With ridership down to 10,000 people per night, and numerous homeless people taking up residence on the subway, New York will no longer run overnight subway service for the foreseeable future.
"The MTA will soon cease overnight subway service, an unprecedented disruption that will allow crews to disinfect trains more frequently to help slow the spread of coronavirus," reports Jake Offenhartz.
"In a joint press conference on Thursday, Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio said that subways will not run between the hours of 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. for the duration of the pandemic. The indefinite shutdown will begin the morning of May 6th."
The news comes as subway ridership has plummeted by 92 percent during the pandemic, and recent controversies have erupted over the MTA's handling of homeless people using the subway system for shelter during the pandemic. While announcing the service changes, Mayor de Blasio cited the homelessness issue as one challenge that would be easier to address by suspending overnight service.
To make up for the lost service, the "MTA will provide buses, for-hire vehicles and 'dollar vans' for essential workers traveling at night," according to Offenhartz.
FULL STORY: MTA Will End Overnight Subway Service For Duration Of Pandemic
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