Very few journalists would ever think there could be connections between these two individuals. But they will come: Soon to be Mayor Mamdani has already vowed to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu should he enter New York City, as a war criminal for whom an arrest warrant was recently issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). But so too has Vladimir Putin been declared a criminal by the same body of international law. So will Mamdani ignore one and arrest the other? Hard to tell since he has not vowed to arrest Vladimir Putin for the same crime.
Of course, either of them attending a United Nations event – a body perfectly positioned for this intrigue in New York City – grants all visitors and participants diplomatic immunity. And, of course, both are close buddies of President Trump — a factor that the recent swell, fuzzy meeting between Mamdani and President Trump is not likely to overcome. Nor would New York City likely receive any funding during Mamdani’s term were he to do such a thing to either of these criminals, even without the United Nations and its layer of diplomatic immunity.
But I am a transportation professional, and few if any of my posts have nothing to do with transportation. So the basic question about Mamdani’s senseless threats is this: How long does one think Mamdani’s plans for free buses will last should the Federal government cut off most of the City’s Federal funding if he alienates our “Do-whatever-he-wants” President by arresting one of his buddies? And if he does, how does he plan to fly them over to the Hague? I’m not sure New York mayors even have their own helicopters. They certain don’t have their own jets Otherwise, this threat, if followed through, faces several sub-questions – assuming President Trump tries to follow through with his threats:
- Will New York City continue to receive Federal funding (from the Federal Transit Administration) – a fixed grant covering 80 percent of every cities’ buses and other capital costs (like new subway cars, or the capital costs of those components needed to keep them running smoothly – like the billions of dollars to upgrade the half-century of neglect in the subway’s command-and-control system?
- With the SNAP program now cut off – which will impact hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers (if not more than a million) — will Mamdani have the gall to eliminate bus fares?
- Where will Mamdani get the money to purchase the additional rail cars needed even if four percent of its riders were to “mode split” from subways to buses (as the NYTimes predicted they would if the bus fares were eliminated)?
- Where will Mamdani get the money to purchase even more rail cars if bus fares are not eliminated – and bus fares remain at $2.90/trip (irrespective of distance, or the number of transfers), and no subway rider’s mode split to buses?
I find it inconceivable that, if New York City’s bus fares are eliminated, during his next trip to the United Nations, Vladimir Putin will rub our noses in the benefits of communism by riding a soon-to-be fare-free NYMTA transit bus. But what it he did? Would Mamdani consider this an opportunity to arrest him as an ICC criminal for whom a warrant for arrest has been issued, as noted? To those unaware of it, during a U.N. meeting, the “campus” for attending is not confined to a few streets, but to the entire city – including all five boroughs! So for his own domestic PR, imagine the photoshoot of Putin pulling into Lower Manhattan on a Staten Island Ferry – for which fares are also non-existent? The Russians would be hooting and stomping, and roading with laughter. What then would Mamdani do? Institute fares on the Ferry – defying a decades-long tradition?
Pretty stupid fantasy, right? Yet, especially with no Federal funds, is eliminating bus fares any less stupid – given the four percent of subway riders predicted to mode split to it, or roughly 1/25th of the riders paying $2.90 a ride.
For those readers interested, a full-day pass on the Moscow Metro (a “Day Ticket”) costs roughly $3.35 a day – or $6.32 for a three-day pass. Like the NYMTA subway, riders can transfer endlessly, from route to route, within this system, on such a pass in either country. But one-day passes are extravagances – reserved mostly for tourists and the most wealthy Russian citizens. Instead, most subway riders purchase a “Troika Ticket.” With this ticket (which must be purchased for a multi-day period, or else a single day’s ticket can be “re-charged at various fare care machines, and one’s balance can be monitored on the app on the rider’s phone, as well as in the small yellow terminals inside the Metro stations) fares are inordinately cheaper: With this ticket, a rides costs only about 53 cents. Plus, if you change trains within 90 seconds after your first one begins, the next “leg” of the trip will cost only about .53 cents.) But ha ha to Putin: With your $2.90 transit fare, you can transfer in four of the boroughs served, almost endlessly. So if you transfer 10 times, each segment of the trip is only 29 cents! Take that Mr. Putin. But – oh yeah: What could a rider gain by simply riding the train all day long – other than sleeping on it for free, and tens of thousands of homeless passengers do (after begging for the fares or jumping turnstiles)?
So who’s the boss? If Mamdani can provide free bus service, in some narrow way, is he proving that capitalism can provide benefits to the poor for infinitely less than a subway rider in communist Russia? Oops: My mistake. We can’t compare buses to subway trains any more than we can compare the KGB to the KKK: U.S. subway rides will still cost $2.90/ride. So I guess Mamdani cannot make this claim after all.
By the way, fare or no fare, Moscow’s buses suffer the same consequences as those in New York City: Traffic. Somehow, for many commuters into New York City – and especially those traveling to points below 60th Street in Manhattan, before they can reach a bus, they have the luxury of traveling into the City on a luxury motorcoach for only $18.95, from most northern NJ outposts, or $8.35 for those elderly or disabled. I recently took advantage of this perk while spending two days in New York City – familiar as I was with Manhattan for having lived for 23 years in that borough. So I avoided a roughly $70 to $90/day parking fee, a $14 to $16 fee for using the George Washington bridge (a round trip fee), plus a small fee of $9.00 (in the City’s new Congestion Parking program for peak-hour travel, while only $2.25 for traveling into Manhattan during off-peak hours – an actual intelligent differentiation for a City ruthless enough to charge a car over $100/day to travel to and park in the City within some sort of low income certification on the subway, and idiotic enough to charge motorcoaches – a full motorcoach replaced roughly 40 cars – bridge and tunnel fees. So I saved myself about $250 in two days (factor in fuel and maintenance costs).
And on a multi-day trip, I saved even more in parking, since driving from one place to another would just pile up the $70 to $90 parking fees – although the cost is only $40/day (or $40 for more than two hours) at Broadway and 184th Street. But if your business is in Lower Manhattan, from Broadway, one must walk or take a taxi about 20 blocks before one can reach a bus stop or subway station. But, ambulatory, I’m lucky: There are no elevators are the station at 164th Street. But, hey! Those wheelchair users forced to take buses instead may soon be able to ride them for free – instead of simply half the fares they pay for these rides now! As they say in Brooklyn, “Such a deal!”
#publictransitexpert #freebusesinnyc #transalt #comparingnycbusestomoscows #mamdanivputin