MTA boss blames Mamdanis free bus crusade as paid ridership drops a whopping 7.7%

MTA boss Janno Lieber blamed Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s “free bus” promises for a spike in fare evasion that has sent paid ridership plummeting by a whopping 7.7% in June.The MTA CEO didn’t mention Mamdani by name Wednesday as he railed against cheapskate riders emboldened by promises of free rides for everyone — calling the decline in paying straphangers “the reality of fare evasion.”“There’s a trend that broke out,” Lieber told reporters after a meeting of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board.“With malice towards none I say all of the talk of free buses, it has an impact.“I’m not blaming anyone, I’m not trying to tell anyone to shut up,” Lieber said.

“But we need to reestablish this.”MTA documents showed paid monthly ridership down year-over-year for at least three months in 2026, with no data immediately available for February through April.In January, there were 1.21 million paid weekday rides, down from 8.1% in 2025, the transit agency’s documents showed.Paid ridership plummeted 7.7% last month compared to June 2025, when there were 1.32 million paid bus riders, according to the records — while May saw an even sharper 10.4% decline compared to a year earlier.Lieber suggested that free bus promises that the social media-focused socialist during his campaign last year helped normalize the idea that riders did not need to pay.

He sent a message to riders to pay up, implying fare jumpers weren’t just less fortunate folks who couldn’t afford the $3 ride.“For all the people who are on their way to office jobs, who are making a good income, who walk by the bus driver and don’t pay or get on the back and don’t pay, I say it’s time to be New Yorkers,” he said.“You’re just passing along the cost to another taxpayer.

Somebody’s going to have to pay for that ride.“Don’t pass along responsibility to somebody else who’s probably not as well off as you are,” he went on.“Take responsibility for this...