Governor Hochul Announces Post-Pandemic Ridership and OMNY Records

 Metro-North Railroad Carried Record 193,000 Riders on Tuesday, October 11

Subway Reached Pandemic Weekend Record with 2.396 Million Riders on Saturday, October 8

Subway OMNY Reached Weekend Record of 1.071 Million Taps on Saturday, October 8

Long Island Rail Road Reached 203,000 Riders

Access-A-Ride Hit Pandemic Record of 28,500 Trips Booked on Thursday, October 6

 Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Metro-North Railroad set a pandemic-era ridership record yesterday, Tuesday, October 11 with 193,000 riders, topping the previous record set on Tuesday, September 20. In addition, on Saturday, October 8, the New York City subway carried 2,396,000 riders constituting 73.4 percent of pre-pandemic levels, topping the previous pandemic weekend ridership record of 2,388,000 set two weeks prior. Subway OMNY also had a record high of 1,071,000 million taps for weekends that day. Access-A-Ride also reached a pandemic record of 28,500 trips booked on Thursday, October 6, approximately 90 percent of pre-pandemic levels.

"I am thrilled to see New Yorkers continue to break ridership records and am eager to see how far this momentum can take us," Governor Hochul said. "Public transportation is not only an environmentally friendly and affordable way to travel around New York City and State but is also the best way to enjoy all that New York has to offer."

Metro-North President and Long Island Rail Road Interim President Catherine Rinaldi said, "These numbers prove what we already know: for people headed to the Bronx or the northern suburbs, or east to Connecticut, Metro-North is the best way to go. And with the Yankees on track to win the World Series for the first time since 2009, Yankees fans know that the fastest, cheapest and safest way to get to home games at the Stadium is public transportation."

On Tuesday, October 11, the subway had another strong day carrying 3,642,000 riders, and when combined with bus passengers, New York City Transit carried just under 5 million New Yorkers.  

OMNY, or One Metro New York, debuted to the public in 2019 as a pilot phase at 19 subway stations and on Staten Island buses. The rollout of the contactless system was completed in December of 2020, with all 472 subway stations and the entirety of the MTA's 5,800 bus fleet now equipped with approximately 15,000 OMNY readers.    

The Authority launched the OMNY fare-capping pilot on subways and buses earlier this year. The fare-capping pilot includes a "Lucky 13" feature where, starting with the 13th ride of each week, every additional ride on subways or buses is free for the rest of that week.   

The Long Island Rail Road carried more than 203,000 customers on Tuesday, topping the 200,000 rider mark for the third time this month and the sixth time since Thursday, September 1.   

On the commuter rails, both LIRR and Metro-North continue to offer fare discount packages, including a 10 percent discount for monthly passes, and a new 20-trip ticket tailored for the hybrid work schedule. The new 20-trip ticket saves riders 20 percent on regular peak one-way fares. For commuter rail riders traveling within the five boroughs, the MTA also expanded City Ticket, which offers a reduced, flat fare of $5.00 for rail travel within New York City on weekends, to include all weekday off-peak trains.