The City Council is pushing for a $55 million expansion of a program that cuts public transportation fares in half for poor New Yorkers as fare evasion continues to soar.
Speaker Adrienne Adams wants to expand the city’s “Fair Fares” program to allow an additional 650,000 residents in the five boroughs to enjoy half-price subway and bus fares, adding that an estimated 325,000 residents in the five boroughs already receive discounts.
“The rising costs of housing, child care and food are making it harder for working families to stay in the city they love and build a legacy here,” Gov. Adams said at a press conference Tuesday.
Adams said many New Yorkers have struggled to even afford a one-way fare since fares increased last August.
This latest expansion comes just one year after the Fair Fair program was last expanded. Currently, applicants must be at or below 120% of the federal poverty level to be eligible for the program. The expansion will increase that figure by 200%, just one year after it was raised from 100%.
Fair Travel, which launched in 2019, has been promoted by advocates as a program that could alleviate the fare evasion crisis, but it has not helped reduce fare evasion.
In 2022 alone, fare-evading passengers have cost the city nearly $700 million in lost revenue. For 2023, PCAC said this includes $315 million in bus fares, $285 million in subway fares, $46 million in bridge and tunnel tolls and $44 million in rail fares. report Regarding fare evasion.
The report found that more than half of people who pass through the ticket barriers simply escape through the emergency exit gates, while 20 percent of people who pass through the ticket barriers jump or climb over them.
The report found that a spike in fare evasion typically occurs between 3 and 4 p.m. when school ends, with a smaller spike during the morning rush hour, when students already receive free public transport passes.
Vice Chair Diana Ayala said many of those who don’t pay fares are just low-income New Yorkers trying to get around a city that continues to raise public transportation fares.
“The minimum wage in New York City is approximately $16 an hour, and paying approximately $6 to commute to work is a huge burden for New Yorkers. Reducing fares will provide much-needed relief to low-income New Yorkers who are bearing the brunt of rising prices,” Ayala said.
Meanwhile, ride prices continue to rise.
The MTA raised the fare for a single trip on its subway system by 25 cents to $3.25 after the agency suspended its semi-annual fare increases during the pandemic.
For one ride on an MTA chauffeured bus, passengers will have to pay $3.25, an increase of 25 cents.
Even frequent riders haven’t been spared the MTA’s price hikes: A seven-day unlimited MetroCard increased by $1 last summer to $34, while a 30-day unlimited pass increased by $5 to $132.
A report from the MTA’s Permanent Resident Advisory Committee said the $55 million expansion would bring the Big Apple more in line with plans for other major U.S. cities.
The federal poverty level varies based on the size of your household. For example, for a one-person household, the federal poverty level is $15,060. For a four-person household, the federal poverty level is $31,200.
Among the 10 most populous U.S. cities with discounted public transportation fares, New York City has the highest poverty rate and the lowest income level, according to the PCAC.
Most cities offer half-price fares to people living at 200 percent of the federal poverty level.
Denver is slightly ahead of New York City: Denver offers fare discounts to people living at 185 percent of the federal poverty level.
Los Angeles is the most generous city when it comes to fare discounts, offering 20 free rides per month to anyone earning at or below 300% of the federal poverty level.
