Write to your New York state representatives now to urge them to support our legislation to Make Transit Affordable in New York City!

NYC is too expensive.

One in five New Yorkers cannot afford a MetroCard, transportation costs are rising at an alarming rate (14% year-on-year from 2021-2022 and still increasing), and many forgo essential services because of how expensive transit is. Yet the MTA is set to raise the fare to $3 this summer.

To address this crisis, we need to make public transit more affordable. That's exactly why I introduced the Make Transit Affordable Act this year alongside Senator Michael Gianaris.

The MTA Act directly addresses this by making 15 bus lines free across New York City, three in each borough. This expands on the fare-free bus pilot I won in 2023 alongside Senator Gianaris, in which the MTA made five bus routes fare-free for a year, one route in each borough.

Across the five routes, there was an up to 38% increase in ridership, with the highest uptick in new riders from individuals earning less than $28,000 annually. It made buses safe, as assaults on bus operators dropped by 38.9%. And it had environmental impacts too: 11% of new bus riders during the pilot had previously been driving a car or taking a taxi, thus reducing city-wide emissions. The pilot was a success, which is exactly why I’m fighting to expand free buses across New York City.

The MTA Act expands the free bus pilot and makes transit more affordable for working-class New Yorkers so they can focus less on how to afford transit and more on getting where they need to go quickly, safely, and reliably.

As the state budget due date approaches on April 1st, we face a choice. Will we continue to price New Yorkers out of public transit? Or will we Make Transit Affordable by making more buses, safe, reliable, and free?

Can you take a minute to tell your elected officials to Make Transit Affordable?