MTA 2023 transit report: Busiest borough, subway stop, bathrooms revealed
Subway on elevated train platform,IRT Flushing Line of New York City Subway. Line 7 train 40 Street - Lowery St station,New York Sunnyside Queens NYC USA. (Photo by: Sergi Reboredo/VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
NEW YORK - The MTA released its top statistics for subways, buses, LIRR, and Metro-North Railroad for 2023.
The report included everything from the busiest bus and subway stops, to the most used bathrooms.
Since the reopening of bathrooms this year, after having to close more than a hundred at nearly 70 stations in the early days of the pandemic, it's clear that New Yorkers are using them--a lot.
Earlier this year, the MTA made upgrades to restrooms by adding fresh paint, motion-activated faucets, and even new lighting to subway bathrooms across the city.
Jamaica, N.Y.: Commuters encounter crowds and more customer service presence on the Long Island Rail Road tracks at the station in Jamaica, New York on March 6, 2023. (Photo by Howard Schnapp/Newsday RM via Getty Images)
The stations with the busiest bathrooms according to the MTA are between 74 Street-Jackson Heights-Roosevelt Ave in Queens and 14 Street-Union Square.
It's safe to say Queens, (the largest borough in NYC) was one of the most traveled places, having the most MetroCard swipes at the Flushing-Main Street subway stop and the busiest bus stop at Archer Avenue in Jamaica. The MTA reports that the bus stop saw more than 36,000 riders per weekday.
Jamaica, N.Y.: Commuters on the Long Island Rail Road platform at Jamaica, New York on March 6, 2023.. (Photo by Howard Schnapp/Newsday RM via Getty Images)
Here are the most used forms of transportation for January 1, 2023, through November 2023:
Subway
- Most MetroCard swipes: Flushing-Main Street with 6.3 million swipes.
- Most OMNY Taps: Grand Central-42nd Street with 5.4 million taps.
- Busiest bathrooms: 74 Street-Jackson Heights-Roosevelt Avenue and 14th Street-Union Square
Estimate for all of 2023:
- Busiest subway line: the 6 train, which is on track to carry approximately 140 million passengers for the year, more than the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad combined
Buses
- Most passengers: The M15/M15 SBS saw16.4 million riders.
- Bus that traveled the most miles: The B6 hit 1.7 million revenue miles.
- Busiest bus stop: Archer Aveune on Parsons Blvd in Jamaica, Queens with more than 36,000 riders per weekday.
Commuters at the Times Square subway station in New York, US, on Friday, May 19, 2023. New York City Transit reported 12.4 million people entered the subway during the last work week, down 1.5% from the previous week. Photographer: Yuki Iwamura/Bloom
Long Island Rail Road
- Most City Tickets sold: Bayside with 242,000 sales.
- Most Off-Peak tickets sold: Ronkonkoma with 656,000 sales.
- Most monthly tickets sold: Hicksville with 23,000 sales.
- Most monthly tickets sold: Babylon with 120,000 sales.
- Most ridership: Huntington and Port Jefferson Branch with 10.8 million trips.
The figures below exclude sales from Penn Station, Grand Central Madison and Jamaica station and are based on ticket
Metro-North Railroad
- Most monthly tickets sold: Stamford with 18,379 sales.
- Most City Tickets sold: Fordham with 301,905 sales.
- Most Off-Peak tickets sold: Harlem-125 St with 576,590 sales.
- Most ridership: New Haven Line with 26.1 million trips.
*The figures below exclude sales from Grand Central Terminal.