{"id":5685,"date":"2026-07-29T23:08:51","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T23:08:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=5685"},"modified":"2026-07-29T23:08:51","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T23:08:51","slug":"mta-boss-blames-mamdanis-free-bus-crusade-as-paid-ridership-drops-a-whopping-7-7","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=5685","title":{"rendered":"MTA boss blames Mamdani’s ‘free bus’ crusade as paid ridership drops a whopping 7.7%"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

MTA boss Janno Lieber blamed Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s \u201cfree bus\u201d promises for a spike in fare evasion that has sent paid ridership plummeting by a whopping 7.7% in June.<\/p>\n

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The MTA CEO didn\u2019t mention Mamdani by name Wednesday as he railed against cheapskate riders emboldened by promises of free rides for everyone \u2014 calling the decline in paying straphangers \u201cthe reality of fare evasion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a trend that broke out,\u201d Lieber told reporters after a meeting of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board. \u201cWith malice towards none I say all of the talk of free buses, it has an impact.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not blaming anyone, I\u2019m not trying to tell anyone to shut up,\u201d Lieber said. \u201cBut we need to reestablish this.\u201d<\/p>\n

MTA documents showed paid monthly ridership down year-over-year for at least three months in 2026, with no data immediately available for February through April. In January, there were 1.21 million paid weekday rides, down from 8.1% in 2025, the transit agency\u2019s documents showed.<\/p>\n

Paid ridership plummeted 7.7% last month compared to June 2025, when there were 1.32 million paid bus riders, according to the records \u2014 while May saw an even sharper 10.4% decline compared to a year earlier.<\/p>\n

Lieber suggested that free bus promises that the social media-focused socialist during his campaign last year helped normalize the idea that riders did not need to pay. He sent a message to riders to pay up, implying fare jumpers weren\u2019t just less fortunate folks who couldn\u2019t afford the $3 ride.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor all the people who are on their way to office jobs, who are making a good income, who walk by the bus driver and don\u2019t pay or get on the back and don\u2019t pay, I say it\u2019s time to be New Yorkers,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019re just passing along the cost to another taxpayer. Somebody\u2019s going to have to pay for that ride.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t pass along responsibility to somebody else who\u2019s probably not as well off as you are,\u201d he went on. \u201cTake responsibility for this precious system. It\u2019s a civic responsibility and we\u2019re going to have to create a system which feels a little fairer with enforcement to make sure that everybody understands it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Mamdani made \u201cfast and free buses\u201d a central part of his campaign, turning it into a shorthand for his broader liberal agenda in New York City.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hizzoner, since taking office in January, has continued to tour the plan, citing the MTA\u2019s own pilot program in 2023 that saw the agency test out five free routes as a success story. <\/p>\n

His campaign listed reduced emissions among the benefits of fast, fare-free buses but the MTA\u2019s own review found that the pilot mainly increased ridership among regular bus riders, instead of encouraging drivers to ditch their cars for public transit.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

The agency also said the pilot cost more than $16.5 million in lost revenue.<\/p>\n

Lieber has repeatedly argued that\u00a0making buses free would be too expensive and that the MTA, which is controlled by the state rather than the city, cannot absorb the cost of free buses. Still, he has stopped short of criticizing Mamdani directly.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cWithout rancor and without blame, I do think that we have to now turn as a city to reestablish the principle that everybody shares in the responsibility for contributing to this system,\u201d Lieber said.<\/p>\n

Mamdani\u2019s free bus idea would cost around $1.1 billion, according to the Independent Budget Office.<\/p>\n

The MTA has projected deficits of $160 million in 2027, $243 million in 2028, and $306 million in 2029.<\/p>\n

Lieber reiterated Wednesday the agency cannot afford to absorb the cost of free bus service for all New Yorkers, especially riders who could pay but choose not to.<\/p>\n

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MTA Chairman Janno Lieber took another swipe at Zohran Mamdani\u2019s free-bus idea this week, blaming it for the fact that fewer bus riders are paying the MTA — without mentioning the mayor by name.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5684,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-metro"],"yoast_head":"\nMTA boss blames Mamdani's 'free bus' crusade as paid ridership drops a whopping 7.7% - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=5685\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MTA boss blames Mamdani's 'free bus' crusade as paid ridership drops a whopping 7.7% - 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