MTA Accessibility

We have a number of tools you can use to plan an accessible trip throughout our system. We recommend using the accessible trip feature on the homepage of this website, but we also have additional resources.

We are actively working to make more stations accessible. Learn more about stations in progress and selected for accessibility upgrades.

We are testing and rolling out several new features to make bus travel easier for all of our customers.

Piloting open strollers on buses

Our long-standing policy is that strollers must be folded before boarding all MTA buses. But we have now started a six-month pilot program to test Designated Open Stroller Areas on buses in seven routes across all five boroughs. Providing designated space for open strollers on buses will allow children to stay seated so their parents and caregivers can get on and off the bus more easily.

Learn more about this pilot, including the routes with open stroller areas, and how to give your feedback.

Piloting new wheelchair self-securement device

We’re always looking to make it easier for our customers to ride the bus, including those who use mobility devices. Every MTA bus has a securement system at each priority seating area for customers who use mobility devices, which helps keep passengers safe and is required by law. Now we’re testing the Quantum Self-Securement System, a new way for customers with mobility devices to secure themselves on buses. You can find Quantum on 10 buses along the M7 route, which runs between 147 St and 14 St in Manhattan. Look for the decal on the outside of the bus to see if the bus has the Quantum system onboard.

Learn more about the Quantum Self-Securement system, and how to give your feedback.

New accessible features

Our new buses are rolling out with wider doors and ramps and more flexible seating. These new designs make it easier for customers with a wide range of needs and abilities to enter, navigate, and find a comfortable space to ride the bus.

Learn more about how we're making our newest buses more accessible.

The MTA is committed to making all modes of transit accessible for every customer. That means making 95% of subway stations accessible. It also means testing new technology and features so every rider can stay informed and feel safe and comfortable.

In 2019 we tested over a dozen new features — including both physical infrastructure and smartphone apps, all designed to make subway travel more accessible for riders of all abilities, including those with vision, hearing, mobility or cognitive disabilities. Find out more about the "living lab" and the features that we tested, some of which are still on display at Jay St-MetroTech station in Downtown Brooklyn. 

In 2023, we launched further rollout of some of the most successful features tested at the Accessible Station Lab, this time on the West Side of Manhattan. Learn more about how we are continuing to expand these innovative accessibility solutions. 

• ADA-related complaint
• Reasonable Modification Request or appeal

Reduced fares are available for MTA subway, bus, and rail customers who are 65 or older or who have qualifying disabilities. The reduced fare is half the base fare. The base fare for subways and local buses is $2.90, so the reduced fare is $1.45. Find out more about how and if you qualify.

Personal Care Attendants

Personal care attendants (PCA's) help people with disabilities in their daily life, including in travel. PCA's are eligible to ride MTA buses and subways for free when accompanying a person carrying an Access-A-Ride MetroCard with the PCA designation.

PCAs may also ride for free on the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad. However, PCAs may be required to carry identification that shows they are employed by a PCA agency.

Service Animals

Customers with disabilities are permitted to bring their service animals into all MTA transit facilities. A service animal is defined as an animal (usually, but not always, a dog) trained to aid or guide and accompany a person with a disability.

A service animal must be under the control of its handler at all times, either using a harness or leash, or through voice, signal, or other controls. Service animals should be harnessed, leashed, or tethered, unless the customer’s disability prevents using these devices or these devices interfere with the service animal’s ability to perform its trained task.

Although customers are not required to carry identification for their service animals, New York City Transit, through its Office of ADA Compliance, issues a service animal voluntary identification (ID) card that customers may obtain and carry for convenience. A customer may, on a voluntary basis, present this ID card to a Transit employee or a police officer. Click here for the voluntary application.

Track key metrics we use to measure how people with a range of access needs navigate our bus and subway system. This includes:

1. usage trends for the Reduced-Fare MetroCard program,
2. how often buses deploy their lifts or ramps, and
3. uptime for accessible subway stations at the platform level.
4. and more!

View all our metrics. 

The Advisory Committee for Transit Accessibility (ACTA) is an all-volunteer group of community members committed to working with New York City Transit on a range of accessibility issues.

The Systemwide Accessibility Team is here for you! Sign up to receive our regular newsletter and be among the first to learn about all the exciting accessibility projects we are working on and how you can get involved. You can also check out archived recent newsletters. 

We incorporate customer feedback in all that we do. Contact us with questions, concerns, experiences, or ideas about accessibility in our system.