Annual Report Narrative 2018
Submitted as part of the MTA 2018 Annual Report
Pursuant to New York State Public Authorities Law Section 2800(1)
Metropolitan Transportation Authority
2018 Annual Report to the Governor
Pursuant to New York State Public Authorities Law §2800
MTA 2018 ANNUAL REPORT NARRATIVE
Pursuant to New York Public Authorities Law Sections 2800 (1)(a)(1), (6), (11), (13), and (17)
Section 1—Operations and Performance
Performance 1
NYC Transit (Subways and Buses) Long Island Rail Road ▪ Metro-North Railroad ▪ MTA Bus
Company ▪ Bridges and Tunnels
Section 2—Accomplishments and Initiatives
Customer Service Initiatives
Interagency ▪ NYC Transit (Subways) ▪ MTA Bus Operations (NYCT Department of Buses, MTA Bus
Company) ▪ Long Island Rail Road ▪ Metro-North Railroad ▪ Bridges and Tunnels
17
Operations/Technology Initiatives
Interagency ▪ NYC Transit (Subways) ▪ MTA Bus Operations (NYCT Department of Buses, MTA Bus Company)
▪ Long Island Rail Road ▪ Metro-North Railroad ▪ Bridges and Tunnels
26
Sustainability/Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Initiatives
Interagency ▪ NYC Transit (Subways) ▪ MTA Bus Operations (NYCT Department of Buses, MTA Bus Company)
▪ Long Island Rail Road ▪ Metro-North Railroad ▪ Bridges and Tunnels
35
Safety/Security Initiatives
Interagency: MTA Police Department ▪ NYC Transit (Subways) ▪ MTA Bus Operations (NYCT Department of
Buses, MTA Bus Company) ▪ Long Island Rail Road ▪ Metro-North Railroad ▪ Bridges and Tunnels
43
Cost-Cutting/Revenue Initiatives
Interagency ▪ NYC Transit (Subways) ▪ MTA Bus Operations (NYCT Department of Buses, MTA Bus Company)
▪ Long Island Rail Road ▪ Metro-North Railroad ▪ Bridges and Tunnels
54
Section 3—Capital Projects Commitments/Completions
The MTA Capital Programs 61
Capital Program Progress
Funding Received Through December 31, 2018 ▪ Capital Program Progress, 1982-2018 ▪ Capital
Program Progress, 2018
62
New York City Transit (Subways)
Major 2018 Commitments ▪ Major 2018 Completions
64
MTA Bus Operations (NYCT Dept. of Buses, MTA Bus Company)
Major 2018 Commitments ▪ Major 2018 Completions
71
Long Island Rail Road
Major 2018 Commitments ▪ Major 2018 Completions
73
Metro-North Railroad
Major 2018 Commitments ▪ Major 2018 Completions
80
MTA Bridges and Tunnels
Major 2018 Commitments ▪ Major 2018 Completions
84
MTA Capital Construction
Fulton Center ▪ Second Avenue Subway ▪7 Line Extension ▪ East Side Access
87
Section 4—Description of the MTA and the MTA Board Structure
Description of the MTA and the MTA Board Structure 90
Numbers of Employees ▪ Basic Organizational Structure of MTA Operations ▪ Governance of the MTA
▪ Board Members and Committee Assignments ▪ Board Members’ Attendance
Section 5—Material Pending Litigation Report
Material Pending Litigation Report 97
General Note ▪ The MTA ▪ Transit System ▪ Commuter System ▪ MTA Bridges and
Tunnels ▪ MTA Bus ▪ MTA Long Island Bus
Accompanying 2017 Documents
The Following Reports and/or Documents Are Attached
96
Financial Reports ▪ All- Agency and Board Codes of Ethics ▪ Asset and Service Report
2018 ▪ Compensation Schedule and Biographical Information Reports ▪Bond Rating Reports ▪
Consolidated Financial Statements ▪ Governance Principles and By-Laws ▪ Grant Report 2018 ▪ MTA
Legislation ▪ Mission Statement and Measurement Report ▪ Management Assessment of the
Effectiveness of Internal Controls ▪ Real and Personal Property Reports with Guidelines ▪ Board
Self-Assessment Report
http://www.mta.info/mta/compliance/pdf/2010_annual/MTA%20Legislation.pdf
http://www.mta.info/mta/compliance/pdf/2010_annual/MTA%20Legislation.pdf
MTA 2018 Annual Report to the Governor, PAL §2800
1
Performance
2018 ANNUAL REPORT—SECTION 1
Operations and Performance
This section of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Annual Report to the Governor,
pursuant to PAL §2800, summarizes ridership and other performance data for the 12-month
period ending December 31, 2018. (See also the “2018 Mission Statement, Measurement, and
Performance Indicator Report,” PAL §1269-f and §2824-a.)
