A version of this article was originally published in The College Academy student newspaper, TCA Heights. It has been lightly edited for Amsterdam News style.
This year, the MTA officially ditched the traditional MetroCard Student system for the newer OMNY Cards. OMNY Cards, available for students who live more than half a mile from school, provide more benefits, such as convenience with Tap & Go, more rides, and 24/7/365 service. It is good for four free rides per day, and includes a free transfer between the subway and the local bus services, offering more service and accessibility to students who have a longer commute to school daily.
The change was implemented this fall, and OMNY cards are being offered to all New York City public schools. Students were surprised by the switch, but adapted swiftly to the improvement. Statistics show that there was a city-wide increase of 36% in the number of public transit trips that students took in the first month of school, compared to last year, before the cards were provided. The program cost the city’s Department of Education about $50.5 million to implement, and the new cards were administered to between 500,000 to 600,000 students across the city.
Related: NAN holds buy-in protest at Costco against Trump’s anti-DEI push
Justin Mendez, a senior at the College Academy (TCA), said the OMNYCard has been a significant improvement to the NYC public transit system.
“The Metro system has improved based on the OMNY because it’s more electronic, making it more time-efficient,” he said. He added that the Tap & Go feature of the card clears up the typical morning traffic often found in train stations, and eliminates the issue of having to shuffle through multiple cards to enter the system.
A survey of 246 TCA students found that 79.3% of respondents agreed that the OMNYCard is a more convenient means to commute to school; 75.2% of students also said they simply like the OMNYCard system more than the old MetroCard system.
The survey also showed that having the ability to have more rides has enabled students to explore the city more, due to not having to worry about having enough rides to get back home — 61.4% said they rode on the MTA more often with the new cards. The fact that the OMNYCard offers 24-hour service, including weekends, has also given students more opportunities to travel. They no longer have to worry about getting to the train before 8 p.m. as they did with the MetroCards.
“I think students do explore the city more using the OMNY, since it has more uses than the old cards schools would give out,” said Alex Ramos, a senior.
Castillo and Patino are high school students at The College Academy.