MTA Asks For $4 Billion Coronavirus Bailout

NEW YORK, NEW YORK — Plunging ridership amid the new coronavirus pandemic forced MTA officials to seek a $4 billion federal bailout.

MTA officials made the request Tuesday in a letter addressed to New York's congressional delegation, the New York Times first reported. They wrote the subways remain open and sanitized even as the virus spreads.

"But the stark reality is that as more people stay home following the advice of medical experts, the M.T.A. is now facing financial calamity,” wrote MTA Chairman Patrick J. Foye, according to the letter.

The transit authority projects it will lose $3.7 billion in coming months from falling ridership and $300 million more from coronavirus expenses like cleaning subway cars, the letter states.

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Ridership dropped 60 percent on the subway and 49 percent on buses on Monday compared with the same day last year, according to the letter.

Those figures are in line with other numbers reported by THE CITY, which found Greenwich Village rides fell 45 percent since the city declared an emergency, among other drops.

Mayor Bill de Blasio has encouraged New Yorkers to avoid crowded subways and has fought back rumors that the subways will close.

The numbers on commuter trains were even worse, according to the report. Tuesday morning rush hour ridership fell 67 percent on Long Island Rail Road and 90 percent on Metro-North Railroad, the letter states.

It's the latest financial hardship to arise as officials and businesses take steps to stop the coronavirus' spread. Stock markets have tumbled, restaurant closures in New York likely will leave thousands out of work and federal officials have floated direct cash payments to Americans as a stimulus.

MTA has socked away $2.8 billion in emergency funds, the letter states. But officials argued that won't be enough.

"This is a national disaster that requires a national response," the letter states.

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