The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the largest mass-transit provider in the U.S., is facing a potential $25 billion funding gap for future infrastructure upgrades, according to New York’s comptroller.
What Happened: The MTA is expected to release its 2025—2029 capital program by Oct. 1, Bloomberg reported on Thursday. Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli stated that if the spending plan reflects the MTA’s current $51.5 billion capital budget, the agency will need to address a $25 billion deficit, as some revenue sources are already allocated.
The MTA’s capital budget is used for subway station renovations, signal upgrades, accessibility improvements, and sustainability programs to safeguard against extreme weather conditions. The next capital budget will need to incorporate $6 billion to combat climate change, MTA officials announced last month.
The MTA and state lawmakers will need to find new funding sources for the upcoming capital plan. In 2019, the legislature approved a new congestion pricing initiative and a tax on high-end real estate sales to help fund a combined $25 billion for the 2020—2024 capital program.
As of Apr. 24, the MTA had $46.7 billion of debt outstanding and is set to pay about $2.8 billion in debt service this year. DiNapoli estimates the transit provider’s debt will increase to nearly $60 billion in 2028.
Why It Matters: This comes at a time when the MTA is trying to win back riders to public transportation and increase fare revenue. In April 2023, the MTA saw a ridership of more than four million commuters in one day for the first time since the pandemic hit.
However, the MTA also faces challenges from climate change. In September, torrential rains caused flash flooding in New York City, leading to widespread outages and delays in the MTA’s transit system. The upcoming capital budget will need to address these climate change-related challenges, which are likely to increase in the future.
Image by Antonio Suarez Vega via Shutterstock
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