NYC Mobility Report: Transit Ridership Drops While Population Grows

Ben Fried reports on the new Mobility Report released by the New York Department of Transportation this week. The report "screams" for the projects and investments called for in the Fast Forward plan, writes Fried.

This is DOT’s first Mobility Report release since 2016, and the big picture is more alarming than it was two years ago. New York is a growing city where transit ridership is shrinking, and streets are choking on car traffic. Despite rising population, employment, and tourism, subway and bus ridership both fell in 2017. Meanwhile, propelled by the growth of ride-hailing trips, congestion continues to intensify.

The article includes several representative infographics pulled from the report. Fried also identifies a few rare positive trends, mostly connected to transit ridership on the Upper Eastside of Manhattan after the Second Avenue Subway opened at the beginning of 2017.