The Trump administration is weighing a crackdown on "fare-free" bus programs in big cities that take federal transit money — a shift that would put New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's plan to make all city buses free on a collision course with Washington.
A draft proposal from the Department of Transportation, obtained by Politico, is being floated for the next surface transportation bill, meaning Congress would have to sign off.
The idea targets transit agencies in areas with more than 200,000 residents and fleets of more than 100 buses.
Those criteria could hit places that currently offer free rides, including parts of the Kansas City metro area; Richmond, Virginia; and Albuquerque, New Mexico. Kansas City, though, is reportedly moving toward reinstating fares in the months ahead.
In New York, the debate has become especially political given that Mamdani campaigned on affordability and promised to "permanently eliminate the fare on every city bus." But on Tuesday, Metropolitan Transportation Authority CEO Janno Lieber brushed off the pledge as a "campaign bumper sticker" during a legislative budget hearing in Albany.
Under the DOT's draft language, agencies receiving Federal Transit Administration (FTA) dollars would be required to charge a fare. Cities that refuse could see federal funding withheld.
"This policy would help ensure the largest federally supported systems are safer and more adequately funded by users," the document says.
The draft outlines exceptions that would still allow free rides for certain groups, including seniors, people with disabilities, children, students and veterans.
It would also carve out special circumstances, such as major events like the World Cup or Olympics — a point that stands out with the FIFA 2026 World Cup scheduled across multiple U.S. markets with large transit systems, including Kansas City, Philadelphia, and the New York-New Jersey metro region.
Even so, Politico noted, the surface transportation bill is not expected to be finalized before the World Cup. The 2028 Summer Olympics are set to take place in Los Angeles.
DOT's pitch leans heavily on concerns about money and public safety. The proposal warns that fare-free policies "can result in unsustainable finances for the agency and potential safety issues," and adds that some systems that eliminated fares reported more disruptive passengers.
Supporters of free buses argue the opposite: removing fares can increase ridership and make it easier for working families to get to jobs and essential services.
Joel Mendez, an assistant professor of transportation planning at the University of Kansas who studied Kansas City's fare-free experiment, said the evidence shows broader mobility gains.
"If more people are using the bus, which the evidence suggests across a broad range of demographics, we could be significantly improving their mobility and enhancing access to services and resources throughout the region, including jobs, and that can have a positive impact on their quality of life," Mendez told Politico.
On Capitol Hill, Democrats blasted the Trump DOT's plan.
"This proposal makes no sense," Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash., ranking member on the House Transportation Committee, said in a statement. "Transit agencies are pretty good at making their own decisions about how to operate to meet local needs."
"The FTA should be in a position to support them, not undermine them," he added.
Newsmax reached out to Mamdani's press office for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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