#mta

#mta

The MTA will only move towards introducing all-door boarding on city buses after it has rolled out a promised European-style approach to fare evasion enforcement aboard the vehicles, Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said on Tuesday. Lieber, while testifying during a Feb. 3 state legislative budget hearing, made clear that the MTA will not activate OMNY tap-and-pay readers in the backs of buses until after it has established its new fare validation system on them.

On Jan. 17-19 overnight, downtown A and C trains in Manhattan will skip 116 St, 110 St, 103 St, 96 St, 86 St, 81 St and 72 St. Uptown C trains in Manhattan will skip Spring St, 23 St and 50 St during the same time. There will be no overnight C service this weekend, take the A train instead. In Manhattan, uptown E trains will skip Spring St and 23 St from 11:45 p.m. on Jan. 16 to 5 a.m. Jan. 20.

In effect, that means service changes across all lines besides the F, M, 2, and Franklin Avenue and Rockaway Park Shuttles. Overnight, downtown local A trains will skip all stops between 125th St and 59th St-Columbus Circle and uptown local A trains will skip Spring St, 23rd St, and 50th St. Both downtown and uptown local C trains will skip the same stops as the overnight A during the day and evening, with no overnight service.

"There's interest across the board," Michael Kemper, MTA chief security officer, told THE CITY. "It's not only coming from the MTA, but from the business world, the AI business world, in working with us."

The biggest problem with bus fare evasion comes from the back of buses, where fare-beaters tend to climb aboard while buses are stopped, and the front and back doors are open. Photo by Dean Moses MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber on Wednesday said the transit agency is still examining whether the new European-style of fare enforcement that, he said, is coming to city buses can be done while the vehicles are in motion or will require them to stop.

The setback is due to the discovery of severe, unforeseen deterioration of steel supports also known as girders that hold up the 7 train tracks and platforms above Roosevelt Avenue at the 61st Street station in Woodside, Queens. Other stations, including 69th Street and 52nd Street, are part of the construction project, which was initially slated for completion in May 2025. The work is not expected to be completed until May 2027.

There's a coffee shop in East New York, Brooklyn, that does more than sell lattes, cappuccinos and smoothies. With cozy furniture, friendly staff and a relaxed vibe, Bklyn Blend, located a short walk from the next stop on the planned IBX train, marks a sliver of change for a mostly industrial, but working-class and historic section of NYC. Bklyn Blend was buzzing with customers on a recent Thursday night.

The MTA is investigating how two cars of a 4 train in the Bronx separated from each other on Sunday night, forcing passengers to be evacuated. According to the MTA, the incident happened on a southbound 4 train at around 5:20 p.m. on Oct. 19. The third car uncoupled from the fourth car in a tunnel near the 149th-Street Grand Concourse station in Mott Haven. Police and FDNY members rushed to the scene; no injuries were reported.

A decoupling of two train cars forced the suspension of service on a subway line running between Manhattan and the Bronx on Sunday evening, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said. Passengers were safely taken off a southbound 4 train near 149th St. after the third and fourth cars became detached, an MTA spokesperson confirmed. No injuries were reported and the investigation was ongoing, the spokesperson added.

MTA officials have spent the last three years waiting for a mountain of COVID-19 relief cash from the feds that may never arrive, leaving a hole in the agency's budget that must be filled by riders and taxpayers. Financial reports show the MTA seeks $600 million over the next two years from FEMA as reimbursement for contracts issued 2020 and 2021.

Tolls on major crossings, such as the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, will increase by around 7.5% at the beginning of next year as well. For E-ZPass users, the Verrazzano toll will increase from $6.94 to $7.46. The Staten Island resident discount will remain in place with the toll increase, and anyone enrolled in the program will see their toll bill increase from $3.90 to $4.19.

The federal government will deny the MTA tens of millions of dollars in requested security grant funding, withholding every dollar the agency asked for because New York City and New York state are a "sanctuary jurisdictions," Streetsblog has learned. DHS's absolute denial of the money the MTA asked for under the Transit Security Grant Program, which pays for security upgrades across the system and not just in New York City, has left law enforcement officials stunned.