NEW YORK – The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will run additional subway service and has postponed scheduled maintenance-of-way work on upcoming World Cup match days, the agency said during a media briefing on Thursday, June 4.
Service on the 1, C, and F lines will be increased between 10 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. on match days, as well as after matches, to aid in connecting spectators to shuttle buses running from Manhattan to the games in East Rutherford, N.J. On days of New York Mets home games, when the 7 Line is most subject to crowding, extra service is planned to accommodate travelers to the Fan Zone at the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center in Flushing.
MTA customer ambassadors will be on hand at shuttle bus hubs at Grand Central Terminal, Times Square-42nd Street, and 59th Street-Columbus Circle, and additional staff and volunteers will be on hand at Metro-North, Long Island Rail Road, and New York City Transit stations to provide customer assistance.
“After months of planning, we are adding trains wherever fans are going to watch matches while helping to keep them safe,” MTA CEO Janno Lieber said in a press release. “Moving millions is what we do, and not just when the World Cup is in town.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani also took part in the briefing, discussing safety and emergency preparedness during the event. The state’s recently enacted budget provided an additional $77 million for deployment of New York Police Department officers across the subway system, raising the total for that effort to $154 million. The budget also increased funding by 50% for the Subway Co-Response Outreach Teams (SCOUT) program to address mental health issues on the transit system.
Emergency preparedness efforts have included training and exercises coordinated across multiple organizations, and will see an increased security presence on match days and for special events.
“We have spent months coordinating, drilling, and preparing so that when the world arrives at our doorstep, we are ready,” Mamdami said. Hochul said, “The World Cup will be a once-in-a-generation event for our state, and whether you’re traveling from Brazil or Bed-Stuy, we have spent months developing a plan to get you to where you need to go safely.”
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