The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today announced that the OMNY contactless fare payment system will go live on all Manhattan local buses as well as subway stations in four boroughs by the end of this month. The news comes on the heels of the OMNY system reaching the significant milestone of 10 million taps in the past week, far surpassing expectations and showing accelerating growth. 

This month's bus activation will put OMNY on more than 600 buses on more than 30 routes. The expansion to Manhattan local buses represents a dramatic increase in points where it’s possible to use OMNY to make free transfers between subways and buses, which is made fast and easy by the contactless technology.

“This is another major milestone in the transformation of the NYC bus system,” said Craig Cipriano, Acting Senior Vice President of Buses for MTA New York City Transit and President of the MTA Bus Company. “As we work hard expanding bus priority and redesigning our bus system throughout the city, modernized fare payment is a key piece of how we can speed up buses and bring customers to our system.”

“The OMNY rollout remains on time and we aren’t resting on our laurels. We continue to move full speed ahead, having just exceeded 10 million taps and expecting to rapidly surpass that pace in the weeks and months to come,” said Al Putre, OMNY Executive. “This month, everyone from daily Manhattan bus riders to diehard Mets fans will get to experience the magic of OMNY. No more waiting in lines at MetroCard machines. Just tap your smart phone, wearable device or contactless credit or debit card and go.”  

While the installation of OMNY readers and equipment will continue throughout the month, OMNY will be activated on buses across the whole borough simultaneously at the end of the month. This expansion to Manhattan buses is hoped to attract new ridership by allowing visitors to New York City and anyone who doesn’t normally carry a MetroCard to hop on a bus with a spontaneity that was never possible before.

After first launching on May 31, 2019, OMNY's first five million taps were recorded over 31 weeks, while the second five million were recorded in only eight weeks, showing a dramatic acceleration in the growth and popularity of the system. The OMNY system has recorded roughly three million taps in the month of February alone. Customers from 130 countries outside the U.S. and every single continent other than Antarctica have already used the system. In the last week of February, the system recorded its first set of weekdays with over 150,000 taps per day.

On the subway, more than 200 subway stations are expected to have OMNY by month’s end. Customers along the line starting at Morris Park and all the way to the end of the line at Eastchester-Dyre Av. will be the first to get OMNY in March. After the completion of  line work, OMNY will be installed along the   lines in Harlem, lower Manhattan and parts of downtown Brooklyn. This expansion will provide a more complete network for   riders, as large swaths of those lines are already equipped with OMNY readers. 

OMNY will also be enabled at stations on the  and  lines in Brooklyn, from Hoyt-Schermerhorn to Euclid Av, providing customers with key connections to stations on the  and  in the process. Toward the end of the month, two key stations along the  line will also get OMNY in Queens. Both Mets-Willets Point and Flushing Main St. are expected to be ready just in time for Mets Opening Day at Citi Field, further encouraging the use of mass transit to large events by visitors who may not normally carry MetroCards. 

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT MTA FARE PAYMENTS AND OMNY:

• A list of all subway stations and bus routes where OMNY is currently in use is at this link: https://omny.info/system-rollout
• The MetroCard was first tested in the system in 1993, debuting to the larger public in January 1994. All turnstiles were MetroCard-enabled by May 1997 and all buses began accepting it by the end of 1995. Tokens were sold until April 2003 and acceptance was discontinued that May in subway stations and that December on buses.
• OMNY readers accept contactless cards from companies such as Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover, as well as digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, and Fitbit Pay.
• Following the completion of OMNY installation at all subway turnstiles and on buses, the MTA will introduce all remaining fare options, including unlimited ride passes, reduced fares, student fares, and more.
• In 2021, the MTA will introduce an OMNY card at retail locations throughout the New York region.
• Also in 2021, the MTA will begin to install new vending machines at locations throughout the system.
• Only after OMNY is fully available everywhere MetroCard is today, expected in 2023, will the MTA say goodbye to the MetroCard.

 Purchasing your fare with cash will always be an option. Additional info about OMNY is available at OMNY.info.