Reduced-fare customers using Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) network will be able to put their reduced fare benefit on any personal payment device compatible with OMNY. MTA is reported to be the first major transit system to offer reduced fares on personal payment devices. Seniors and people with disabilities who qualify for Reduced-Fare will now have more choice on how to pay their fare on public transit. The MTA is enabling customers to make this switch online, anytime from anywhere, in three easy steps.
“Every day, the MTA is proud to help over one million seniors, disabled riders, and other Reduced-Fare customers get around New York City,” said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber. “As we continue to see more and more customers use OMNY, today is a major milestone towards a full transition to the easy, contactless system. I encourage everyone who is eligible to take advantage of the simple online process to switch over to OMNY and start tapping today.”
Ahead of this systemwide launch, the MTA successfully conducted a multi-month soft launch, in which several hundred Reduced-Fare customers switched from MetroCard to OMNY online and used OMNY on subways and buses. The MTA solicited feedback from these customers to develop customer resources and instruct call center staff to ensure riders have a seamless transition to OMNY.
“Many New Yorkers with disabilities rely on Reduced-Fare when accessing mass transit to get around the city,” said MTA Chief Accessibility Officer and Senior Advisor Quemuel Arroyo. “By enabling Reduced-Fare customers to make the switch to OMNY, we are making riding our transit system quicker and easier for all riders with the tap of their phone or contactless card.”
By using a contactless card or smart device, Reduced-Fare riders benefit from increased accessibility to the transit system in a variety of ways. Customers will no longer need to track a card that must be replaced upon expiration nor pre-load value onto a MetroCard. OMNY also gives Reduced-Fare customers the opportunity to benefit from the MTA’s ongoing “Lucky 13” fare capping program, where customers ride free after 12 paid OMNY taps in a week from Monday to Sunday.
“The easiest way to ride New York City’s subways and buses is to tap and go with OMNY,” said Gene Ribiero, serving as acting MTA chief customer officer. “We are thrilled to provide this simple, seamless opportunity for Reduced-Fare customers to make the switch to OMNY today and to provide them the same tap and go convenience that millions of riders have taken advantage of already.”
“Reduced-Fare MetroCards can take a long time to acquire and replace, an issue that became even more urgent to address during COVID,” said Advisory Committee for Transit Accessibility (ACTA) Chair Jessica Murray. “I’m grateful to the OMNY team for working with ACTA to find an equitable payment solution for more than a million passengers who receive fare discounts. We hope that by prioritizing disabled people and older people, the next phase of the OMNY transition for students, paratransit riders, commuter rail passengers, and other special fare programs will be more accessible.”
“Disabled In Action is pleased that OMNY is now available for half fare customers,” said Disabled in Acton President Jean Ryan. “Many seniors and people with disabilities use mass transit regularly, and having the option to use our personal credit and debit cards or devices to pay our transit fares is a great convenience that we deserve as much as any other rider. We appreciate that the MTA will also offer a Reduced-Fare OMNY card later on in the program roll-out, for those who prefer that option.”
To inform Reduced-Fare customers that they can easily switch to OMNY, the MTA is launching a system-wide campaign with digital advertisements on subway and bus, a new OMNY for Reduced-Fare webpage and extensive digital and in-person outreach to seniors and people with disabilities across New York City.
OMNY usage continues to surge across the New York City Transit system. On Sept. 15, the MTA recorded the 500 millionth OMNY tap at Grand Central Terminal, and on Saturday, Oct. 8 OMNY usage on the subway reached a weekend record of 1.071 million taps.
