This is a multi-purpose posting. The fares on NYC Subway and Buses, the MetroNorth (MNRR) and Long Island Railroads (LIRR) will be increasing on Sunday, January 4, 2026 plus the way to pay the fare on the NYC Subway and buses is changing.

MNRR and LIRR - the fares will increase by 4.5% for monthly and weekly tickets. Other tickets (One-way and others) will increase by as much as 8%.

One-way tickets (either paper or Mobile) will expire at 4 AM the next day.

Round-trip tickets will no longer be available. A new Day Pass for unlimited travel will replace the Round-trip ticket and would be valid on the day of purchase until 4 A.M. the next day.

For more details: https://www.mta.info/fares-tolls/2025-changes



NYC Subway and Buses

This is to advise that after December 31, 2025, the MetroCard will no longer be sold in subway stations or in various stores. Additionally, existing unexpired MetroCards will no longer be able to be reloaded but can be used until all funds on the card are used up (at the prevailing fare amount). Any balances left on the card for up to 2 years can be transferred to an OMNY card at Customer Service Centers https://www.mta.info/contact-us/cust...ervice-centers (you have to have already purchased an OMNY card beforehand). The exact date for total discontinuance of the MetroCard has yet to be announced but expect that it may be around the mid-2026. As of the date I am writing this, MetroCard Vending Machines are being removed from subway stations at a rapid pace.

At the end of this posting (sorry if it gets to long, I do get carried away with details). I am providing information on how to get a reduced fare OMNY card - for Senior Citizens 65+ and Individuals with certain disabilities.

The current 2025 fare on the subway and local buses is $2.90. This is will increase to $3.00 on Sunday, January 4, 2026.

The fare on Express/Commuter buses will increase from $7.00 to $7.25.

****The amounts I put below will be the current 2025 fare and the new 2026 fare will be in brackets ****

The Subway/Bus 7 day Unlimited Pass will be discontinued and will be replaced with OMNY Fare Capping (described further down). The 30 day Unlimited Pass will be discontinued and will not be replaced. After January 1, 2026 any activated 7 day or 30 day Unlimited Passes on existing MetroCards should be used as they cannot be transferred to OMNY. The same applies to any 7 or 30 day Unlimited Pass that is on a MetroCard but hasn't yet been started.

The fare on the NYC Subway and buses will be paid using the "contactless media" process known as OMNY (One Metro New York).

Note: The fare on the bus can also be paid using coins (no bills). The only transfer would be to a different bus route (within a 2 hour time limit). This will be discontinued sometime in 2026. Then all fares and related bus transfers will be on OMNY.

The contactless media consists of:

(1) OMNY Card - this card can be purchased at OMNY Card Vending Machines (OCVM) located in all subway stations. The one time cost of the card is $1.00 but will increase to price of $2.00 later in 2026 once the MetroCard use is discontinued completely. The card is valid for at least 4 years and can handle up to 4 people (see "Fare Capping" further down). The OMNY Machines accept cash, and debit/credit cards and Smart Wallets. The minimum amount that can be loaded onto a OMNY card is $1.00 (plus the new card fee) but that would not even come close to a single fare. You can load amounts larger than $1.00 at time of purchase (see the "suggested fare amounts" chart a bit further down). The card can be re-loaded with funds as needed but the minimum amount that can be reloaded is $1.00. Please note that when using cash there is a maximum of $9.95 that the machine can return in change if applicable. If the amount of change is higher than $9.95 (such as when the transaction is $10.00 or less and a $20.00 bill or higher is used), the machine will not complete the transaction and will return the cash inserted.

Single Ride Ticket

- NOTE: There is conflicting information from the MTA regarding the new 2026 fare for Single Ride tickets. All MTA press releases/announcements state it will go from $3.25 to $3.50, however, I saw new poster in stations showing that the $3.25 fare will remain in place for 2026. Which is correct? That is not known so the information below will go on the assumption that the Single Ride ticket fare will increase.

For those who prefer the Single Ride ticket, you can purchase up to 5 of these from an OCVM. However, the cost of a Single Ride ticket is higher at $3.25 [$3.50] each. These tickets are valid for a single use on the subway or a bus but has a time limit. It must be used within 2 hours of purchase from the machine (it will be printed on the back of the ticket). There are no subway < > bus transfers using the single fare ticket but if you used on a bus instead of the subway you can get a transfer to another bus route.. For one person or for more than one person, if you will be using the subway more than a couple of times - such as you are going "there and back" or paying for up to 4 people (including yourself), getting a regular OMNY would cost less overall.

Example: (current 2025 fares shown with new 2026 fares in brackets)

- Going to a destination for 3 people - 3 Single ride tickets at $3.25 [$3.50] each = $9.75 [$10.50] and then getting more single ride tickets to come back - another $9.75 [$10.50], total $19.50 [$21.00].

