New York City Subway Carried 3.875 Million Riders on Wednesday, Sept. 21
Long Island Rail Road Reached 200,000 Riders for Five Days in September 2022
New York City Subway and Long Island Rail Road See Highest Ridership Numbers Since March 2020
View Day-by-Day Ridership Data
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced today that it again set pandemic-era public transportation ridership records, with 3.875 million riders yesterday on the New York City subway, a new high adding 100,000 more rides to the previous high set one day earlier, and 204,600 riders on the Long Island Rail Road, topping the previous record set on Wednesday, Sept. 7, of 204,000.
"We are thrilled to see consistent ridership growth with riders using the railroad to get to school and work, but also all of the concerts, games and special events happening in New York City,“ said Metro-North President and Long Island Rail Road Interim President Catherine Rinaldi. “With our fare promotions along with service to Grand Central Madison coming later this year, we’re making it easier than ever to hop on board."
"Busy trains are a sign that the city is returning to a sense of normalcy,” said New York City Transit Senior Vice President of Subways Demetrius Crichlow. “Mass transit is the fastest and easiest way to get around the city, and we’re seeing more and more people learning that every day. Riders are showing they’re confident in the subway system to get them where they need to be.”
The ridership records come as the Authority's contactless fare payment system, OMNY, registered 1.445 million OMNY taps yesterday, which was also a record high. OMNY registered its 500 millionth tap on Sept. 15.
Metro-North Railroad ridership remains strong, carrying more than 188,000 riders for the second straight day.
OMNY, or One Metro New York, debuted to the public in 2019 as a pilot phase at 19 subway stations and on Staten Island buses. The rollout of the contactless system was completed in December of 2020, with all 472 subway stations and the entirety of the MTA's 5,800 bus fleet is now equipped with approximately 15,000 OMNY readers.
The Authority launched the OMNY fare-capping pilot on subways and buses earlier this year. The fare-capping pilot includes a "Lucky 13" feature where, starting with the 13th ride of each week, every additional ride on subways or buses is free for the rest of that week.
On the commuter rail, both LIRR and Metro-North continue to offer fare discount packages, including a 10 percent discount for monthly passes, and a new 20-trip ticket tailored for the hybrid work schedule. The new 20-trip ticket saves riders 20 percent on regular peak one-way fares. For commuter rail riders traveling within the five boroughs the MTA also expanded City Ticket, which offers a reduced, flat fare of $5.00 for rail travel within New York City on weekends, to include all weekday off-peak trains.