The New York MTA is North America's largest transit system

Transit is funded through a three-tier system, and the federal government is the smallest piece

In 2019, the federal government covered about one-sixth of the $79B spent on public transit. States and localities make up the rest. About 85% of all transit trips are taken by bus or heavy rail, and nearly 4 in 10 US transit trips occur in the New York City metro area.

The Federal Transit Administration distributes roughly $20B annually to support local transportation

Created by the Urban Mass Transportation Act in 1964, the FTA funds and oversees the roughly 2,200 transit systems that receive federal support across the US, covering everything from subway capital investment to rural bus service.

The federal government pumped $70 billion into transit amidst reduced ridership during the COVID pandemic

When ridership collapsed by 75% in the spring of 2020, Congress sent transit agencies nearly $70B to help them survive. But that money has largely run out, and ridership remains 14-28% below prepandemic levels, leaving many transit systems with large budget deficits.

Visualizing New York City's public transportation commutes

New York City is one of the largest cities in the world, and transports one of the largest numbers of commuters on a daily basis. This data visualization tells the stories of those commuters, showing the varying volume of travelers throughout the week and day, where they are going, and maps of high-traffic areas like stadiums and midtown. Dive into the data here.

The 2021 infrastructure law increased transit spending 42%, but may not have produced more transit

The infrastructure bill committed $108B to transit, the largest investment in history. However, three years in, real inflation-adjusted investment has declined. An 84% increase in non-highway spending coincided with a potential 29% decrease in actual structures, most likely due to construction inflation and bureaucratic delays.

Read a complete history of urban mass transit in the United States

Explore the rise and fall of American mass transit, from the horse-drawn omnibus era through the streetcar age to the automobile's dominance. In the 1920s, streetcars carried 12 to 13 billion riders per year. By 1963, that number had shrunken to 300,000.

Mass transit in America began with horse-drawn omnibuses in New York City in 1827

The omnibus, a large horse-drawn stagecoach that ran a fixed route and carried a dozen riders at an affordable fare, was different from a private carriage because it carried everyone, not just the wealthy.

LA used to have one of the best mass transit systems in the country

A century ago, Los Angeles had one of the greatest urban transit networks in America. Today, driving in LA traffic can still be faster than taking the train. The city's rail design, which funnels traffic through a single point, fails to support a city with such a spread-out population.

45% of Americans have no access to public transit

Most US transit was built on a monocentric design, funneling riders into a downtown center. But today's most common commute is from suburb to suburb, meaning the system is built for a work pattern that no longer exists.

Boston opened the first subway tunnel in the US in 1897

By the end of the 19th century, nearly 400,000 people were packed into less than a square mile of downtown Boston, with 8,000 horses pulling trolleys through streets choked with noise, manure, and congestion. This prompted the city to pursue a then-controversial subway system.

New York City spends $429 million a year just to get rid of its trash

None of NYC's garbage is processed within the city. It is transported by truck, train, and barge to waste-to-energy facilities and landfills as far away as Ohio and South Carolina, a vast logistical operation.

NYC's first subway was built largely in secret

In 1870, Alfred Ely Beach secretly tunneled under Broadway in 58 nights, disguising his pneumatic subway as a mail tube to fool Tammany Hall, the corrupt political machine that ran New York City. Nearly half a million New Yorkers rode it before politics, and a stock market crash killed the project.

Broadway grosses over $1B annually

The famous but relatively small geographic area is responsible for a relatively enormous economy, thanks to high demand and high ticket prices.

Infrastructure projects in New York are much more difficult today

The Erie Canal was one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects in American history. Many have said such an effort would be impossible today. This article explores why that is the case and ponders the future of large-scale American infrastructure development.

Self-driving cars may upend transit before cities can build it

Austin approved a $7.1B light-rail in 2020, but components of the plan have already been cut. Simultaneously, Waymo launched a 200-car autonomous fleet across the city. Cities now face a choice: invest in decadeslong fixed infrastructure projects or embrace flexible, on-demand autonomous vehicles that can navigate anywhere.

The sewage of New York City

Residents of the five boroughs of New York produce 1.3 billion gallons of wastewater everyday. Seventy miles of sewer pipes, first built in the mid-1800s, feed the sewage to 14 wastewater treatment and recovery plants where the waste is treated back to viable, drinkable water. See what shouldn't go down the toilet here.

The federal government sent roughly $1.1T to state and local governments in 2024

Federal grants support a large portion of state and local budgets, funding Medicaid, infrastructure, education, and housing. In FY 2024, these transfers made up about 16% of total federal spending.

Cities bore the brunt of the migrant surge in the 2020s

During the 2022-24 migration surge, cities such as New York, Chicago, and Denver faced shelter overcrowding, strained public services, and housing shortages—while the upfront costs fell almost entirely to states and cities.

