Report: New York MTA Facing 'Greatest Crisis' in its History

Joseph Spector shares news of a report by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli that describes the funding shortfalls at the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) as the "greatest crisis" in the history of the transit agency.

"The MTA’s financial condition is dire,” DiNapoli said in a statement quoted in the article. "With ridership down, debt burden rising and no additional help likely from New York state or New York City, the MTA desperately needs an influx of federal funds or unheard of service cuts and workforce reductions will happen."

According to the report, the NTA faces a $6.3 billion projected gap next year is more than half of the MTA’s annual projected revenue—a hole that could not be closed without an infusion in aid. That projected budget gap is expected to grow to $12 billion over four years, reports Spector.

The MTA has been seeking $12 billion in funding to whether the fiscal storm brought by the coronavirus pandemic—an ask complicated by the stalled progress of federal stimulus talks in Congress in recent days and weeks.

Over the course of the pandemic, transit planning in the city of New York has been a tale of two modes: bus ridership has rebounded faster from pandemic lows than subway ridership. The MTA cut overnight service on the subway (for debatable purposes) before the city ramped up planning for new bus lanes around the city.