Next slump to derail funding

THE NEXT recession could be more devastating to commuters than the last one, according to an ominous report released Wednesday from Moody’s Investors Service.

The MTA could lose $1.4 billion worth of “economically sensitive” taxes that fund more than a third of the transit agency’s revenues if the next economic downturn is as bad as the Great Recession from 2007 to 2009, the report said.

Declining ridership, struggling subway service and critical repair work will make it harder for transit officials to get through the recession the way it did a decade ago — massive service cuts and fare hikes.

It “would require external support from MTA’s parent government, the state, and key partners, the city and federal government,” said Baye Larsen, Moody’s vice president.