The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is shifting its focus from physical deterrents to behavioral strategies to address an alarming surge in fare evasion, which could cost up to $800 million this year.
Approximately 13% of subway passengers evade fare payment, a figure that has doubled since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a request for proposals on the MTA’s website, the agency is in the process of selecting a consultant to devise methods to encourage passengers to pay their fares.
The notice revealed that approximately 900,000 daily commuters on subways and buses bypass fare payment.
Kayla Shults, an MTA spokesperson, said, “The MTA is advancing a holistic approach to address fare evasion that the blue-ribbon panel recommended in 2023, including tapping into the expertise of behavioral scientists to reinforce the importance of paying your fare and making it easier for customers to pay.”
Commuters avoid fares for various reasons, including confusion over the necessity of the fee, financial constraints, opportunistic use of unsecured emergency exits, and political protest.
To address these issues, the MTA calls upon civic and cultural change experts to assist in modifying these behaviors.
This move comes as an adjustment after the agency previously made buses free during the pandemic, leading to a habit of non-payment among riders, with about 50% of bus rides currently going unpaid.
The forthcoming consultant might earn between $500,000 and $1 million for six months of service to engage directly with transit users, create behavioral interventions, and outline pilot programs to test these strategies.
The MTA also plans to hire hundreds of additional private security personnel to monitor exit gates closely, collaborate with the NYPD to issue tickets to fare evaders, and modify turnstiles to make fare evasion more challenging.
“Whether students jumping the turnstiles or elderly people toting designer shopping bags, we frequently observe opportunistic riders of all ages, genders, races, and perceived socioeconomic backgrounds evading the fare,” stated the MTA in the RFP.
To combat fare evasion further, the MTA intends to overhaul its infrastructure, including replacing turnstiles with more secure fare gates and introducing a 15-second delay on emergency exit gates to encourage proper turnstile use.
Fare evasion enforcement is also on the rise. According to MTA data, the NYPD issued approximately 43,000 summonses for fare evasion in the current year, a 60% increase from the previous year.
