They bend over backwards to waste money on turnstile jumps.
The MTA plans to spend up to $1 million in grants on research it hopes will help understand the mindset of the average fare evader, the Post reported.
The expensive study comes as officials lament poverty and press ahead with abhorrent congestion pricing plans, but critics say the voluminous survey only tells us what common sense people already know. He denounces it as wasteful.
“They are forcing New Yorkers to pay exorbitant tolls to drive into Manhattan, and yet somehow they manage to come up with enough money to spend on these ridiculous studies, while they lament their poverty.” There are,” City Councilmember Joanne Arriola (R-Queens) told the Post.
“Someone please make sense of this.”
According to contract proposal The report, posted Dec. 6 on the MTA's website, said the investigation provided the transit agency with sufficient insight into the “historically high” practice of fare evasion, with approximately 8. It is hoped that this will reduce crime, which costs billions of dollars.
The behavioral investigation could cost federal authorities between $500,000 and $1 million.
In its proposal, the agency has already conducted its own research on people who skip the $2.90 fare, labeling them as “opportunists,” “rebels,” “idealists,” “young people,” ” It was classified as “unintentional.” or “low income”
They said they found that “rebels”, “idealists” and more obviously “low-income” groups were most likely not to pay.
The “rebels,” usually middle school and high school students, do it because they “think it's cool and edgy not to pay,” authorities found.
“Idealists” of any age do not feel “obliged to pay” for their beliefs.
But for people who are labeled as “low income,” it's as simple as “struggling to pay their bills.”
The agency made these observations at no additional cost to taxpayers, but does not explain why it would be necessary to pay up to $1 million to investigate a very obvious archetype more closely.
Critics called the Jano Lieber-led organization's move “wasteful” and “stupid” for the spending at a time when the MTA says it is struggling to pay for signal updates.
MTA is spending $1 million to win the hearts of fare violators
what
The MTA wants to pay researchers up to $1 million to study the phenomenon, noting that its $600 million loss in fare evasion in 2022 was a historic high.
- Investigating the “unique motivations” of fare evaders.
- Develop at least three “behavioral interventions” to stop fare evaders.
- Come up with a plan to implement these interventions and how much it will cost.
- Deploy your plan. However, it is labeled as “optional”.
why
The MTA says, “In the wake of COVID-19, a new societal perspective on fare evasion has emerged: Not paying a fare is simply not as 'bad' as it once was.'' I am doing it.
They claim that “punitive enforcement'' is not working. However, since the coronavirus outbreak, most fare evaders are now Non-prosecution Because there is a “reform” of justice. Therefore, there will be no punishment or penalty.
who
The MTA said it has already identified six “personas” of fare evaders. they are:
youth
Children and students who are not educated about the importance of paying their fares.
frequency: rare
not intentional
Sometimes people evade fares because they believe they have an “external excuse” for not paying the fare. ”
frequency: rare
opportunist
People who evade fares when it suits them.
frequency: sometimes
rebel army
Young people think it's cool and edgy to not pay a fare. They are usually middle school to high school students.
frequency: frequently
idealist
Those whose ideology believes in it are not obligated to pay the fare.
frequency: frequently
low income person
People struggling to pay their fares.
frequency: frequently
what! ?
“Going beyond enforcement and changing public behavior related to traffic will bring results,” the MTA argues.
“In Colombia, placing mimes at intersections to reprimand negligent drivers and pedestrians cut the number of traffic fatalities in half. In Bolivia, a similar program was used to calm traffic at crosswalks. Mime is also used in Venezuela.
The MTA also argues that encouraging people to do good behavior is more effective than punishing people who do bad things.
“Santiago's research recommends that campaigns 'change feelings of frustration, anger, and deceit… to feelings of gratitude, satisfaction, and fairness.'”
“It's amazing that no one in King Leavers' inner circle pulled him aside and said, 'Boss, this is so fucking stupid,'” said City Councilman Joe Borelli, a Republican. , Staten Island) told the Post.
Robert Holden (D-Queens) quipped, “The pathetic transit agency strikes again.”
“We're wasting taxpayers' money on idiotic research instead of solving obvious problems. If we can't even run our systems efficiently or maintain a safe and clean environment, the MTA is armchair You don’t have to play psychologist.”
Arriola also called out the MTA's “hypocrisy,” citing its controversial congestion pricing proposal. The proposal would charge motorists entering midtown Manhattan a $9 fee next year, rising to $12 by 2028.
The MTA would not confirm whether the grant money had to be used for a specific reason or why it was not used for other projects.
The MTA defended the unconventional proposal and pointed to other countries that have used bizarre behavioral interventions with success.
In Bolivia, “costumed dancing zebras” are being used to “calm traffic,” while in Colombia pantomime at intersections has reduced traffic fatalities, the proposal claims.
It remains to be seen whether the results of this research will lead to the appearance of “dancing zebras'' or “pantomime.''
About 13% of subway riders are skipping fares, up from nearly 3% in 2018, according to recent data from the MTA. Meanwhile, fare evasion for Select bus services is an astonishing 55%, while local buses are slightly lower at 48%.
“This needs to change,” John McCarthy, the agency's director of policy and external affairs, told the Post.
“If we're going to hire behavioral consultants, that's going to help change the behavior of a criminal justice system that has determined that fare evasion should have no consequences.”
The investigation is the agency's latest effort to stop crime.
In October, the MTA placed unarmed “enforcement officers” at bus stops, and police officers patrol the transit system daily.
The number of citations issued for fare evasion in the first 10 months of this year rose 13.5% compared to the same period in 2023, to 120,883, according to the New York City Police Department.
Meanwhile, the number of arrests for “theft of services” or fare evasion has more than doubled to 8,792 by October compared to the same period last year.
