New York MTA Seeks $4 Billion U.S. Rescue After Virus Decimates Ridership

(Bloomberg) -- New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the largest mass-transit provider in the U.S., is seeking $4 billion from the federal government as the coronavirus has decimated ridership and revenue.

The MTA “is now facing a financial calamity,” Pat Foye, the agency’s chief executive officer, said in a letter he sent Tuesday to the state’s Congressional delegation.

The number of people using the MTA system is in a free fall. Ridership on the Metro-North Railroad, which connects suburban New York and Connecticut to midtown Manhattan, plunged 90% based on the most recent daily reports, Foye wrote in the letter. Long Island Railroad usage fell by 67%; subway ridership is down 60% and buses are seeing 49% fewer riders.

The agency estimates the full impact of the virus will cost $4 billion by the end of 2020, even without taking into account an expected $6 billion it will lose in state and local revenue from taxes dedicated to the system.

“No agency of our size can find additional billions in savings equivalent to the damages we have and will sustain as a result of this pandemic,” Foye said in the letter. “This is a national disaster that requires a national response.”

New York Lifeblood

The MTA is a state-run agency that provides 2.6 billion trips a year on subways, buses and commuter lines for 15.3 million people in New York City through Long Island, the southeastern part of the state and Connecticut. It had $45.3 billion of outstanding debt, as of Feb. 7.

People have been avoiding mass-transit as businesses are asking employees to work from home, schools are closed and major cultural and sporting events are canceled. New York City restaurants are limited to takeout and delivery service.

The measures are a way to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, now a pandemic. New York City had 814 reported cases of the virus, as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Of the $4 billion cost estimate for the MTA, $3.7 billion assumes this week’s ridership trends continue for six months, according to the letter. Another $300 million is from coronavirus expenses as the MTA has doubled its cleaning and sanitation efforts at stations and on train cars and buses.

“Time and again, New Yorkers have supported disaster relief for other states and Puerto Rico when they were devastated by natural disasters and other Acts of God,” Foye said. “Now we are asking Congress to step up again and deliver for the system that is the lifeblood of New York City and the engine of the region’s economic future.”

Mass Transit Stalls

Public-transportation across the U.S has taken a hit from the virus. Transit agencies are getting less fare box revenue just as their cost mount with the ramp up of efforts to disinfect and clean their systems.

New Jersey Transit ridership is down 40% and will consider a holiday-type schedule if usage falls by 50%. The system of bus, rail and light rail runs throughout the state and connects it to Manhattan.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is reducing service, the agency said Tuesday. The system, which operates public transportation for the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, said metro ridership was down nearly 70% across the board on Monday.

The Chicago Transit Authority said Tuesday that system-wide ridership has been cut almost in half compared to a year ago.

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