18 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • NOVEMBER 2021
TRANSIT BILL
MTA’S VISION FOR THE FUTURE
BY JANNO LIEBER
ACTING MTA CHAIR AND CEO
With the latest infrastructure bill now
under debate in Washington, D.C., we
have a once-in-a-generation chance
to invest in the future of mass transit.
This vital legislation, championed by
President Joe Biden, will help to improve
the lives of millions of people, not just in
the metropolitan region but also across
the country.
The $1.2 trillion plan includes $550
billion for public transit, bridges,
and highways, with more than $10
billion potentially headed for the
New York Metropolitan Transportation
Authority (MTA). The money
would give our historic 2020-2024
Capital Program a major boost on top
of the $15 billion in capital funding
congestion pricing is expected to
generate. Until then, we need every
penny we can get from the federal
government to support our ambitious
plans to revitalize the MTA.
Money from the infrastructure bill
is diff erent than the hard-fought $14
billion in federal Covid-19 relief funds
that Congress allocated to help the MTA
keep the lights on and the trains running
aft er the pandemic devastated our
fi nances. Instead, the infrastructure
funds would be used for just that: longterm
improvements and modernization
projects for the subway, bus, and commuter
rail systems.
Delaying action on the bill could jeopardize
long-planned upgrades that would
create new jobs and advance climate
goals, like zero-emissions buses, new
signals on six subway lines, and accessibility
projects at dozens of stations
– not to mention transformative mega
projects like Second Avenue Subway
Phase 2 and Metro North Penn Station
Access.
These upgrades are only becoming
more important as customers return
to the system. Already, we’re back to
regularly serving more than 3 million
riders a day on just the subways, and
more than 5 million including buses
and the commuter railroads. The
best incentive we can off er additional
riders to come back and drive these
numbers even higher is a seamless and
modern travel experience, which requires
real investment on the federal
level.
Led by U.S. Senate Majority Leader
Chuck Schumer, our partners in Washington
have already done so much to
keep mass transit alive during the
pandemic. But now it’s time to look
to the future of mass transit and its
short-term and long-term importance
to the region’s revival and survival.
By passing the infrastructure bill,
Congress could give the MTA’s indispensable
system new momentum as
we carry millions back to work, school,
entertainment venues, and everything
else that New York has to off er.
POINT OF VIEW
“Now it’s time
to look to the
future of mass
transit.”
/LONGISLANDPRESS.COM
