MTA's 2021 budget plan may call for transportation cuts, layoffs because of pandemic

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will reveal its budget plan today for next year in hope of keeping the city's transportation system afloat, but some officials say the pandemic continues to have negative effects.

News 12 Staff

Nov 18, 2020, 6:43 PM

Updated 1,485 days ago

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The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will reveal its budget plan today for next year in hope of keeping the city's transportation system afloat, but some officials say the pandemic continues to have negative effects.
The MTA says it may be forced to make major cuts to transportation if they don't get help from the federal government soon.
Today, the MTA is having a board meeting where it will present its proposed budget plan.
MTA chairman and CEO Patrick Foye recently said the agency currently faces a $12 billion deficit, the worst budget crisis in the agency's history. The deficit is being blamed on decreased ridership on the trains and buses because of the pandemic.
The MTA has said that it may be forced to cut nearly 40% of service to both subways and buses, about 50% on commuter rails and lay off 8,000 employees.
That means millions of New Yorkers who rely on the trains and buses to get around the city could have much longer waiting times and more crowded rides.
While more people have started to take public transportation again, Foye says it's just not enough.
Transportation advocates are also reacting to the MTA's budget plan.
The Riders Alliance released a statement that says in part, "Failing to save transit at this pivotal moment is not an option. Should Congress fail to act, the MTA's doomsday budget must be the absolute last resort."
TWU Local 100 took to Twitter and said the proposal is "an outrageous and cowardly surrender to the coronavirus."
A final vote on the budget plan is set for next month, but the MTA says it is hoping the federal government will finally step in so these proposed cuts don't become a reality.