Subways Carry Over 4 Million Paid Riders for First Time Since March 12, 2020

By BoroPark24 staff

As of Thursday, April 20, the New York City subway recorded 4,002,961 paid rides, finally reaching pre-pandemic ridership levels.

The last time the subway system carried more than 4 million riders was March 12, 2020, when 4.1 million New Yorkers rode the subway. 

OMNY, the Authority's contactless fare payment system, also set a single-day subway record with 1,699,914 taps or 42.5 percent of all paid rides.

At the same time, Metro-North Railroad reached a new three-day (Tuesday through Thursday last week) average ridership post-COVID-era high of 193,111, or 73.5 percent of the baseline ridership compared with February 2020. The three-day record came after Metro-North reached record daily post-pandemic-era ridership on Wednesday, April 19, with 195,086 riders, or 74 percent of the pre-pandemic average.

OMNY continues to gain popularity among New York City Transit customers, with the first one million tap day reached in April of 2022. 

OMNY customers now comprise nearly half of all subway riders, taking up a 42.5 percent market share of paid rides. Nearly 100 percent of all OMNY transactions are made on customers' personal devices or cards, making the MTA unique among North American transit systems.