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New York City Transit, Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North Railroad Hit Ridership and On-Time Performance Records in First Half of 2025
NYC Subway on Track for Best On-Time Performance in Recorded History
Customer Satisfaction Rates Improved Across All Three Agencies
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is on track to deliver a record-breaking year, following the success of the first six months of 2025. New York City Transit (NYCT), Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and Metro-North Railroad ridership and on-time performance have all improved in the first half of the year, while customer satisfaction rates are up across all agencies. This comes while the MTA executes a historic capital plan, investing in state-of-good-repair work that will ensure the system continues to run reliably and safely for generations to come. Safety in the subway system continues to improve with overall major crimes dropping by 3.2 percent from the same period last year and by almost 10 percent when compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019.
“MTA ridership, performance and safety are all improving dramatically in 2025, serving nearly six million New Yorkers every day and keeping New York moving,” Governor Hochul said. “Thanks to the investments we’re making in safer, more reliable and more frequent service, riders are benefitting every day. When transit is thriving, New York is thriving.”
Senator Jeremy Cooney said, “Today’s announcement is proof that Governor Hochul and the MTA’s commitment towards creating a positive rider experience is paying dividends in New York. I’m grateful to be their partner in the legislature in continuing to build the kind of system that meets the needs of the thousands of passengers who rely on our public transit.”
Assemblyman Edward Braunstein said, "I am encouraged by the Governor's report that the MTA is delivering record on-time performance and ridership highs, as well as making strides on customer satisfaction. Safe, fast and reliable transportation is essential to the prosperity of our state and I look forward to working with Governor Hochul, my colleagues in the Legislature, and the MTA to continue to build on this success."
MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, “The new MTA is a business-like organization that delivers for customers, and the proof is in the data – soaring ridership, historic levels of on-time performance and major improvements in customer satisfaction.”
In the past several years, Governor Hochul and the MTA have increased service across the MTA network. In 2023 and 2024, weekend and off-peak weekday service was increased on 12 subway lines, reducing wait times for millions of customers. The opening of Grand Central Madison in 2023 enabled a 41 percent increase in service on the Long Island Rail Road. Bus service has improved across the city: service was increased on 8 express and 15 local routes with high-ridership earlier this year, following the launch of congestion pricing. The Queens Bus Network Redesign, which began its first phase June 29, expands 24-hour service to hundreds of thousands of Queens bus riders and includes a $35 million annual investment in more service for the borough.
New York City Transit
In the first half of 2025, performance across New York City Transit was at historic highs. Weekday subway on-time performance in the first six months of 2025 was 83.7 percent, 2.4 percentage points higher than the same time last year and on track for the best non-pandemic year in recorded history. Weekday subway delays are down 11 percent in 2025 compared to 2024, while weekend delays were down 14 percent. Bus service delivery was above 95 percent each month of 2025, and bus speeds have improved over the first half of the year, thanks in part to reduced gridlock following the start of congestion pricing. Across the board, customers are happier. In the biannual customer survey completed this spring, satisfaction for subways rose 8 percent, satisfaction for local buses rose 11 percent, and satisfaction for express buses rose 9 percent compared to the Fall of 2024.
Ridership has also surged in 2025. The first half of the year has seen record post-pandemic ridership for subways, buses and paratransit. In June, NYCT surpassed 106 million rides, up 10 percent from 2024. 2025 subway ridership is up 8 percent compared to 2024 and 31 percent compared to 2022. Ridership gains have continued, with the first post-pandemic July days to exceed four million subway riders reached on July 9 and 10. Bus ridership has also grown in 2025, with ridership up 12 percent compared to 2024. Bus paid ridership has grown in part following the MTA’s efforts to improve fare compliance through targeted deployments of fare enforcement teams. Combined, buses and subways have carried over 850 million customers in the first half of 2025.
Paratransit has also continued to see huge ridership and performance gains. In June, Paratransit served 1.3 million Paratransit riders on 904,000 completed trips, both above previous pre-Covid peaks, and delivered an on-time performance rate of 92 percent for the month. Customer satisfaction has remained high with rates staying above 78 percent every month of 2025.
Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad
In June, LIRR hit a new post-pandemic high for weekday riders by averaging 266,047 weekday riders. On June 18, LIRR set a new single day post-pandemic ridership record, carrying 287,437 customers. LIRR carried 6.9 million customers in June, representing 89 percent of pre-pandemic ridership — the best June since 2019. Year-to-date ridership on LIRR is up 9 percent compared to 2024 and up 64 percent from 2022. LIRR also achieved the best June non-pandemic On-Time Performance in its history at 95.9 percent, up 1.4 percentage points from 2024.
On June 18, Metro-North carried nearly 259,000 riders and average weekday ridership for the month of June was 235,450, both new post-pandemic highs. Year-to-date Metro-North ridership is up 6 percent compared to 2024 and up 63 percent compared to 2022. Metro-North delivered an On-Time Performance rate of 98 percent in June, continuing its outstanding start to 2025. In the customer survey completed this spring, Metro-North received a satisfaction rating of 89 percent from customers, an increase of 4 percent from the Fall 2024 survey, while satisfaction among LIRR customers surged 11 percentage points from this time last year.
New York City Transit President Demetrius Crichlow said, “NYC Transit is working hard to deliver fast, reliable and safe service for riders and that determination is reflected in these historic on-time performance and ridership numbers. We’ll keep up the momentum and build on this success across Subways, Buses and Paratransit as we head into the rest of the year.”
Long Island Rail Road President Rob Free said, “Not only do riders have more service options than ever before, but we’re getting them where they need to go more reliably with record levels of on-time performance. The big gains we’ve made in customer satisfaction prove that riders are noticing our commitment to great service and we will work even harder to improve the customer experience.”
Metro-North Railroad President Justin Vonashek said, “Riders are responding to the great service Metro-North is providing by choosing to take the train in record numbers. And we’ll continue to deliver safe and reliable service that they can count on.”