Governor Kathy Hochul raises doubts about New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s free bus proposal

Many of Zohran Mamdani’s dreams for New York City will require support from state lawmakers in Albany.

On Saturday, Gov. Kathy Hochul raised doubts about one of his signature proposals — making city buses free.

Hochul, who controls the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the state agency that operates the city’s public transit, told reporters in San Juan, Puerto Rico, that she was not ready to move forward with his plan and that she would prefer to subsidise fares only for low-income riders.

“I cannot set forth a plan right now that takes money out of a system that relies on the fares of the buses and the subways,” she said. “But can we find a path to make it more affordable for people who need help? Of course we can.”

Her comments came after Hochul and Mamdani, both Democrats, struck a tone of unity at an annual gathering in Puerto Rico for New York’s political class. Hochul praised Mamdani and said that she was looking forward to working with him on issues like universal child care.

“It’s a new day in New York,” Hochul said at a labor breakfast earlier in the day. “I am so proud that this individual is going to work with me shoulder to shoulder to deliver for New York City the way it’s never seen in its lifetime.”

Mamdani, a democratic socialist, ran on three straightforward promises: free buses, universal free child care and a rent freeze on rent-stabilised apartments. The first two would need support from the state; the third he could probably do on his own.

A spokesperson for Mamdani, Dora Pekec, said in a statement, “The mayor-elect looks forward to working with the governor to fund and deliver on our popular affordability agenda, including universal child care and fast and free buses.”

A spokesperson for Hochul, Jen Goodman, said Sunday that discussions were continuing on all of Mamdani’s proposals.

“The governor is focused on achieving universal child care and will continue to have ongoing conversations on other proposals, including making transit more accessible and affordable, while ensuring the MTA has the resources it needs to serve New Yorkers,” she said.

Making city buses free could cost more than $800 million per year. Hochul told reporters Saturday that she had been a “great champion of public transit.”

Our ambitions are big, and I believe in them, and I want to accomplish them.

Hochul said she was preparing to make child care a priority during the state legislative session that starts in January. She said the program could cost $15 billion annually statewide, and that she was looking at phasing it in over time, starting with 2-year-olds or neighbourhoods with the most need. Mamdani has proposed free child care for all New York City children ages 6 weeks to 5 years.

Hochul said she had to balance the demand for new programs with the reality of federal funding cuts from Washington.

“It’s kind of a collision course right now,” she said. “Our ambitions are big, and I believe in them, and I want to accomplish them.”

Hochul, who endorsed Mamdani in September, said she had been having conversations with him that “led to an understanding of what’s in the realm of possibility.” They had “shared ambitions,” she said, “but what is doable is the question.”

Janno Lieber, the MTA chair, has also expressed concerns about the cost of making buses free and said poor New Yorkers should come first.

“I want to make sure that people of limited income get priority in this discussion, and we’re not just giving a ton of money to people who are riding the 104 on the Upper West Side,” he said in a recent interview on NY1.

John Samuelsen, the international president of the Transport Workers Union, which represents bus drivers, said in San Juan that he supported Mamdani’s free bus plan and that it was worth the cost, especially when so many riders already skip the fare.

“I don’t think Hochul understands how easy it is to say yes,” he said, adding that the city could try to make some buses free on its own.

Mamdani and Hochul also disagree over whether to raise income taxes. When they appeared together at a rally Thursday, Hochul was greeted with chants of “tax the rich,” to which she responded, “I’m the type of person — the more you push me, the more I’m not going to do what you want.”

Hochul said she was listening, and later told reporters: “I’m from Buffalo. We don’t put up with a lot of crap.”

The governor said she would meet with Mamdani soon to discuss the prospect of President Donald Trump sending a surge of immigration agents or the National Guard into New York City after Mamdani takes office. She said she appreciated that Mamdani had said he would keep Jessica Tisch, the police commissioner, as she had recommended.

Hochul said she had spoken to Tisch about staying and believed that she would.

“I really don’t want to speak for her, but I wouldn’t be standing here saying I think she’ll be the next commissioner if I didn’t think so,” she said.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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