The Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved a $19.3 billion budget for next year at a board meeting on Wednesday.
$11.8 billion of the budget will be used strictly for labor costs, including payroll, overtime, pensions and health care.
Another $2 billion will be used to keep the Long Island Rail Road running, with the remaining balance going to other MTA agencies such as Metro-North, Grand Central and Penn Station.
Janno Lieber, MTA chairman and chief executive, said he hopes to dedicate a portion of the LIRR budget to improving several aspects of the stations along the line. Among his top priorities are improved on-time performance, especially at the Jamaica transfer station, a streamlined process for commuters changing to connecting trains and increased bike storage for commuters.
Lieber also plans on using some of the money to improve station security.
“We’ve got a great MTA police force that is, in the last year or so, more systematically patrolling the trains, and that is both deterring crime, and giving passengers, I think, more comfort that there's safety on the trains,” Lieber said during the board meeting.
The MTA also stated that its in the process of cracking down on fare evasion throughout its stations. The MTA has several new procedures in place to discourage people from attempting to skip paying, such as placing guards near emergency exits, and installing new turnstiles.
Additionally, the MTA plans to construct new multi-family housing developments for commuters.
“We have a couple of really exciting, transit-oriented development projects. We’ve got big parking lots, not always owned by the MTA, but there are opportunities to do multi-family development in places where people can use transit, and maybe not have to rely on owning multiple automobiles as much.” Lieber said.
The funds for the budget are in addition to the MTA's capital program, which invests $54.8 billion into subways, buses, commuter railroads, bridges and tunnels.