But if you get an OMNY card and put the value of 6 fares on it 6 X $2.90 [$3.00] = $17.40 [$18.00] (plus the new card fee of $1.00), total $18.40 [$19.00], That is a saving of $1.10 [$2.00] right at the start vs the $19.50 ($21.00) above. If you already have an OMNY card you won't be charged the $1.00 new card fee again so the saving would be $1.00 higher.

- Special Information Note - : while it isn't a secret (although most people might not know of it), the way this contactless payment fare system works, the money loaded onto a OMNY card is not actually on the card itself (unlike the MetroCard to which the money was loaded onto). Once the card is valid (purchased from a OCVM or a authorized vendor or issued by the MTA for Reduced Fare users), a transit/travel account is automatically established in the OMNY databases for the serial number on the back of the card. When you load/reload money the funds go into this account. As you use the card to pay the fare the money is deducted (sort of how a checking account and debit card works). Also at the time when you pay the fare on either the subway or bus at the start of your ride, a free transfer from subway to bus or bus to subway or bus to a different bus route will be added to the travel account for each fare paid (up to 4). This transfer has a 2 hour time limit, When the transfer is used it will be deducted from the account (if it isn't used it will automatically be removed after 2 hours).

- A note regarding whether the subway/bus fare should be paid for a child. The child's age is not a factor. The MTA rule is - up to 3 children who are under 44 inches (3 feet 8 inches) in height may ride free per fare paying adult. If they are over 44 inches then the full fare would be applicable.

Using the OMNY Card Vending Machine:

Touch the screen to start, then chose "Buy New OMNY Card $1.00/New Card Fee" - if getting a new OMNY Card or "Reload OMNY Card" (if adding value to an existing OMNY Card account - the machine will prompt you to touch the card to the reader on the right side of the machine).

The machine will then prompt you for an amount to put on the card. There will be 4 buttons with pre-set amounts $10.00, $20.00, $34.00 [$35.00], $136.00 ($140.00]. Note: the $34 and $136 amounts are more geared for those who take advantage of the Fare Capping (described further down). There will also be 2 other selections in which you can manually enter the amount that you want to load onto the card:

- "Add Custom Amount/Use Keypad" - when you select this a keypad will appear on the screen. You can type in the amount. (I have listed suggested amounts in a list a bit further down).

- "Add Custom Amount/Use Fare Calculator" - when you select this the next screen will have 2 items.

- "Add $2.90 [$3.00]/Subway & Local Bus Fare" - you can touch this button multiple times. Each time you touch that button the amount of a fare is added. The total will display on the screen.

- "Add $7.00 [$7.25]/ Express Bus Fare" - this works as above but only applies if you would be using the Commuter/Express buses and not local buses.

Once you have the card (with money loaded in the account) you just hold it up to the OMNY screen (with blue lights) at the turnstile - do it for each person if there are more than one (up to a maximum of 4 people). Within a few seconds the blue lights and screen should turn green and show "GO" and will beep. If it shows red and give 2 not so pleasant beeps, check the message on the screen. It may require nothing more than retouching the card to the screen (remember you can't use it more than 4 times at any station) or you may have less money loaded than the fare.

OMNY cards can also be purchased from authorized vendors such as 7-11, CVS, Walgreens and others. These cards must be purchased at which time they become valid and can be used. https://omny.info/retail-locations. Check with the cashiers at these storesas they would handle the transactions (in the same manner as if you were purchasing a gift card). As with the OMNY machines the stores will charge for new card. The cost if purchased from an authorized store will be $5.00 which is higher than if purchased from OMNY Machines in the subway (there should be no fee for adding money to a new or existing card). These store may only accept cash for these transactions. For a new card there is also a requirement that you must put at least a value of $1.00 on it (but you can put more).

For those with access to the internet, you can register the OMNY card at the OMNY site (www.omny.info). This is totally optional but can provide some small benefit in that you can reload the card online automatically when the balance reaches a minimum that you set (example $5.80 [$6.00]). You would enter a credit or debit card into your profile that would be referenced upon automatic reload (you set the amount to reload but the minimum online transaction is $5.80 [$6.00]). For those who want to reload online BUT not have it happen automatically, there is an selection to reload only when you want to. Again, you would have to provide a debit or credit card number. The minimum transaction amount would still apply. You can also keep track of the loaded value/usage of the card online and see how close you are to the "Fare Capping" (described down below) amount.

Loading the OMNY card with a $10 or $20 value may be easier & convenient but it will leave a balance at the end which would not be equal to a full fare.

