On top of its other corrosive impacts, farebeating costs the MTA big-time — some $690 million in 2022.
The big-ticket breakdown: $315 million comes from bus-beaters, $285 million from subway delinquents.
This, when the agency’s in a multibillion-dollar hole after the pandemic and crime fears have massively shredded ridership.
The subway is the city’s lifeblood, a true public square.
Harm to it, financial or otherwise, is harm to us all.
Indeed, farebeating “tears at the social fabric,” as MTA chief Janno Lieber put it.
Mayor Adams has pointed to the larger issue: “If we start saying it’s all right for you to jump the turnstile, we are creating an environment where any- and everything goes.”
Hence the NYPD’s recent crackdown on the practice — ramping up tickets and summons for farebeating by 75.6% and 83.5% year on year as of March.
Tellingly, more serious subway crimes plunged 21.5% over that same period.
Going easy on farebeaters encourages them to keep doing it — and to act out more seriously once on the train or bus.
And when they get off, too.
Farebeaters often have other serious criminal pastimes, like toting illegal weapons.
It also tells the law-abiding that they’re suckers.
Truths ignored by then-Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance when he made his unforgivable decision in 2017 to largely stop prosecuting farebeating, a policy continued by his successor Alvin Bragg.
Vance pretended it wasn’t worth the resources to go after a $2.75 theft, but he was pandering to lefties who claim farebeating is a crime of poverty.
It’s not, and in any case low-income New Yorkers now qualify for big fare discounts.
Indeed, the patronizing “crime of poverty” lie is unique to the American left: It doesn’t fly from Montreal to London to Tokyo.
Fact is, US progressives don’t seem to care much about poor people unless they’re criminals.