Total ridership on the subways, buses, and railroads of the MTA w a s 2.56 billion rides
in 2018. This represents a 3.7-percent drop from the previous year and the third annual decline
in a row. The decrease came mainly in transit. Subway volume fell to 1.68 billion rides in 2018,
down 2.3 percent. Combined ridership on NYCT Bus and MTA Bus fell by 4.7 percent in 2018 to
about 690.8 million. Meanwhile, LIRR hit a record high ridership of 89.8 million rides in 2018,
while Metro-North fell slightly to 87.1 million rides, just 0.2 percent shy of its all-time record the
year before.
To place these data in historical context, total MTA volume has declined by about 5.8 percent
from its peak of 2.72 billion rides in 2015—which was, in turn, the highest ridership since the
1940s. Preliminary estimates put the MTA’s total farebox revenue for 2018 at around $6.2
billion. In its first full year of cashless tolling, MTA Bridges and Tunnels hit a record high of 322.3
million paid crossings, generating $1.09 billion in funding support for transit.
Tough Challenges and a Turnaround
Over the course of 2018, the MTA wrestled with a number of well-publicized difficulties—in
particular, the performance of its century-old subway infrastructure; a declining bus ridership;
public uncertainty over the L Train plan; an unfunded 2020-2024 Capital Program; and rising
MTA 2018 Annual Report to the Governor, PAL §2800
2
deficits in the MTA operating budgets. While these problems demand and await comprehensive
action on the part of the MTA and its government partners, 2018 performance metrics show
signs of a positive turnaround.
By the end of 2018, the first full year of the Subway Action Plan (SAP), weekday on-time
performance (OTP) was the highest in four years; delays were the lowest in four years. The
agency reached its goal of reducing delays by 10,000 per month in the year’s final four months.
Other performance indicators also captured notable gains, as indicated on pages 9 to 12 of this
report. Significantly, these indicators employ new, expanded metrics introduced in 2017 and
2018 designed to better reflect the customer’s actual experience and priorities. These indicators
are tracked on the Subway Performance Dashboard on the MTA website at www.mta.info.
Work Moves Ahead Systemwide
Throughout the MTA network, major capital projects advanced alongside new initiatives. The
LIRR completed its Second Track project and broke ground on its Main Line Expansion—two
major undertakings that, together with East Side Access (ESA), will completely reshape regional
travel. Both LIRR and Metro-North completed their 2018 FRA requirements for implementation
of Positive Train Control (PTC). Bridges and Tunnels not only hit record ridership in its first full
year of cashless tolling, the agency also finished the enormous job of repairing damage to the
Midtown Queens and Hugh L. Carey tunnels wrought by Superstorm Sandy. In August, NYCT
launched its reconfigured Staten Island Express Bus Network and is currently redesigning the
Bronx bus system—part of the first efforts in half a century to rethink the city’s entire bus
network. NYCT and MTACC also moved forward with the preliminary stages of the Second Ave.
Subway Phase II.
Under the MTA Capital Plans, the MTA agencies committed a combined $6.282 billion for capital
projects in 2018 and completed projects worth $4.845 billion against the year’s goals. Totaling
all capital program efforts in 2018, including those with prior-year goals, agencies achieved
$9.441 billion in commitments and $6.656 billion in completions for the year. Capital projects
are overviewed in Section 3 of this report and reported in detail on the Capital Program
http://www.mta.info/
MTA 2018 Annual Report to the Governor, PAL §2800
3
Dashboard at www.mta.info. As part of its 2015-2019 Capital Plan, the MTA continues the
massive effort of restoring those assets damaged by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, including
new resiliency features to secure the system against rising sea levels and future weather
events. By the end of 2018, the MT
