4 borough presidents want an expansion of Fair Fares

In a letter to Mayor Eric Adams, four New York City borough presidents are calling for an expansion of the city’s Fair Fares Program that offers discounted MetroCards for low-income residents. Their request: make more people eligible for the program in the coming year’s budget. 

“These are our neighbors and constituents who work minimum wage and ‘get stuff done’ to make this city run, and we contend that they should be eligible for half-price rides on subways, buses, and commuter railroads,” wrote Borough Presidents Vanessa Gibson of the Bronx, Mark Levine of Manhattan, Antonio Reynoso of Brooklyn and Donovan Richards of Queens, referencing the mayor’s “GSD” catch phrase.

Introduced in 2019, the Fair Fares NYC program cuts transportation costs by 50% for people meeting certain income requirements. Currently, the program helps 336,000 New Yorkers making up to 120% of the federal poverty level. Currently, a single person is only eligible if they make less than $18,000 per year. A family of four is only eligible if they make less than about $37,000. The borough presidents want to triple that number by including people who make up to 200% of the federal poverty level, they wrote. 

The letter cites a “strong” correlation between fare evasion summonses and Fair Fares eligibility, as reported by the Permanent Citizens Advisory Council, which represents riders’ interests to the MTA. The report found that expanding the program would require about $55 million a year in funding.  

The borough presidents noted that many full-time minimum wage workers are likely not currently eligible for the program. 

The letter comes as the New York City Council and Adams administration negotiate on a budget plan for the start of the new fiscal year. City Council Finance Chair Justin Brannan recently commented that Fair Fares was among the council’s priorities, along with early childhood education, libraries, parks and housing.