Karmactive Staff
New York City’s subway system just shattered another post-pandemic record. Between September 8 and 14, 2025, the MTA recorded 26.8 million subway trips – the highest weekly total since COVID-19 began more than five years ago.
For the first time since March 2020, subway ridership topped 4 million people each weekday, with daily counts steadily climbing throughout the week. The MTA reported 4.1 million riders on Monday, 4.44 million on Tuesday, 4.48 million on Wednesday, peaking at 4.51 million on Thursday, before dropping slightly to 4.2 million on Friday.
Governor Kathy Hochul, who announced the milestone, pointed to improvements in subway service and safety as key factors driving the return of riders.
“The subway is New York City’s lifeblood, and when ridership is growing, it means even more New Yorkers are going to work, to school, to shop, and to take advantage of everything this city has to offer,” Hochul said.
The ridership boom comes alongside notable gains in system performance. August subway on-time performance reached 85.2%, matching a high set in May 2025 and marking the best August in 10 years. Safety statistics also improved, with transit crime down 22.8% compared to August 2024.
Buses saw strong numbers too, carrying 9.3 million riders during the same week – the third highest weekly total since the pandemic and a 2.7% increase over 2024 figures.
Access-A-Ride paratransit service has experienced particularly dramatic growth, reaching 140% of pre-pandemic levels. The service set both a monthly ridership record in August and a single-day high of 46,875 scheduled trips on September 10. MTA officials noted that Access-A-Ride now regularly handles more than 40,000 weekday trips – comparable to entire bus networks in cities like Charlotte, Cincinnati, and Kansas City.
Similar Posts
Commuter rails posted significant gains as well. Metro-North Railroad carried an average of 237,994 daily riders during the workweek – its highest 5-day average since March 2020. The Long Island Rail Road averaged 277,435 riders during the week, slightly below its post-pandemic high of 288,459 set in late August.
OMNY contactless payment usage continues to grow, with 81% of riders tapping phones, contactless credit/debit cards, or OMNY cards during the week of September 8, up significantly from 67% in March 2025.
Despite these positive trends, challenges remain. A recent report from State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli highlighted concerns about aging equipment causing delays. The report found that infrastructure and equipment failures caused 31% of subway delays in 2024, up from 24% in 2023. More than a quarter of subway cars have exceeded their 40-year lifespan, and major service disruptions linked to car problems nearly tripled in the first half of 2025.
NYC Transit President Demetrius Crichlow credited service improvements and the new Queens Bus Network Redesign with helping drive the record numbers.
“With a new and improved bus network in Queens and historic subway on-time performance and paratransit ridership in August, it’s no surprise we’re already breaking records in September,” Crichlow said. “NYC Transit will continue to deliver safe, reliable, and fast service and I look forward to bringing this incredible momentum into the fall.”
The first time subway ridership exceeded 4 million in a single day during the non-school summer season was June 25, 2025. MTA officials view these milestones as signs the system is on track for a record-breaking year in both ridership and performance.
