To say that New York’s subways are falling apart is true, but not totally accurate. A more precise description would be that it’s still falling apart. Better yet, not only is it falling apart, but the descent is accelerating.
Not everything about the subways is bad. After all, riders do ultimately reach their destinations. The problem is that by that time, they’re frazzled from the trip, too often late for work and appointments, and probably are stressed out – not the way anyone wants to start their day.
To be fair, getting trains to run on time has been a problem for decades and is not limited to New York or even to America. Blame infrastructure that needs to be upgraded or repairs that have been delayed because of budget-related issues. Meanwhile, the cost of making those keeps rising, and riders suffer the consequences.
Getting Bad PR
With so much chaos in the world, one would think that what happens in our subways would hardly get any attention. But it does. In the last few weeks alone – certainly the last few months – our subways have been in the headlines repeatedly – unfortunately for reasons that are not uplifting or reassuring.
The most sensational story was about the lady who dozed off in a train and was set afire. The firebug stood nearby, fanning the flames. There have been other horror stories as well. Many were about crimes that have become all too common: commuters pushed down staircases or onto the tracks, stabbings and shootings.
Then there was the story of passengers who were terrorized by a madman and rescued by Daniel Penny, a former Marine. Penny’s good deed did not go unpunished, as he was charged with criminally negligent homicide and had to go through a court trial. Fortunately, he was found not guilty.
The Gothamist, described by Wikipedia as “a non-profit centric blog operated by New York public radio,” ran a piece about New York’s subways a few weeks ago, and it was right on. Following are excerpts from that blog.
In the peak of a rainy evening rush hour on Dec. 11, 2024, an F train in a Brooklyn subway tunnel came to a screeching halt. Many of the 1,700 commuters on board let out a familiar groan. After around 20 minutes, they realized this delay was different.
The train was powerless. Riders were stranded for hours.
According to The Gothamist, “The breakdown points to a sobering reality. The city’s subways aren’t just on the brink of collapse – the breakdown of the aging system has already begun.” Unfortunately, statistics back up this claim.
“The number of train delays caused by faulty infrastructure and equipment last year shot up by 46% since 2021,” it wrote. This fact was based on data from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which operates and maintains public transportation in New York City. Problems like this one reached their
highest levels since 2018.
The Gothamist says there’s even worse news. “Internal MTA records reveal that service breakdowns are on pace to become even more frequent in 2025 than they were during New York’s infamous “summer of hell” in 2017, when the subway’s reliability fell to its lowest level in decades.”
MTA officials blame these problems on decades of cost-saving measures that kept equipment in use far too long. “But those same problems persist, and experts warn the same thing is about to happen again.”
Full Speed Ahead?
Although it’s easy to find fault with New York’s transit system, it had and still has to contend with very difficult challenges – some not of its own doing.
The pandemic, for example, began hitting hard in March 2020, and it either caused or exacerbated serious problems for public transportation. Some of those still persist. Many riders either could not or would not use public transportation because they were afraid of becoming infected with COVID by other commuters. This lowered the MTA’s revenues and delayed making repairs on a timely basis.
Subsequently, many homeless people began seeking shelter in trains, which also caused commuters to resist subway travel. And the rising crime rate had an even more significant impact on ridership.
Things To Boast About
New York likes to boast that its subway system has more stations than any other, that it has a network of 245 miles, and that with only three exceptions (9/11, flooding caused by Superstorm Sandy, and when subways closed because of COVID), it is up and running 24/7/365. It also enables riders to go almost anywhere they want to in the city.
These are certainly impressive points. But there are other ways to rate the subway, such as punctuality, cleanliness and modernity, and by those measures New York falls short – by a lot. Take a look at the brag list of other cities (compiled by AI Overview):
*The Shanghai Metro is the world’s busiest, making more than 2.8 billion passenger trips annually, and is also the world’s longest system.
*London’s “Underground” has 11 lines and 250 miles of network.
*The Paris, Moscow and Stockholm systems have been called “architectural marvels that blend aesthetics with functionality.”
*The 13 lines that run in Tokyo’s subway run on time along their 286 stations.
*The Copenhagen system has four lines that connect with that city’s bike hubs, buses and overground trains.
Trains in these cities run on time, and are clean and safe.
Coming Up Short
The MTA is aware of these problems, and has a $65 billion plan to fix them over a five-year period. Unfortunately, it has less than half of the funds it needs.
There’s a related problem, too. The New York Post just reported that “Deadbeat drivers racked up $5.1 billion in unpaid MTA tolls and violations from 2021 - 2024.” And it estimated this number may increase significantly in coming years because of anticipated non-payment of the $9 congestion pricing toll. Fare beaters are another source of lost revenue. The combined shortfall is staggering – especially as budgets are tight and inflation remains a problem.
New York’s straphangers would love it if subway stations had magnificent architectural designs, and were modern, clean, and reliable. However, most would probably be happy to settle for safety and punctuality. Unfortunately, given the MTA’s revenues woes, it appears there will be no quick or easy fix.
It is said that New Yorkers are a tough breed. Subways will be testing their mettle in the coming months.
Sources: ai overview; livescience.com; nypost.com; wikipedia.org; zerohedge.com
Gerald Harris is a financial and feature writer. Gerald can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
