Courtesy: MTA’s X Account

By MOHAMED FARGHALY

mfarghaly@queensledger.com

New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is undergoing a transformative shift in 2025 with a series of ambitious upgrades, safety initiatives, and infrastructure enhancements. Governor Kathy Hochul’s administration has laid out a comprehensive vision to modernize the city’s transit system, addressing key concerns like crime, fare evasion, and accessibility, while also leveraging new funding sources, including the controversial congestion pricing program.

As part of a phased safety plan announced during her State of the State address, Governor Hochul revealed that the NYPD has deployed dozens of additional officers across the MTA overnight, with the goal of providing heightened security for riders. This follows a growing push to ensure the safety of subway commuters, with plans to station two officers aboard every overnight subway train, as well as ramp up patrols across the city’s vast 472 subway stations and 665 miles of track.

The MTA’s updated security strategy also includes installing “more barriers” in at least 100 stations and bright LED lighting in every station by the end of 2025. Additionally, the MTA is set to introduce new platform edge barriers designed to prevent falls and reduce incidents of criminal pushes onto the tracks. These measures will be prioritized at stations with high ridership and high rates of crime.

Courtesy Governor Kathy Hochul

Along with increased police presence, the state’s new $77 million initiative will place 750 more officers on platforms and in stations and deploy an additional 300 officers to patrol the overnight subway system. Hochul emphasized the need for a focused approach, noting that most crimes occur during the late-night hours between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m., when fewer passengers are on the trains.

To tackle the widespread issue of fare evasion, which costs the MTA an estimated $700 million annually, Hochul has ordered the installation of modern fare gates with spiked barriers aimed at preventing riders from hopping over turnstiles without paying. These new gates, which were rolled out at the Lexington Avenue-59th Street station in Manhattan in late January, are designed with metal panels and pointed spikes to deter fare evaders.

Beyond safety and fare collection, the MTA is advancing a series of major infrastructure projects that will shape the future of the city’s public transit. Chief among them is the Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 extension, which will extend the line to East Harlem. Additionally, the MTA plans to modernize signal systems on key subway lines like the A/C and B/D/F/M trains, benefiting over 1.5 million daily riders. Over the next few years, the authority also aims to make improvements at more than 20 stations to enhance accessibility for riders with disabilities, while introducing hundreds of new electric buses to further reduce the city’s carbon footprint.

These projects are being funded in part by the state’s new congestion pricing program, which charges drivers $9 during peak hours to enter Manhattan’s busiest areas. The initiative, which began on January 5, is expected to reduce traffic and generate $15 billion in transportation funding, which will go toward mass transit projects across the city. Governor Hochul has also promised that congestion pricing will lead to reduced traffic congestion, with at least a 5% decrease in vehicle miles traveled and a 10% drop in the number of vehicles entering Manhattan’s central business district.

In line with the goals of congestion pricing, Hochul is advocating for the MTA’s proposed 2025-2029 capital plan, which includes a wide range of initiatives aimed at modernizing the city’s subway and bus systems. This plan calls for new railcars, rehabilitation of stations, improved accessibility, and the installation of new fare gates, all while expanding the transit network. The funding for these projects will be derived from a mix of federal, state, city, and MTA contributions, with the goal of maintaining a “state of good repair” and enhancing the transit experience for millions of riders.

Another major overhaul is the ongoing Queens Bus Network Redesign, a project aimed at improving bus service across the borough. After five years of planning and public outreach, the MTA is preparing to implement a new bus network that will reduce travel times, improve reliability, and simplify service. The redesign also includes new bus priority projects on high-traffic corridors that will prioritize buses, enabling faster travel times and improving service quality.

These changes are just the beginning of what promises to be a decade of transformation for New York’s transit system. 

 

Courtesy Office of Jessica González-Rojas

By MOHAMED FARGHALY

mfarghaly@queensledger.com

New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie at the beginning of the year announced leadership appointments for the 2025 legislative session, including the appointment of Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas as the new chair of the Assembly’s Task Force on Women’s Issues. The task force, which includes nearly half of the state’s female Assembly members, will focus on advancing policies to protect and empower women and families across New York.

