Who said this?

 “The path to an equitable recovery runs through our public transit system. Since its inception, Fair Fares has proven to be a transformative program for so many New Yorkers struggling to get by.”

The answer: Mayor Eric Adams. And he is absolutely right. New York City’s mass transit system moves everyone, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Construction workers, teachers, students, nurses, government workers, lawyers, doctors. Rich and poor. Young and old. Only on a train will one see briefcases, scrubs, baseball caps, hard hats, strollers, and school uniforms all in one car. It is an irreplaceable gateway to jobs, education, and opportunity for millions of New Yorkers.

And since it began some five years ago, the Fair Fares program has grown to become a lifeline for more than 325,000 New Yorkers who could not access mass transit and all the opportunities it presents without Fair Fares’ half-price bus and subway rides.  

Mayor Adams offered his praise of Fair Fares in February 2022, as his administration approved an expansion of the program’s eligibility. Initially only available to adults living at the Federal Poverty Line (FPL), it then was expanded to those with incomes up to 120 percent of the FPL.

But while welcome, this adjustment was much too modest. That’s why in the next City budget, due before July 1st, eligibility should be expanded further, to relieve the growing transit hardships faced by low- and moderate-income New Yorkers burdened by the rising cost of living in our city. 

An artificially low eligibility threshold is preventing the Fair Fares program from reaching hundreds of thousands of working New Yorkers struggling with transit affordability. They make “too much” to qualify for the program, even as they hover just slightly above the poverty line. Many earn the minimum wage or work low-wage jobs, including in face-to-face industries like hospitality or home healthcare, which require them to commute to work on a daily basis. 

Data collected by the organization I’m part of, the Community Service Society of New York (CSS), supports these hard truths. 

Every year for more than two decades, CSS, in partnership with Lake Research Partners, has conducted a rigorous scientific poll – The Unheard Third – of New Yorkers, especially low-income New Yorkers, about their living situations. We ask about their housing struggles, their healthcare expenses, their economic hardships, and more. And since 2014, we have asked about their experiences with public transit, notably their ability to pay the fare.  

Disturbingly, we have found that, starting around 2021 and continuing to today, New Yorkers living just above the poverty line experience transit hardship as intense as those living below the poverty line. In 2023, this figure stood at roughly 30 percent. Even 21 percent of those well above the poverty line, earning up to 400 percent of FPL, experienced transit hardship – levels never before seen in our survey’s history. 

Put plainly, paying for transit is a hardship for most working New Yorkers.

It is important to unpack what transit hardship really looks like. New Yorkers who are public transit-dependent have been pushed to the far corners of the outer boroughs because of our unaffordable housing market. They do not have the luxury of hailing a cab, summoning a ride via an app, or paying thousands of dollars to own a car. They are trying to find a foothold in our city. Unable to afford transit, they are missing classes, job fairs, medical appointments, family gatherings, and a lot more because they must make every dollar stretch so much farther. Many attempt fare evasion, and end up being penalized with fines, arrests, and even convictions, which may start a vicious “criminalization of poverty” cycle in their lives.

The harsh reality is that someone can works full time, year-round, at the local minimum wage ($16 per hour) yet make too much to qualify for Fair Fares. And that fact should prompt the question: Just how far can the program really go to promote an equitable and inclusive recovery with such a low eligibility threshold? 

Moreover, New York is significantly behind other major cities that offer similar programs. By extending the eligibility threshold to at least 200 percent of the FPL, Fair Fares would be at par with such cities as Minneapolis, San Francisco, and Boston. 

The eligibility threshold for Fair Fares is also lower than that for other safety net programs in New York. SNAP (formerly known as Food Stamp) benefits extend to those at 145 percent of FPL. The State’s Essential Plan health coverage extends to 250 percent of FPL. Section 8 and Section 9 low-income housing benefits extend above 300 percent of FPL.

Our analysis suggests that expanding eligibility to 200 percent of FPL will make an extra 750,000 adults eligible for Fair Fares and would cost the City an additional $55 million, assuming the current pattern of usage continues to prevail. This is a drop in the $111.6 billion budget bucket, compared to the upward mobility it would provide to New Yorkers in need. It is a no-brainer. 

All New Yorkers deserve access to the city’s mass transit system and the opportunity it offers. It has the potential to be an equalizer for a city that remains hyper-segregated along racial, ethnic, and income lines. Mass transit, like parks and public libraries, should remain accessible assets that everyone can use without financial worry. Expanding the Fair Fares program can make this a reality.

Emerita Torres is vice president of policy, reach, and advocacy at the Community Service Society of New York. This Urban Matters is adapted from her March 14th testimony to the New York City Council, and from CSS’s recent report “When You Can’t Afford the Fare.”

Photo by: Newell Reinvention