A worker wearing a face mask is seen at Grand Central Terminal in New York, the United States, on Oct. 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)
The impact of MTA budget cuts would be felt far beyond New York City and into the suburbs.
NEW YORK, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the U.S. state of New York, is in need of a bailout of 12 billion U.S. dollars from the federal government due to decreased ridership during the eight-month-long coronavirus pandemic, said the latest report issued by The Riders Alliance, a grassroots movement for public transit.
The report quoted New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli as saying that the MTA is facing its biggest budget crisis in history and is in desperate need of federal funding.
The system's debt has reached 45 billion U.S. dollars and would have to cut its subway and other public transportation services by 40 percent, and the railway services by 50 percent, if without enough financial help, according to MTA.
A crew member wearing a face mask waits for passengers to get on a train at Grand Central Terminal in New York, the United States, on Oct. 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)
As a result of the downsize, certain groups in New York City would be disproportionately affected. For example, The Riders Alliance report said, health care workers have nearly an-hour commute each day, and average New Yorkers could face an additional 15-minute wait time for subways and 30 minutes for buses commuting just one way.
The Riders Alliance's Policy and Communications Director Danny Pearlstein said the impact of MTA budget cuts would be felt far beyond New York City and into the suburbs.
The MTA is the largest public transit authority in the United States, serving 12 counties in Downstate New York, along with two counties in southwestern Connecticut under contract to the Connecticut Department of Transportation.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, it carried over 11 million passengers on an average weekday systemwide, and over 850,000 vehicles on its seven toll bridges and two tunnels per weekday. ■
