New York’s MTA Approves Budget With Anticipated 5.5% Fare Hike
- Spending plan anticipates first fare increase since 2019
- Transit budget needs $600 million of additional state funds
Commuters swipe MetroCards to enter a subway station in New York.
Photographer: Mark Kauzlarich/BloombergNew York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the largest US transit system, approved a $19.2 billion operating budget for 2023 that anticipates a 5.5% fare hike, spending cuts and reduced service on some subway lines.
The spending plan has a $600 million deficit that MTA officials have said needs to be filled with additional state and city funds. The transit provider, a state agency that runs New York City’s subways, buses and commuter rails, needs to bring ridership back to 2019 levels, but working from home and violent attacks on the subway have kept some people off the system.