At long last, Fair Fares is here, giving New Yorkers living below the poverty line the chance to cut their commuting costs drastically. Workers who qualify for the special MetroCards will be able to buy weekly and monthly unlimited passes at half price.
“New Yorkers shouldn’t have to choose between a ride on the subway or bus and their next meal,” Mayor de Blasio said in a statement. “Our partnership with the Council for fair fares will make our city stronger and fairer for low-income New Yorkers whose lives depend on mass transportation.”
Originally slated to launch on January 1, three days of radio silence on the matter from the Mayor’s office had some concerned about the fate of the program, but the Mayor dismissed them.
“Literally what we will announce in the next few days is the first element of this and specifically how people can apply,” De Blasio said to Spectrum News. “We’re going to keep adding to it.”
Currently, there is no application process. The Department of Social Services has begun reaching out to the first 30,000 eligible New York residents, who are currently receiving cash assistance benefits from the city, to pick up their MetroCards from specific Fair Fares locations.
Despite reports, including from City Council Speaker Corey Johnsons, that as many as 800,000 New Yorkers live below the poverty line, Fair Fares currently has no plan on how to supply discounted MetroCards to the vast majority of them.
“The City needs to lay out a fast timeline for how we get from this initial group of recipients to the point where everyone eligible can apply and take advantage of Fair Fares,” said John Raskin, executive director for Riders Alliance. “That includes immigrant New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status. That includes people not already using other city services—every low-income New Yorker who fought for and won this program. People are asking us how to apply, and the City needs an answer.”
The first Fair Fares half-priced MetroCard is in circulation! pic.twitter.com/0utYs8UmwG
— Eric Phillips (@EricFPhillips) January 4, 2019
The Mayor’s office has already announced plans to expand the program in April, which will entail distributing Fair Fares cards to the 130,000 New York residents currently receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Additionally, despite acknowledging that the high entry price of unlimited passes may prohibit many low-income people from purchasing them, there will be no pay-per-ride discount until April at the earliest.
“The inclusion of pay-per-ride MetroCards is also a vital step forward, because many low-income people have unpredictable work schedules and often can only afford a few rides at a time,” continued Raskin.
“We are going to build this program,” Speaker Johnson stated at a press conference. “This is the first step. We’re going to keep pushing.”
