Demetrius Crichlow named New York City Transit president as new report shows huge MTA budget gap
NEW YORK -- Demetrius Crichlow was named president of New York City Transit on Wednesday.
He held that post on an interim basis for four months.
Crichlow is the first African-American to hold the role and the third generation in his family to work in the industry. He started in 1997 as an assistant signal maintainer for the Long Island Rail Road.
MTA has huge budget gap, report finds
According to a new report released by State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli Wednesday, he's got a huge budget deficit to fill. The report says the gap this year is $211 million, but projects it will exponentially multiply to $652 million four years from now. The report says the MTA is facing "growing fiscal uncertainties and risks that create projected budget gaps."
The report says paid ridership in June 2024 was at 70% of pre-pandemic levels, but it didn't grow at the expected pace in July and August. It also blames the $15 billion funding shortfall created by the pause on congestion pricing, saying the MTA is relying on future funding from the state, which is not clear if it'll fill that gap.
"In fairness, those are the exact same risks that we identified in our budget presentation," MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said. "The comptroller is talking about many of the exact same things that we've identified as financial risks, but we're actually managing them. So, the risks to ridership, the ridership income, we're pretty close to where we were projected to be."
"We are far better off because of investment I made with the legislators, finding creative funding sources to make sure that people do not have to worry about the future of the MTA," Gov. Kathy Hochul said.
The Riders Alliance said, in part, because of the pause to congestion pricing, "Riders face steep fares hikes and deep service cuts, along with indefinite waits for accessible stations, reliable trains, and faster buses."
The MTA fare is slated to increase to $3 in the spring.
"The two things MTA controls alone -- we either increase fares dramatically or cut service. Both are terrible terrible options we don't want to do," Lieber said.
Lieber said the agency is successfully cracking down on fare evasion, adding the MTA's operating budget is less than what it was three years ago and that the agency has still manage to save $5 million per year without cutting service or personnel.
The report says crossings at the MTA's bridges and tunnels set a new record, but increased tolls still aren't enough.