Transit Advocates Decry MTA Cutbacks

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s tax plan, which passed the Legislature last week, includes a $100 million exemption for small businesses paying tax to the MTA. 

The plan also turns $320 million in tax revenue dedicated to the MTA into discretionary funds, according to transportation expert Charles Komanoff. Wired Magazine featured Komanoff in 2010 for a spreadsheet he developed to sort out the mathematics behind the MTA. 

He assesses “in precise detail, the economic and environmental impact of every single car, bus, truck, taxi, train, subway, bicycle, and pedestrian moving around New York City. And to do that, he needs data. Lots of data,” states the Wired article. 

Komanoff predicted the consequences of the recent MTA cuts using his massive, complex spreadsheet:

-The average subway trip will be 3 percent longer. 
-Ridership will decline 2 percent due to poorer service. 
-Frustrated riders will drive instead, bringing an additional 13,000 cars into Manhattan each weekday.
-MTA will lose an additional $40 million as ridership declines. 

“This move to defund [the MTA] may well lead to future fare hikes and service cuts,” stated Transportation Alternatives President Paul Steely White in a press release.