Fair Fares expansion takes effect Nov. 30 as Council leaders say half-price rides beat free buses

More New Yorkers will be able to get half-price subway and bus rides at the end of next month. The city's rule raising the Fair Fares income limit from 150% to 200% of the federal poverty level has been adopted and takes effect Monday, Nov. 30, according to the city's rules website.

The change comes as the City Council's top two leaders make the case that expanding Fair Fares, not making buses free for everyone, is the best way to make transit more affordable. Speaker Julie Menin and Majority Leader Shaun Abreu laid out that view Friday at City & State's Transportation in New York Summit, City & State reported.

Who qualifies after Nov. 30

Fair Fares, run by the Human Resources Administration, gives eligible city residents ages 18 to 64 a 50% discount on subway fares, eligible bus fares and Access-A-Ride trips, and is open regardless of immigration status, according to ACCESS NYC. That page, last updated Oct. 13, still lists the current limits, such as $23,940 a year for one person and $49,500 for a household of four.

The rule doubles the poverty-line multiple to 200%. Based on the 2026 federal poverty guidelines ($15,960 for one person and $33,000 for a family of four), the new cap would be about $31,920 for a single adult and $66,000 for a household of four. HRA had not posted its updated income chart as of Saturday, so check the official figures before applying. City & State reports the expansion makes about 340,000 more New Yorkers eligible, for roughly 1.3 million in total.

The rule also lets participants who enrolled while receiving public assistance stay in Fair Fares without re-enrolling each year, as long as they keep getting that assistance, the rules page says.

Fair Fares versus free buses

Mayor Zohran Mamdani agreed to the expansion in this year's budget, but it is a different approach from his campaign promise of free buses for all riders regardless of income. City & State notes the mayor hasn't ruled out pushing for free buses next year.

Menin and Abreu don't sound eager. Abreu, who chairs the Council's transportation committee, said the city should focus on what it can control and put the cost of a free bus program at $900 million to $1.3 billion, more than he thinks the city can afford. Menin said Fair Fares reaches people who need help most across the subway, buses and paratransit. Abreu floated raising eligibility again next year, possibly to 250% of the poverty line.

The enrollment problem

Only about 41% of eligible New Yorkers are enrolled, according to an Independent Budget Office estimate cited by City & State. The Council leaders blamed low awareness and a cumbersome process; Menin described the application as roughly 13 pages and "not very user-friendly." Mamdani has argued that hurdles like these are exactly why he supports free buses.

In September, the Council passed a bill from Council Member Crystal Hudson that would let people on food or cash assistance sign up for Fair Fares on the same application, City & State reported. Menin said automatic enrollment remains the goal. She also said 95% of the students in a separate pilot giving free OMNY cards to 700 CUNY students have already received their cards.

How to apply

Apply online at nyc.gov/fairfares and upload documents through the ACCESS HRA app, or apply in person at a Fair Fares office. Approved riders get a Fair Fares OMNY card by mail, usually within three weeks; Access-A-Ride users get the discount on their account. Call 311 with questions.

Background: our Oct. 19 story on the proposed rule and public hearing.