiculous.”

A group of advocates on Thursday said the mass transit system needs long-term help, but the fare hikes will surely hurt.

“They are not happy,” said Doug O’Malley, director of Environment New Jersey. “They are not happy with the service NJ Transit’s providing right now, and they are certainly not happy with a fare hike of 15%.”

Added Eliana Fernandez of Make the Road, an immigrant-rights organization: “This will have a huge impact on the communities that we serve on a daily basis.”

Experts said these fare hikes won’t come close to closing NJ Transit’s gaping budget gaps in the long-term.

“This is also just a bandage solution to a structural problem,” said Alex Ambrose of New Jersey Policy Perspective, a think-tank. “NJ Transit’s problem is that it has never had a dedicated funding source — unlike several other agencies similar size across the country. What this does is just kick the can down the road.”

The proposed fare hike also eliciting strong protests from New Jersey lawmakers. State Senate President Nick Scutari (D-Union) said, “We simply cannot rely on everyday commuters to carry the burden of NJ Transit’s billion-dollar deficit…”

State Senate Minority Leader Anthony Bucco said fare hikes “will only make it harder for our already financially-strapped transit riders to make ends meet.”

And Gov. Phil Murphy himself vowed, “…we will continue to pursue additional avenues to respond to NJ Transit’s fiscal needs.”

As for short-term actions, Ambrose said: “We call on the Legislature and Governor Murphy to invest in public transit and reinstate the corporate business tax.” The governor let the state’s corporate business tax surcharge expire on Jan.1, losing a potential $1 billion a year.

NJ Transit plans 1o public hearings on the fare proposal the first full week of March and will surely get an earful from its riders.