By Michael Ventura
DNAinfo Senior Editor
MANHATTAN — Subway fare-beaters jumped turnstiles 19 million times and stiffed NYC Transit by roughly $27 million last year, the Daily News reported.
The authority had previously estimated that five million fare-beaters made it into the subway system annually, costing $7 million. NYC Transit recently tossed aside its old method of estimating fare-beating.
The amount lost is more than the $17.6 million the MTA plans to save by cutting subway service to fill its ballooning budget gap, the paper said.
NYC Transit's old method of calculation was based on observations from token booth clerks who conducted a one-day count each month, the News said. An internal audit said that wasn't accurate enough because the clerks were distracted by other duties. The agency is also reducing the number of clerks, cutting the number of observations.
Now, the agency uses "traffic checkers" who are randomly placed at turnstiles to watch for jumpers, the News reported.
Under its doomsday budget, the MTA would eliminate M and W service, which runs through Manhattan, and increase the wait between trains in order to save money.
