Governor: MTA Ridership and Reliability Show Real Progress

By Y.M. Lowy

In just the first half of 2025, the MTA is already seeing one of its strongest years ever.

The New York City subway is on track to hit its best on-time performance in recorded history. Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North are also breaking ridership records, and customer satisfaction is up across the board.

More people are using the system too. June saw over 106 million rides on subways, buses and paratransit, up 10 percent from last year. Subway ridership alone is up 8 percent compared to 2024 and 31 percent since 2022. For the first time since the pandemic, more than four million subway rides were taken in a single day, with July 9 and 10 both hitting that milestone. Bus ridership is also up 12 percent, helped by stronger fare enforcement. Altogether, more than 850 million rides were taken on subways and buses in the first half of 2025.

This is all happening while the MTA is in the middle of a major capital plan. Crews are working on repairs and upgrades to keep trains running safely and smoothly. According to officials, safety in the subway system has also improved. Major crimes are down more than three percent compared to last year, and almost ten percent lower than before the pandemic in 2019.

Governor Hochul called the numbers a sign that New York transit is on the right track.