NYC NOW

[Heads up: technical issues affected the audio quality on this episode. Thanks for bearing with us — the conversation is still worth it.]

 

The MTA says far fewer bus riders are paying the fare since Mayor Zohran Mamdani took office.  Fare evasion has been a problem in the city for years, but MTA Chair Janno Lieber says Mamdani's campaign promise to make the city's buses free isn't helping. Mamdani has a different assessment, and blames the issue on the affordability crisis. WNYC and Gothamist transportation reporter Stephen Nessen and editor Clayton Guse explain what may be driving the issue and what comes next as the MTA plans to step up enforcement.

Photo: Stephen Nessen - WNYC/Gothamist

Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org. 

Episode Notes:

Bronx man faces federal hate crime charges in Central Synagogue attack

New Staten Island trash complex lets city make way for hundreds of new homes

Luigi Mangione admitted to killing Brian Thompson. Why does NY still want a trial?

Mamdani hasn't made NYC's buses free. Riders stopped paying anyway.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

After a decade of legal battles and political fights, Elizabeth Street Garden will be preserved. The city had planned to build 123 affordable apartments for low-income seniors on the Lower East Side green space, but that proposal is now dead. We take a visit to the garden to speak with New Yorkers, then WNYC & Gothamist reporter David Brand joins us to explain how the garden became a flashpoint in New York’s debate over affordable housing and open space, and why the city is now looking to build more than 180 homes at a nearby site instead.

Photo: Iru Ekpunobi

Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org.

The long battle over Elizabeth Street Garden is over. Mamdani touts new housing plan.

Family says stray voltage may have contributed to fatal Central Park carriage crash

NYC homeless shelters are falling apart. Providers say the city’s fix-it process is broken.

Congestion pricing hasn’t changed much about NYC’s air quality, city report finds

 

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Stories from this episode:

Luigi Mangione enters guilty plea in NYC federal court:

https://gothamist.com/news/luigi-mangione-enters-guilty-plea-in-nyc-federal-court

Some New York lawmakers are pushing a bill that would mandate insurance coverage for egg-freezing.

https://gothamist.com/news/aoc-is-freezing-her-eggs-some-new-york-lawmakers-want-insurance-to-cover-it

Now in its fifth year, Public Service is a series of free, outdoor daytime parties co-founded by DJs Mickey Perez and Cesar Toribio. 

https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/it-is-a-bit-utopian-why-public-service-is-brooklyns-favorite-dance-party

Is the “All you can eat” Buffet still a thing in NYC?

https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/is-nyc-an-all-you-can-eat-buffet-town-a-5-year-old-investigates

Subway commuters unite in hatred of A.I ads

https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/it-is-a-bit-utopian-why-public-service-is-brooklyns-favorite-dance-party

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Read More:
Inside The So-Called "Commie Corridor": The Neighborhoods Changing New York City Politics

The Democratic Socialists of America are gaining political power in New York City, and much of that support is concentrated in a string of neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens. WNYC Senior Politics Reporter Brigid Bergin brings us along on her tour of the so-called “Commie Corridor” to understand who's driving the movement, and why issues of affordability, identity and community are shaping their priorities.

Photo: Rhe Civitello/Gothamist illustration

Read More:

 

A people’s guide to the ‘Commie Corridor’ of Brooklyn and Queens (https://gothamist.com/news/a-peoples-guide-to-the-commie-corridor-of-brooklyn-and-queens)

Michael Lange's Substack (https://www.michaellange.nyc/)

-Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org

Tags: New York City politics, Democratic Socialists of America, DSA, Zohran Mamdani, NYC politics, WNYC, Brigid Bergin, Janae Pierre, Michael Lange, housing, renters, affordability, gentrification, tenant rights, progressive politics, left-wing politics, Brooklyn, Queens, Astoria, Bushwick, Greenpoint, Ridgewood, Bed-Stuy, immigration, LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, political movements

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

For the first time since the 1990s, Chinese immigrants have surpassed Dominicans as New York City’s largest foreign born population. CUNY Baruch College professor Kenneth Guest explains what is driving that growth, how Chinese communities are expanding beyond Manhattan’s Chinatown and what the shift could mean for services, political influence and the future of immigrant New York.

-Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org

Photo Cred: Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
for information about our collection and use of personal data for
advertising.