In a Daily News exclusive yesterday, writer Pete Donohue learned that Mr. Joe Lhota, the MTA-chief-turned-mayoral-candidate, handed out a few raises and buyouts before he stepped out of office this past December, totaling about $253,000 in cold, hard, much-needed cash. According to the agency, the end-of-the-year gifts were a result of contracts made years ago that set these raises in motion. And, since these raises come at a time where the agency is strapped for cash, there naturally has to be a few details of the story that are meant to simply irritate.

Like the fact that the money was issued to the MTA's top executives around the same time the fare hike for millions of commuters was passed, which is really just great. Or the fact that most MTA workers haven't seen a dime above their standard wages since 2008. Or the fact that union workers now face wage freezes because of how broke the MTA is.

Gotta love it.

MTA: Pissing away your money one day at a time.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority claims to be strapped for cash and plans to pass its money problems onto consumers by raising subway and bus fares in March. It also hopes to increase the toll on the Verrazano Bridge from $13 to $15.

So how could an agency with a 2012 operating budget of $9.1 billion be hurting so badly for cash? Well, not turning off their cars could have something to do with it.

According to a report by the MTA's inspector general, released yesterday, the agency blew about $800,000 a year on idling vehicles wasting gas -- and polluting the air.

The report, which you can see here, found that MTA field vehicles idled for a combined 20,000 hours each month while Long Island Railroad and Metro-North workers were in the field.

MTA train

What this means? The long-awaited, $7 billion connection wouldn't be complete until 2019, four years after the originally planned date.