Mayor: Curb ridership
Wants social distance on rails, but MTA bigs say it’s not possible
Mayor de Blasio wants MTA officials to strictly limit crowds on the subway next week when the city’s coronavirus restrictions are loosened — but transit officials said his plan would force even more riders off the system.
Hizzoner on Wednesday floated the ideas of blocking off every other seat on subway cars so riders can social distance to contain the spread of the virus.
“I think it’s clear that we need stated public capacity limits on buses and on trains,” de Blasio said at a news conference. “Let’s have the number very clear to everyone. This subway car can handle … this number of people, no more while we’re going through this crisis.”
That follows a letter he sent to Metropolitan Transportation Authority chairman Pat Foye Tuesday calling for overcrowded trains and buses to skip stops.
“The mayor’s plan would allow us to serve only a tiny percentage of our riders — likely around 8%,” said MTA spokeswoman Abbey Collins. “We look forward to hearing more from the mayor and NYPD on their plans for enforcement and compliance with this proposal.”
Subway ridership fell to 7% of normal levels in April and May — 400,000 trips per weekday compared to roughly 5.6 million trips per weekday in 2019.
But in recent days, ridership has crept back up, It hit 650,000 trips on Friday, about 11% of prepandemic levels.
De Blasio said he expects 200,000 to 400,000 additional trips per day on the subway come Monday, when the city begins to reopen some businesses like construction and wholesalers.
Transit leaders and Gov. Cuomo have said it will be impossible to social distance on mass transit when riders return, but that hasn’t stopped the mayor from calling for more space.
“It’s common sense that people shouldn’t sit directly next to each other on the subway in a pandemic,” said de Blasio spokesman Mitch
Schwartz. “That obviously wouldn’t allow for social distancing. We’ll work with the MTA to ramp up their capacity, but public health comes first.”
Even if social distancing is not realistic on the subway, it’s unclear why the mayor believes the subway could rapidly spread COVID-19 among straphangers.
Subway ridership in cities like Berlin and Tokyo have already rebounded to 50% of prepandemic levels. Passengers in those systems are often unable to keep 6 feet apart, but widespread mask usage has largely contained the spread of the virus.
De Blasio and transit officials agree that all transit riders should wear masks, and an executive order issued by Cuomo last month requires them to do so.