Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani sees fare-free buses as a winning pitch in his upstart mayoral campaign. But transit planners say the idea, if implemented, could amount to a cut to New York City’s transit service.
“ The idea of making buses free is, really simple, really appealing, and unfortunately it has some really bad consequences,” said Jarrett Walker, a transit consultant and author on urban planning. “ There is no big city in the world where the public transit is mostly free.”
He argued free buses would create a two-tiered transit system that pushes low-income riders away from the subways, which are far more efficient at moving people.
“It would create an enormous shift of ridership from the subway to the bus that's running on top of it,” Walker said. “Now, that's really bad for the whole transit system.”
According to an analysis cited by Mamdani’s campaign, it’d cost at least $630 million a year to replace the fare revenue brought in from the city’s bus riders. That figure does not include the revenue the MTA gets from its express bus service, which charges $7 for a single ride. (Mamdani’s spokesperson said he also plans to make express buses free.)
The MTA relies on that money to pay its more than 7,000 employees who drive, maintain, fix and oversee its 5,800 buses and 27 depots. Mamdani argues the city could offset the loss in fare revenue through a 2% tax hike on city residents making $1 million or more a year, which would require approval from state lawmakers. He estimates the tax package would bring in $10 billion a year, enough to cover his entire suite of campaign promises.
Transit consultant Charles Komanoff said free buses would speed up service because buses would spend less time waiting at stops while people pay their fares. He estimates it’d save riders $1.5 billion worth of time annually.
But Walker insists that efficiency would be lost due to more riders jamming into the free buses.
Madison Swart/Getty Images
Experts say the city’s bus service could benefit from more subsidies – but not if it means eliminating fare revenue. Retaining the fare while sending more resources to the bus system could allow for more frequent service.
Mamdani’s campaign has also called for installing more than 30 miles of new bus lanes each year, which is required by a 2019 city law that Mayor Eric Adams has ignored since taking office. The assemblymember has also said the expansion of the city’s transit signal priority technology, which makes red lights turn green when a bus approaches, could improve life for bus riders.
The faster service enabled by more bus lanes and traffic light tech also comes with cost savings: A bus driver can complete more runs during a single shift if it takes less time to get from one end of their route to the other.
Mamdani, a democratic socialist who represents Astoria, Queens, has been pushing for free buses for years, and two years ago sponsored legislation in Albany that created a one-year pilot for one free route in each borough. After the pilot ended, the MTA determined it had been a dud . Lawmakers declined to renew the initiative in this year’s budget.
But Mamdani said the free buses were popular, and led to fewer altercations between bus drivers and riders who didn’t want to pay.
Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who leads Mamdani in most mayoral polls, has called for the return of Mamdani’s bus pilot. But Cuomo has offered few other promises to improve transit service, and his campaign spokesperson did not say whether the ex-governor even wanted additional bus lanes in the city.
The MTA estimates its buses are already free for more than 40% of riders because they simply don’t bother to pay the fare. Agency officials argue the best way to help low-income riders is to enroll them in the city’s Fair Fares program, which offers half-priced rides to the city’s poorest residents. Roughly 360,000 of the estimated 1 million people eligible for the discount are currently enrolled in the program, according to city data.
Walker said programs like one in Boston that nixes fares from bus routes used predominantly by people in need are an effective way to make bus service more equitable without damaging the overall public transit ecosystem.
Mamdani points out the average bus rider has a far lower income than any other type of commuter in New York City. Still, if Mamdani wins the mayoral race and convinces lawmakers to pay for his free bus program, the city’s high-income taxpayers would not only be on the hook to cover rides for people who can’t afford the $2.90 fare — but also for those who can.
Mamdani and his fellow Democratic mayoral candidates face off tonight in a debate co-moderated by Brian Lehrer. Listen live at 7 p.m. on the WNYC app.
Curious Commuter
Have a question for us? Use this form to submit yours and we may answer it in a future newsletter!
“Will we ever be free of the MTA's never-ending PSAs on the train and stations? I just want to get from point A to B without having to constantly hear how the police are located at this station, subway surfing is bad, or if I see something, say something.”
- Ann in Brooklyn
The MTA has no plan to eliminate public service announcements in the subways.
In fact, transit officials plan to overhaul its systems so crews can more easily communicate with riders. The agency’s new five-year capital plan includes money to replace public communication equipment at more than 200 subway stations, as well as add speakers to elevators and replace fire alarm systems.
Curious Commuter questions are exclusive for On The Way newsletter subscribers. Did a friend forward this to you? Sign up for free here to start asking questions.
We're also talking about...
OMNY goofs. New Yorkers who’ve used OMNY for a subway or bus ride this week have found surprise charges on their bank statements — sometimes for trips they didn’t take.
A spokesperson for the MTA directed Gothamist to a message now posted on the top of the agency’s website that reads, “If you use a Visa card for tap-and-go payments, you may have seen multiple authorization attempts on your card today. Please know you will be charged only for the correct number of trips.”
The latest anti-subway surfing campaign. The MTA, New York City schools, Gov. Kathy Hochul and BMX sensation Nigel Sylvester have teamed up to create a comic strip — which will be displayed throughout the subway system — warning teens about the deadly threat of riding atop train cars.
Parking scam. Authorities said thieves have placed QR codes on ParkNYC meters directing unwitting marks to pay in euros. (The city only accepts U.S. dollars to park.)
Expanding Fair Fares. City councilmembers and transit advocates are urging the mayor to expand half-price subway and bus rides to more low-income New Yorkers as part of the budget due on July 1.
Listen to us talk about all this!Download our app and tune in to “All Things Considered” around 4 p.m. today. And catch up on last week’s segment in case you missed it.