The task force marks a new chapter in González-Rojas’ long-standing advocacy for gender justice. She previously spent over a decade leading the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing the health and dignity of Latina communities. Her work there focused on reproductive rights and social justice issues, skills she is now channeling into her role as a legislator.

“I’m so super honored and excited, it’s a continuation of my long, decade long work in gender justice and reproductive justice and fighting for women and families,” González-Rojas said.

The task force, which boasts the largest number of female legislators in New York State history, will convene soon to begin crafting priorities for the 2025 legislative session. González-Rojas plans to hold regular meetings to establish a bold legislative agenda focused on gender justice.

“We are really looking forward to starting the year off with a bold agenda, especially that we’re up against a fascist, sexist, racist, xenophobic President of the United States,” González-Rojas said. 

González-Rojas’ legislative track record is already significant. She has successfully introduced and passed laws aimed at improving health care for women, including Lian’s Law, which addresses preeclampsia awareness, and a measure to improve mental health screenings for women of color. As a parent, she has been instrumental in pushing for universal school meals for all students in New York.

“It’s very important to me because part of my values is that every child should have access to a healthy breakfast and healthy lunch in school, without stigma or any barriers,” she said. 

Despite her advocacy for city-specific issues, González-Rojas’ position as chair of the task force extends beyond New York City. She’s tasked with addressing issues that affect women and families statewide, including those in rural and upstate regions, which face distinct challenges.

“There are certainly discrepancies across the state,” she said. “For example, while New York City has already implemented free school meals for all, there are many parts of the state that haven’t.”

Among the top priorities González-Rojas plans to tackle during her tenure are universal child care and expanding reproductive rights protections. The Assembly member believes that while New York has strong protections for reproductive health, including access to abortion services, more can be done.

“We’re continuing to look at a suite of bills that protect reproductive justice in New York and protect and expand, I would argue, we want to continue to make sure New York is a safe haven, but also we want to include gender affirming care in those lists of protections, because it’s part and parcel of reproductive justice, and we want to be again, very inclusive,” she said.

Additionally, González-Rojas has introduced legislation that would protect reproductive health data for individuals using apps to track their health. She is also continuing to advocate for measures to protect reproductive health care providers.

Reflecting on her experience leading the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, González-Rojas believes her leadership background gives her a unique perspective in the Assembly

“We’ve seen how vulnerable communities, especially women, trans people, and immigrants, are under attack at the federal level, and I’m committed to pushing back against that.”

Though González-Rojas is optimistic about the future, she knows that enacting meaningful change is not without its challenges. The legislative process can be slow, and there are many competing priorities.

She also highlighted the intersectionality of women’s issues, pointing out that challenges like labor rights and workforce development are crucial to advancing gender equity. One area of focus is addressing wage disparities for women in industries like food service, where workers often rely on tips to make up for subminimum wages.

“I’m also carrying a bill called One Fair Wage, which would eliminate the subminimum wage for restaurant workers,” González-Rojas said. “The thing that I like to underscore is that industry is very feminized. Many tip workers are women and women of color, and those most disproportionately impacted are women and women of color.”

González-Rojas also emphasized the importance of including transgender women in conversations about women’s issues.

“It’s crucial that we ensure protections for both cisgender and transgender women,” she said.

She pointed out that trans women are often excluded from discussions on gender justice, and she is committed to being inclusive, particularly when it comes to protecting their rights within reproductive justice and beyond.

In her vision for women’s rights in New York, González-Rojas hopes to ensure that every individual, regardless of their race, gender, or immigration status, can have the autonomy to create and raise a family with dignity and justice.

“I think the ultimate goal is to ensure that every person, despite you know, race, gender, gender identity or immigration status, that they have the ability to determine if, when and how to create a family, and then be able to raise that family with dignity,” she said. “So, it’s about autonomy, it’s about dignity, it’s about justice, and that’s been my core values. And again, I’m thrilled to leverage this position to fight for that vision.”

As chair of the Task Force on Women’s Issues, González-Rojas is poised to continue her advocacy on a larger scale, fighting for gender justice and reproductive rights across New York State.