Rally to Save Free Student Metrocards Gets Boost from Quinn

Name another place in this country, or planet earth, where a transit agency funds the transportation of school children. There is only one, and that's the MTA in NYC.

I would love to have a job where I can completely cut the funding to an agency and then blame that agency for making unwanted but necessary changes in response.

Or Los Angeles, which does not offer free fares but does have sharply reduced rates for students.

http://www.mta.net/around/fares/

Try London Transport, which allows children under 10 to travel free and has free or child-rate fares for older students.

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/faresandtickets/1063.aspx

Quinn is a liar so why listen to anything she has to say?

Excellent Point.

i don't agree with getting rid of them either, but i think quinn's logic is a little flawed. if a family isn't willing/able to pay $89 a month to send their kid to bronx science or stuyvesant, would they really pay exorbitantly higher sums for the kid to attend the best universities and everything that goes along with that?

the kids who can't afford to attend better high schools (stuyvesant, laguardia, bk tech) typically live farther away from the schools because their families can't afford to live in Manhattan, and when they graduate from these schools will go on to earn scholarships at top institutions.

Free public education means free. If their parents pay taxes, tolls, and bills, these kids are entitled to a free education and some means of free transport to their school.

Errr there's just one problem with your explanation, none of those "better high schools (stuyvesant, laguardia, bk tech)" are zoned school meaning you just can't get in because you live in Manhattan or anywhere near one of those schools. You gain admission to those schools by passing the "Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT)."

I would have no problem in helping those kids out with train fare if they have what it takes to get into those schools or getting the grades they needed to graduate but it's the slackers who're just wasting resources and my money just going through the motion of attention and failing.

Sure the education is free but that's where it ends. Who said I'm required to pay for their transportation.

The specialized schools are filled with a lot of kids from struggling economic backgrounds. I was one of them. My family certainly didn't have the money for a good college for me. I went on scholarship.

Her logic is also flawed because the elite 4 public schools aren't filled with poor project kids trying to do better.

Exactly, why are we rewarding failure. If you're only getting C's, D's and F's why am I responsible in funding your free rides to school so you can just hang out with your friends? The sooner they realize there are no "free rides" in this world they better we all are.

These families sure don't have a problem paying $100+ monthly for a cell phone bill.

It's time to drop those smartphones and get pre-paid, such as virgin mobile.

I agree. I saw a kid using a free metro card yesterday...along with his metro card, he was wearing/carrying:

$200 Timberland Boots

$100+ Jeans

$300 Burton Coat

$100+ leather backpack

$150+ Polo shirt

$400 T-Mobile Sidekick (+ $100/mo)

These poor kids and their families, how are they supposed to afford transportation to get to school and work after they bought all the necessities above?!

idiot parents and selfish kids.

Agreed, let the parents take the $50 monthly they give their kids for fun and contribute to the fare for THEIR CHILDREN to get an education that will benefit THEM.When will parents be held accountable for paying for THEIR OWN KIDS.This is disgusting how children are demanding a handout, no one owes these kids free transportation or anything else other than their own parents.

Seriously, I've had a job since I was 13 years old.

sure, my parents gave me stuff. Hell, they still do..because I deserve it. But my parents NEVER bought me a new pair of Timberland's in lieu of gas money.

Once I had a car at 16, I was paying for gas and insurance. Kids are spoiled.

Well, you gotta do some serious gearing up for a life of oblivion.

You forgot the $170 iPod Nano.

Or Space Jam sneakers. :-|

So let's cannibalize the already-severely-underfunded capital budget to shore up the operating budget. Who needs maintenance? Who needs infrastructure spending?!

You know, that was done before. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Anyone remember the subways in the 1980s?

Hey Quinn, how about an idea that doesn't turn our subways into a raging cesspool? How about you & the state stop taking money away from the MTA and fund the damn entity properly? Scapegoat it all you want, but we're quickly heading towards $3 fares the way you idiots are going.

I wouldn't suggest 'cannibalism' to Quinn, even in jest.

Oxymoron=Quinn and ideas.

Perhaps Quinn can use her influence as Speaker/Supreme Dike to push the state to reestablish funding for student metrocards.

j/k. Her support won't do shit.

Will Gothamist be covering the state of the state address occurring now?

Perhaps Quinn can fund these cuts with her slush funds or perhaps James Vacca can return the additional stipend he received from Quinn after his last minute support for overturning the will of the people in regards to term limits. Quinn and Vacca look like twins,

Is there any mention of the city restoring the funding they cut for Student Metro Cards?

Quinn is just posing. Quinn can have city funding restored to the student metro card program. Quinn/Bloomberg approved the millions given to Ratner, the millions that they still give now to museums and lame art shows. Bloomberg loves the arts and his ass kisser Quinn claims she loves the arts as well. But we are in a recession, why is public funding supporting all these arts shows to entertain the rich and the boring. Let them fund their own shows. seriously, I not an art hater but it shouldn't be a priority in this city because Billionaire Bloomberg wants to entertain his rich friends.