CityLab Daily: Can New York City Ride Out Its Transit Crisis?
Also today: How birds took advantage of city lockdowns, and the American commuters stranded by service cuts.
Commuters wait on a platform at the Broadway-Lafayette Street subway station in New York in March.
Stayin' alive: The New York City subway was already facing a long-standing funding and service crisis when ridership plunged because of Covid-19. Now the agency that operates the U.S.’s largest public transit system is facing a new, unprecedented challenge. The pandemic has not only disrupted billions of dollars in investment for much-needed upgrades, but also exposed the deep racial and socioeconomic disparities among riders.
In a series of audio reports for Bloomberg Radio, Renita Young has been chronicling how the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority is navigating its many struggles, like balancing the need to recover financial losses with its obligation to avoid dramatic service cuts. She also spoke to transit advocates about the role that the system plays in racial justice, and how it can no longer continue leaving low-income communities and riders of color behind. Today on CityLab: New York City Rides Out an Unprecedented Transit Crisis