To avoid this I suggest you load the card with exact fare amounts on the OMNY card:

(current 2025 fare shown - new 2026 fares in brackets)

1 fare $ 2.90 [$ 3.00] ** 7 fares $20.30 [$21.00]

2 fares $ 5.80 [$ 6.00] 8 fares $23.20 [$24.00]

3 Fares $ 8.70 [$ 9.00] 9 fares $26.10 [$27.00]

4 fares $11.60 [$12.00] 10 fares $29.00 [$30.00]

5 fares $14.50 [$15.00] 11 fares $31.90 [$33.00]

6 fares $17.40 [$18.00] 12 fares $34.80 [$36.00]

You can go higher if you want but it should be in multiples of $2.90 [$3.00].



(2) Debit, Credit cards and Smart Wallets - the system will also accept payment of the fare at the turnstile using one of these contactless media. Hold the card or cell phone screen (properly set to the wallet) to the screen on the turnstile and it should react as described in (1) above.

However, these items may not work the first time and you'll get a red screen. This is because the system is checking with the card issuer to make sure the card is valid/active. This may take a few minutes after which you can try again and it should give you the green "GO".

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The following is directly from the MTA's OMNY website:

"First ever tap? You can't pass it back (yet)

If this is your first time tapping a card or device on a reader, you can't pay for other riders on the same trip yet. Your bank must approve the transaction before any other fares are paod. Instead, use a separate payment method for everyone on your first trip.

Approval generally takes only a few minutes. You should be able to tap for up to four people on your next trip."

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My comment: they must think that people have a number of debit/credit cards). If this is the case then my suggestion is to go with the purchase of an OMNY card as described in (1) and avoid this situation.

Before I forget - the OMNY card can be replaced at one of the Customer Service Centers if there is a problem but it is not refundable.

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Fare Capping

As mentioned earlier the MetroCard 7 day Unlimited Pass will be discontinued and replaced with Fare Capping. OMNY works a bit differently (sort of an advantage of having the account for the card as I described). If you put at least $34.00 [$35.00] on the card and use it 12 times during a 7 consecutive day period (12 X $2.90 = $34.80 [12 X $3.00 = $35.00]). You will not be charged for the remainder of the 7 days. The 7 days can start on any day (examples: Sunday to Monday or Tuesday to Monday etc.). One thing to note, however, if you are paying for more than one person, only the first use each time counts toward the 12 fare usage, any additional fares would be deducted at regular fare amount and you would not get the fare capping unless you added more money. If you have others in your group each one would have to have their own card to take advantage of this.

Fare Capping will also work using a credit/debit card or Smart Wallet to pay the fare as long as you use the same card each time. The same usage limit if paying for more than one person as described above would also apply. You do not have to register the card.

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Reduced fare - Senior Citizen (65+) and Individuals with certain disabilities

This card will allow the user to pay 1/2 the regular fare (it isn't limited to just NYers).

The Reduced Fare OMNY Card (RF) cannot be purchased. It must be applied for and specific documentation (including a photo and photo ID if applying by mail) must be provided. At the present time it cannot be applied for online. Go to the links below and read more about the program and documentation and photo requirements, then download and print the appropriate application. Make copies of the documentation and then mail them with the completed application to the address given on the application. Please note that it may take at least 4-6 weeks (or a bit more) for the card to be issued.

Applying In person - you can do this at one of the Customer Service Centers (the link to the list is at the top of this posting) but you still have to provide the copies of documentation as indicated on the application and have a photo ID. These Centers are open 24/7.

You can also go to the main Customer Service Center at 3 Stone Street in Lower Manhattan (nearest stations: Bowling Green on the 4 and 5 trains, Whitehall St. on the R and W trains - use the Stone St exit for the R and W). This Center is open Monday to Friday (except holidays) from 9 AM to 5 PM. Depending on how busy it is you may have to wait an hour. The required documentation still applies.

The Customer Service Center will take a photo.

Important - while a Medicare card is one item of documentation, a Medicaid card is not acceptable.

Once you get the card, there will be no value in the account (which I mentioned earlier). If you get it in the mail you can wait until you get to NY and load the card at a OMNY Card Vending Machine or register the card online and use the loading options as described earlier

Also note that the Fare Capping at 12 fares within 7 days would be applicable (but at 1/2 the regular fare amount). Also the table I put above would be valid but the number of fares would be double for the amount of money (example $14.50 [$16.00] would be 10 fares at half fare).

Reduced fare information page: https://www.mta.info/fares-tolls/sub...s/reduced-fare

and also: https://www.mta.info/fares-tolls/sub...uced-fare/omny

Senior Citizen application (pdf file): https://www.mta.info/document/28261

Application for individuals with disabilities (pdf file): https://www.mta.info/document/28266

The RF OMNY card may only be used by the person it is issued to, it cannot be passed back for others to use. Once used is it locked out for 18 minutes at that station (or bus).

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OMNY Cards cannot be used on MetroNorth or Long Island Railroads or the PATH system (NJ-NY) but can be used for the AirTrain fee at the JFK AirTrain (make sure you have enough loaded into the account).