The debate is shaped by an MTA pilot that began in September 2023. The MTA’s June 2025 evaluation found weekday ridership rose 30% during the school-month comparison period, largely because existing route riders traveled more often. Bus speeds fell on both pilot and paid routes, and time spent at stops increased more on pilot routes. The evaluation described mixed service results and found that fare evasion on nearby routes was consistent with systemwide trends; it did not establish that increased ridership alone caused slower service.

Bus operator Leonardo Gonzalez wondered how the service would be funded. The MTA operates the buses and is a state authority; the earlier fare-free pilot was mandated by the New York State budget. Mamdani’s mayoral proposal was not an adopted MTA fare policy, and replacing fare revenue remained a funding question. His campaign had floated unpaid landlord fines as one potential revenue source; its broader affordability agenda also proposed higher taxes on wealthy residents and corporations. “New Yorkers are still going to have to pay,” Gonzalez said, “whether through taxes or fares.”

Elisé Nerette, an MTA bus operator, also raised a safety concern: a packed bus can obstruct a driver’s view, especially through the side mirrors, he said. He described a fellow driver’s fatal collision involving a blind spot. The MTA has a special fare-enforcement unit known as the Eagle Team, but disputes over payment remain a concern for the drivers interviewed.

The Transport Workers Union, however, believes the safety benefits outweigh the drawbacks. International president John Samuelsen told City & State New York that the union would “wholeheartedly support any and all of these efforts” to eliminate fares, citing the direct link between fare collection and assaults on staff.

Rider Morgan Wong supported the proposal, saying fare-free buses could offer relief from the city’s rising cost of living. “Things just keep going up,” Wong said. “So having some sort of relief would just be so nice for everybody.”

Nerette saw both sides. “It gives a sense of hope to the people,” he said. “But at the same time, you have to help yourself as well. I don’t want to cut myself short, just so I can help somebody that probably don’t even care about me.”