New York S 4421: Enacts the Make Transit Affordable Act; provides fare-free bus pilot program in New York City

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S04421 Summary:

BILL NOS04421 

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SAME ASNo Same As

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SPONSORGIANARIS

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COSPNSRJACKSON, LIU, SALAZAR

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MLTSPNSR

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Add §1266-n, Pub Auth L

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Provides a fare-free bus pilot program in New York City for one year, subject to appropriations.

Go to top S04421 Actions:

BILL NOS04421 

&nbsp

02/04/2025REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION

01/07/2026REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION

Go to topS04421 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topS04421 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topS04421 Text:

 STATE OF NEW YORK
 ________________________________________________________________________

 4421

 2025-2026 Regular Sessions

 IN SENATE

 February 4, 2025
 ___________

 Introduced by Sen. GIANARIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
 printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation

 AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to enacting the
 "Make Transit Affordable Act"

 The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
 bly, do enact as follows:

 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 2 the "Make Transit Affordable Act".
 3 § 2. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature hereby finds and
 4 declares the importance of the New York Metropolitan Transportation
 5 Authority (MTA) and affirms the duty of the legislature to ensure that
 6 the MTA remains affordable. The MTA provides an essential service:
 7 transporting millions of New Yorkers on billions of trips each year to
 8 and from places of work, worship, and gathering. For many New Yorkers,
 9 however, the cost is prohibitive, especially as inflation climbs and
 10 wages remain stagnant. Given these conditions, the legislature must
 11 provide enough funding to offset an assumed 2025 fare hike, particularly
 12 on the subways and buses, the heart of New York City's transit system.
 13 As the MTA begins to implement congestion pricing, it has never been
 14 more important to promote public transit as a truly viable alternative
 15 to vehicular transport. To that end, the state of New York must fund a
 16 second, more expansive fare-free bus pilot program, building on the
 17 success of the 2023-2024 pilot program. It is the intent of the legisla-
 18 ture to include $205,000,000 in additional appropriations in the SFY26
 19 budget to Make Transit Affordable by providing an expanded, world-class
 20 free bus pilot program and preventing a fare increase on subways and
 21 buses.
 22 § 3. The public authorities law is amended by adding a new section
 23 1266-n to read as follows:
 24 § 1266-n. Fare-free bus pilot program. Subject to appropriation, the
 25 authority shall allocate forty-five million dollars in state funds

 EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD08832-01-5

 S. 4421 2

 1 received to expand the fare-free bus pilot program within the city of
 2 New York.
 3 1. The fare-free bus pilot program expansion shall last for at least
 4 one year.
 5 2. The fare-free bus pilot program expansion shall consist of at least
 6 fifteen new fare-free bus routes and shall cost no more than forty-five
 7 million dollars in net operating costs. Net operating costs shall be
 8 determined by the total costs of implementing the fare-free bus pilot
 9 program expansion and shall not accrue to the city of New York.
 10 3. The fare-free bus routes included in the fare-free bus pilot
 11 program expansion shall be selected by the authority, and may include
 12 either New York City Transit Authority or MTA bus routes, provided that
 13 there shall be at least three new fare-free bus routes within each of
 14 the following counties: Bronx county, Kings county, New York county,
 15 Queens county, Richmond county.
 16 4. The factors considered by the authority in selecting such fare-free
 17 bus routes shall include but not be limited to:
 18 (a) addressing service adequacy and equity for low-income and econom-
 19 ically disadvantaged communities;
 20 (b) access to employment and commercial activity in areas served by
 21 such fare-free routes; and
 22 (c) addressing routes facing high rates of operator assaults.
 23 5. The routes selected shall rank in the top twenty-five percent of
 24 ridership for the giv