{"id":110225,"date":"2026-01-23T20:30:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T20:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/110225\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T20:30:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T20:30:10","slug":"mta-system-to-remain-operational-as-nyc-experiences-big-snowfall-lieber-says-amnewyork","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/110225\/","title":{"rendered":"MTA system to remain operational as NYC experiences big snowfall, Lieber says \u2013 amNewYork"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"MTA\t\t\t<\/p>\n

MTA Chair Janno Lieber has stated that the city\u2019s transit network will remain operational as New York City prepares for a potentially historic winter storm this weekend, with forecasts predicting at least 10 inches of snow Sunday into Monday.<\/p>\n

Marc A. Hermann \/ MTA New York City Transit<\/p>\n

MTA<\/a> Chair Janno Lieber has stated that the city\u2019s transit network will remain operational as New York City prepares for a potentially historic winter storm this weekend, with forecasts predicting at least 10 inches of snow Sunday into Monday.<\/a><\/p>\n

The forecasted snowfall, expected to begin late Saturday night or early Sunday morning, would be the city\u2019s biggest in years, Mayor Zohran Mamdani<\/a> said at a briefing Friday morning. Still, Lieber said the MTA system stands ready to deal with whatever nature throws at it over the coming days.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have detailed plans in place for storms like this, to protect the network, to protect our riders and to protect our employees,\u201d Lieber said.\n<\/p>\n

Those plans include using the MTA\u2019s snow-fighting trains to keep the 220 miles of outdoor subway track operational. Lieber said de-icing systems will also be in place for the outdoor track, adding that commuter railroads like Metro North and Long Island Rail Road will have the same protections.<\/p>\n

Buses are the \u2018major workhorses\u2019 in winter storms: Lieber
\n\"NYCLieber described buses as the \u201cmajor workhorses\u201d of winter storms like the one forecasted this weekend, stating that buses will continue to run even if the subway and commuter rail services face challenges.File photo\/Marc A. Hermann, MTA<\/p>\n

The agency has 35 snow-clearing vehicles to clear blocked streets and keep buses operational in the city, Lieber added.<\/p>\n

All operational buses will be fitted with chains throughout the icy period. Longer articulated buses will be taken out of service for safety reasons.\n<\/p>\n

Lieber described buses as the \u201cmajor workhorses\u201d of winter storms like the one forecasted this weekend, stating that buses will continue to run even if the subway and commuter rail services face challenges.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven if there are challenges in the rail part of our transit system, the buses are going to be out there,\u201d Lieber said. \u201cEvery time we find out that they are the workhorses of major storms like this, they\u2019ll all be chained and ready to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the MTA has no specific threshold for when it may suspend or alter rail services, but added that the agency makes real-time adjustments during weather events based on expert advice.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThe professionals know how to make determinations about when service starts to be impacted,\u201d he said.
\n\"\"MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said Friday the MTA system stands ready to deal with whatever nature throws at it over the coming days.Marc A. Hermann \/ MTA\n<\/p>\n

Long Island Rail Road President Rob Free said the agency will begin assessing operations after 10 inches of snow accumulate.<\/p>\n

\u201cTen inches is something where we start to look at how the operation is behaving,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can have wet snow, light, powdery snow, windy conditions \u2013\u00a0 all of those factor into what we\u2019ll do with service.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lieber, meanwhile, said the MTA\u2019s number-one priority will be to ensure that pedestrian areas and walkways are clear so that the agency can continue to provide safe service.\n<\/p>\n

Free said the MTA will staff a crew of 1,800 workers overnight on Sunday to ensure service is operational ahead of Monday morning commutes. He added that the MTA has received 1.1 million pounds of salt since the start of January and added that transit authorities have been preparing for winter weather events for months.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re doing everything we can to make sure we have all supplies,\u201d Free said. \u201cWe start preparing for the winter in the summer.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Free said the MTA has been protecting outdoor signal switches and third rails through heaters to ensure that they operate smoothly through the cold weather period.\n<\/p>\n

Lieber similarly emphasized that the MTA is prepared for the forecasted winter storm. He added that the MTA has 9,000 tonnes of de-icer \u201cat the ready\u201d to ensure that bridges and tunnels remain operations throughout the storm in addition to over 100 pieces of equipment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not our first rodeo,\u201d Lieber said. \u201cWe prepare well in advance. Everyone knows what their job is.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Lieber did encourage New York residents to remain indoors if they do not have to make an essential journey, however.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you don\u2019t have to travel, stay home and enjoy a football game or just bake some cookies,\u201d Lieber said at a press conference<\/a> at the LIRR Laurelton staton on Friday morning.<\/p>\n

The non-profit Riders Alliance, meanwhile, encouraged New York residents to use public transit during the winter storm if they must travel.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cNew York\u2019s subway was built for snowstorms. Sunday\u2019s forecast is an opportunity for the system to shine. While roads may be slippery and slushy, rails are the place to be,\u201d the group said in a statement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MTA Chair Janno Lieber has stated that the city\u2019s transit network will remain operational as New York City…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":110226,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[1209,2423,1606,49507,49508,8296,141,9,11,10,615,29568],"class_list":{"0":"post-110225","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-buses","9":"tag-janno-lieber","10":"tag-lirr","11":"tag-lirr-president-rob-free","12":"tag-mayor-zohran","13":"tag-metro-north","14":"tag-mta","15":"tag-new-york","16":"tag-new-york-headlines","17":"tag-new-york-news","18":"tag-subway","19":"tag-winter-storm"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110225","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=110225"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110225\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/110226"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110225"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110225"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110225"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}