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Free buses coming to NYC, but pilot will run shorter than Hochul promised
By
Stephen Nessen
Published May 2, 2023
Modified May 2, 2023
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Marc A. Hermann / MTA
By
Stephen Nessen
Published May 2, 2023
Modified May 2, 2023
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A program to make some of the MTA's buses fare-free won't last as long as Gov. Kathy Hochul previously promised, according to budget bills published by lawmakers in Albany this week.
The legislation mandates that the MTA pick one bus route in each of the five boroughs where riders won't have to pay. It’s part of a pilot that the legislation says can only last six to 12 months — shorter than the two-year pilot for free buses Hochul announced last week.
Deputy Senate Majority Leader Mike Gianaris, who backed the program, said extending the pilot longer than a year would require the MTA to complete a federal environmental review, which would have delayed the launch of the free rides.
"That will hopefully pave the way to more people getting back onto the system, which will increase the usage and the ridership as well as make it safer, which is a priority for so many of us," Gianaris said.
Hochul spokesperson Hazel Crampton-Hays said the governor expects the MTA will extend the free bus service "into 2025" after the pilot program expires.
The legislation requires the MTA to choose which routes will be free within two months after the budget passes. Three months after that, likely in October, the free buses will go into effect.
The free rides are also not allowed to cost the MTA more than $15 million, according to the legislation.
Last Friday, MTA Chair Janno Lieber said the bus lines the MTA will pick for the pilot can’t share street space with other bus routes. He said that would make the effects of free buses easier to study and prevent the free routes from coaxing riders away from money-making lines.
The agency has previously reported that 1 in 3 bus riders decline to pay the fare. Lieber said the MTA will take that into account when implementing the free bus pilot.
“We want to make sure we’re not accelerating fare evasion patterns on the buses,” Lieber said on Friday. “We don’t want people to be confused about which bus is free and which bus is actually still charging.”
The budget deal announced last week came as a relief to the MTA, which had projected an operating deficit of more than $600 billion this year, and more than $1 billion in the coming years.
The MTA had warned of major service and job cuts if Hochul and state lawmakers couldn’t find a recurring source of revenue for the cash-strapped transit agency.
Despite hitting recent daily highs of 4 million turnstile entries, subway ridership and fares are still only 70% of what they were before the pandemic.
The state budget is expected to provide $800 million annually to the MTA by increasing the payroll mobility tax to 0.6% on New York City businesses that make more than $312,500 each quarter. Suburban employers in the Hudson Valley and Long Island would not see a tax increase. New York City's surrounding counties received a carve-out in the budget after outcry from elected officials who said the areas’ businesses shouldn’t be hit with a rate hike.
For riders, the budget comes with a pledge to cap this year's fare increase at 4% rather than the 5.5% the MTA projected in December.
“The stars are aligning for MTA riders,” Lieber said on Friday.
This story was updated with comment from a spokesperson for Gov. Kathy Hochul.
Tagged
new york city
transportation
Stephen Nessen
Stephen Nessen covers transportation. Since 2008 he has reported on everything from Occupy Wall Street, the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site, Hurricane Sandy, to Trump’s campaign for president. His transportation reporting has taken him everywhere from the MTA’s secret Rail Control Center to the gleaming subways of Seoul. Got a tip? Email [email protected].
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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