NYC NOW - The State of Public Bathrooms and MetroCard Phaseout Concerns for Elderly New Yorkers

Episode Date: December 23, 2025

New York City artists say they are pulling back from work centered on race, immigration, and gender identity after federal arts funding was rolled back. Meanwhile, the Port Authority is bracing for a busy holiday travel period with millions expected to pass through regional airports and crossings. Also, in Westchester County, prosecutors say officers seen beating and tasing a Peekskill man will not face criminal charges. Plus, a City Council investigation finds public bathrooms across the five boroughs are often dirty, closed, or missing basic amenities. Finally, as the MTA prepares to stop selling MetroCards, some elderly New Yorkers say the transition to OMNY is leaving them behind.

The state of public bathrooms in New York City, and the MTA is phasing out metro cards, leaving some elderly New Yorkers in limbo. From WNYC, this is NYC Now. I'm Jenae Pierre. Some New York City artists say they're steering away from work that centers on race, immigration, or gender identity in response to recent rollbacks from the Trump administration on arts funding. Lisa Gold is the executive director of the Asian American Arts Alliance. She said some artists have asked her organization to remove their bios from its website, fearing harassment.

There are concerns about telling stories or identifying yourself or putting yourself out there. We've had people who don't feel comfortable, like saying that they are immigrants. Those concerns come after hundreds of arts organizations had their funding pulled by the National Endowment. for the arts. That's the country's largest public arts funder. The federal agency removed funding from hundreds of arts orgs nationwide. The Port Authority says nearly 15 million people are expected to travel through its airports and crossings during the holidays. They say that's up 1% from last year's record. The number includes nearly 6 million people flying through JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark Liberty. The Port Authority is urging travelers to plan ahead.

and allow extra time. Road work will pause at all bridges and tunnels beginning Tuesday, but traffic is still expected to be heavy. Path trains will run modified schedules on Christmas and New Year's Day, and at JFK, construction detours are causing major changes to pick up and drop-off zones. Multiple Westchester County police officers won't face charges after video showed them beating and tasing a peak skill man during an arrest earlier this month. WNYC's Veronica DeValle has more.

The county district attorney's office says there isn't enough evidence to bring criminal charges against the officers who arrested DeMar Fields. Video of the arrests circulated on social media, sparking outcry over Fields's treatment. The DA's office last week announced they will, however, pursue charges against Fields. Those include possession of a controlled substance and public lewdness. The DA says she's referring the matter back to peace school police for internal investigation and recommending more training for the department on dealing with mentally ill individuals. A spokesperson for the field's family has said his behavior is a mental health issue, not a criminal one. The public bathroom situation here in New York City stinks.

There's a noted lack of options for a situation. city of this size. And the public restrooms that the city does have are regularly closed, dirty, or lacking basic amenities. A recent city council investigation called Good to Go looked at nearly 200 bathroom facilities around the five boroughs. We saw a stunning lack of diaper changing stations, menstrual products. We saw unsanitary bathrooms, places that didn't have basic necessities for the bathroom. That's New York City Council member, Shaker Krishnan, who leads the council's committee on parks and recreation. He says when park bathrooms fall apart, it's a warning sign for the whole city. If we want a clean city, then we have to

have clean parks. If we want clean parks, we have to have clean bathrooms. Council member Krishnan says that over the last four years, the Adams administration has slashed the parks department and cut worker jobs that the city council had to fight to get restored. We have dealt with the mayor who has, on the one hand, as with many things, profess to care about these issues, and on the other hand, utterly failed to invest in our parks department. It's just that simple. To meanfully improve bathroom facilities, he says a significant investment in the department is needed. We lack the amount of funding that every other major city in America has when it comes to parks in green space. We have to change that reality. And in doing so, we can start by funding better bathrooms and better

facilities in our park. That's New York City Council member Shaker Krishna. Up next, with the MTA set to phase out metro cards in favor of the Omni Tap and Go system in the new year, many elderly New Yorkers are voicing concern over how the transition will affect them. That's after the break. The MTA will stop selling metro cards at the end of the year, and the tap-and-pay Omni system is how riders will pay for transit. WMYC's Stephen Nesson reports many elderly New Yorkers who rely on discount fare cards are still struggling with the transition. Always got what it is.

You want to check mine? On a frigid day on the Upper East Side, temperatures are in the 20s. 87-year-old Pat Schistle and her 97-year-old husband, Chick, are braving the cold to wait in line to swap money from their old half-priced Metro cards to brand-new Omni cards. And I really don't know if there is money on here or not. So if there is and we're able to switch it over, I'll feel great. Each day this month, the MTA has deployed vans across the city to help the MetroCard's

final holdouts make the switch. It's also a chance for many elderly New Yorkers. who struggle with digital technology to learn about the new system. After 30 minutes, the shistles, well frozen by now, make it to the front of the line. Only to find they couldn't be helped. They told me that I need to go to one of the customer service places, which is hard for us. Others find Omni has fewer features than the Metro Card. I don't like that. You don't know the balance when you swipe.

That's 65-year-old Thomas Leclair, who lives in Upper Manhattan. They need to fix that. 69-year-old Donna Evans from Windsor Terrace says Omni's fair capping policy is hard to figure out. That's where riders get free rides for the rest of the week if they pay for 12 trips in a seven-day period. They seem to change the goalposts, at least in my experience. One week it seems to be Wednesday through Thursday, the next week it's Sunday through Saturday. And several seniors interviewed say they'll miss something basic about the Metro Card. 79-year-old Upper East Side resident Jane Harrison

flashes her half-price metro card, which bears her smiling portrait. The new senior Omni cards do not have the faces on the back, just the name. It's pretty, and the Omni isn't pretty. Her husband, J.B, doesn't like it either. I do miss the fact that my picture's not on it because I think someone could steal it and use it if I had lots of money on it.

The MTA hopes the flexibility of using any contact payment with Omni will make it easier for riders. Many older New Yorkers have transitioned from token to the MetroCard. Now, they have until New Year's Eve to get on board with Omni. Good tomorrow. Thank you so much. You're welcome. Okay, thank you. You're welcome. All right, before we go, while New Yorkers may have seen a dusting of snow on the way to work or school Tuesday morning, meteorologists say the chance of a white Christmas this year is looking slim. Skies will dry out for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, with temperatures in the 40s.

The next chance of accumulating snow could be as soon as Friday or Saturday, though forecasters say it's still too early to tell how much that could be. Anyway, thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Jenae Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow. Thank you.