Early today, as part of a citywide effort to make transportation more accessible to students, students received One Metro New York (OMNY) cards in place of the student MetroCards that have been distributed to NYC students since 1997.
OMNY cards will provide students year-round access to public transportation, be usable 24 hours a day, and offer four free rides each day. Previously, student MetroCards only granted students three free rides during school days (and not during summer) between 5:30 AM and 8:30 PM.
Parent Coordinator Jodie Lasoff said, “The amount of rides used to be three, and the thought was ‘get to school, go to afterschool, and then go home,’ but there are plenty of students who have other activities or errands they need to do, especially students in high school.”
Freshman Siomara Baluarte said, “I think that OMNY cards are more useful and efficient than MetroCards, and I think it will be less stressful for students who are trying to get to school.”
The OMNY card’s extended timeframe may alleviate concerns students had relating to how and when they are able to get home.
Freshman Robert Indart said, “I was at the library [from] 8:30 to 9:00, so I didn’t know how I’d get home.”
Students generally agree that the increased number of rides is a step up from what was previously offered, but some believe students should have even more access to transportation.
Sophomore Hiba Malik has to take two buses and one train to get home. She thinks that four rides are better than three, but the number of rides should be unlimited.
Freshman Minjine Jang thinks that the increased amount of swipes of the OMNY card will be helpful by allowing people to spend more time outside of school. “Four [rides] are enough,” he said.
“The use of OMNY cards will help in the summer because when you’re going to school or other places, you won’t have to pay the fare. So the use of OMNY cards do help when it comes to traveling [in the summer],” said sophomore Danielle Mitchell.
