Subways Record More Than 2.9 Million Paid Rides on December 9, Topping Previous Post-Pandemic Saturday Record Set October 28, 2023
OMNY Accounted for Record High 58.5 Percent of Those Rides
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that New York City subway recorded 2,918,691 paid rides on Saturday, December 9, surpassing the previous post-pandemic weekend high set on October 28. The 2.9 million paid rides are a six percent improvement on the October 28 record and represents the highest weekend day for ridership in four years.
“New York at the holidays is the stuff of dreams, and it comes as no surprise that this time of year brings a boom in subway ridership,” Governor Hochul said. “There is no doubt the MTA is ready to welcome New Yorkers and visitors alike thanks to the investments we have made in safety and service throughout the system.”
MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, "The MTA is hitting its stride to close the year. This is the second time in less than two months that subways set a Saturday record – a huge vote of confidence in mass transit from riders. With more gridlock days ahead New Yorkers, and those visiting, know the subway is the best way to restaurants, shows and all the great holiday activities New York City has to offer.”
New York City Transit President Richard Davey said, “Santa came early this year. SantaCon surely played a role in this Saturday record, and I am happy so many used the subway to celebrate the holiday season throughout the city. While all ridership records are special, whenever we have a big Saturday, it really shows that people trust the subway to get them to wherever it is they are going and that our focus on improving the weekend experience is bringing customers back in growing numbers.”
The record subway Saturday was driven by taps into the system – 58.5 percent of all rides were tap-and-go customers, a single-day record. OMNY, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) contactless fare payment method, accounts overall for nearly half of all paid subway rides.
The ridership and OMNY records came two days before the MTA activated OMNY customer vending machines in The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens, allowing riders to use cash at the vending machines to purchase OMNY cards. Credit and debit cards and digital wallets are also accepted for purchases.
OMNY cards provide another way to take advantage of OMNY’s financial flexibility to pay-as-you-go and never spend more than $34.00 in 7 days.
The record comes in the middle of a Gridlock Alert, issued by the New York City Department of Transportation. The MTA reminded New Yorkers of subway capacity during the first day of Gridlock on December 6. The subway has capacity for 2 million more people than it carries today, and in recent months has seen service added during the off-peak hours.