Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here.
NYC expected to crack down on fare evaders riding buses
NEW YORK (PIX11) – New York City is expected to start cracking down on people who don't pay a fare to ride the bus, according to Mayor Eric Adams.
Bus riders skipping fares alone cost the MTA $315 million in 2022, according to a 2023 report from the agency. Subway riders skipped out on fares 18% of the time, while bus riders skipped out nearly 50% of the time.
Adams revealed on a radio show on Wednesday that inspectors, backed by NYPD officers, will board buses to bolster the MTA's standard program of asking fare beaters to leave and handing them a summons. Fines for skipping a fare could cost up to $1,000.
Fare beating on buses is on the rise, up from 21% pre-pandemic to nearly half of all riders now, according to the MTA.
MTA CEO and chair Janno Lieber has spoken out against fare evasion, calling it demoralizing for riders who do pay.