Hear about the debate over free public transportation

Free public transit boosts economic opportunity and social mobility and is better for the environment. So why do we charge for it? Opponents of free transit cite revenue losses threatening service quality and data showing that free fares don't translate into reduced car use.

Over 35% of remote-capable US workers worked from home 'all the time' in 2023

With more than 1.3 million remote workers, the New York City metropolitan area had more remote workers than any of the top 30 metro areas in the US at the time. However, the Austin, Texas, metro area had the largest share of remote workers, with more than 23% of the city's workforce working remotely.

The world's largest stablecoins by market cap

The largest stablecoin by market cap, Tether (USDT), as well as the second largest, USDC, are both pegged to the US dollar. As of April 2026, Tether had a roughly $184B market cap.

Public transit has been a front line of civil rights battles for over a century

Public transit was among the most contested terrain in the fight for racial equality in America, because it was where Black Americans and white Americans were unavoidably forced to share public space.

Essential pipes, sewers, and cables lie buried beneath New York City

The Department of Design and Construction offers a tour of its work sites, explaining the complex systems that exist underground. Gas, electrical, telecom pipes, and many others, sprawl out underneath the entire city, with dozens of maps that help workers know where they're placed. This layout is unusual compared to the rest of the country, where wires are often present and visible above ground.

New York was the most expensive city to rent a three-bedroom apartment in as of 2025

At an average of $8.4K per month, New York City beat out London, Paris, San Francisco, and others as the most expensive major city to rent in. This visualization shows exactly how the others ranked.

NYC congestion pricing a year in: traffic is down, transit is up

Manhattan's congestion pricing program has quietly become a success story. WNYC reporter Stephen Nessen examines why the original backlash to the concept has faded, how New Yorkers adjusted, and what the city's experience shares with similar policies in Stockholm and London.

Explore stories from riders of San Francisco's transit system

Since 2008, the "Muni Diaries" podcast has collected true stories from more than 4,000 transit riders, from a man riding with a black crow on his shoulder to the bus driver who moonlights as a poet.

Local governments are responsible for more than 148,000 public water systems across the US

From large municipal utilities to small rural systems, local governments are tasked with providing clean water to almost every American community. The US operates over 148,000 public water systems.

Tokyo is the world's largest city by population

Home to over 41 million people, the megacity used to be a humble fishing village called Edo. Since Japan opened to foreign trade in the mid-1800s, Tokyo has made significant economic advances and achieved numerous milestones in public transportation, urban planning and culture.

The 2025 budget bill significantly increased ICE's budget and role in federal law enforcement

The 2025 'Big Beautiful Bill' allocated $170B to immigration and border enforcement for use through 2029. ICE's nearly $100B share includes substantial increases in detention capacity and operational scope. The increased funding will make ICE the most heavily funded federal law enforcement agency.

New York City's carriage horses are at the center of a long-running debate over whether a centuries-old tradition still belongs in the country's largest city.

The federal government has spent more money annually than it has collected every year since 2022.

The Nasdaq is typically the world's second-largest stock exchange when measured by the total market value of the companies listed on the exchange.

Map of each state's largest tax revenue source

While America’s federal government primarily raises revenue through personal and corporate income taxes, it's a different story for each of the 50 states. This map shows how every state raises tax revenue for government activities. New York and California, for instance, raise most of that money through personal income taxes, whereas Texas and Florida have sales tax as their largest sources of tax revenue. Click here to see the map.

Known as bullet trains in English, the Shinkansen uses electric motors, aerodynamic design, and infrastructure that prioritizes straightaways to travel at speeds equivalent to commercial planes' takeoff velocity.

The evolution of New York City

Originally founded as New Amsterdam, this interactive timeline lists out and provides deep dives on the major events that shaped New York City as it became America's foremost cultural and economic hub.

The marathon is only getting more popular

The marathon has become a part of popular culture, with races in nearly every major city. The largest is the New York City Marathon, which started in 1970. Over 55,000 runners participated in the 2024 race. Its popularity doesn’t appear to be slowing, with younger generations increasingly lacing up their shoes for the race of a lifetime.

In the late 1800s, New York City streets were covered with millions of pounds of horse manure thanks to a widespread horse-driven transportation industry.

America’s largest Comic-Con by attendance takes place in New York City

New York Comic Con—held annually at New York City's Javits Center since 2006—draws around 200,000 attendees, features more than 570 panels and events, and hosts more than 1,250 exhibitors, making it North America’s biggest pop-culture convention by attendance.

In 2020, government entities spent $316.5B on infrastructure, with state and local governments accounting for 34.8% of that amount.

The complex science of snow removal

Plowing snow seems simple, but its actually a technically complex task and requires significant logistics, patience, and funding. New York City's 19,000 miles of roads require days to plow at a cost of $12M per inch of fallen snow, and roughly 17 million tons of salt were applied to road surfaces across the US in a recent year. Dive into the details of snow removal with an in-depth and funny video.

Use this calculator to find out the programs and services your federal income taxes fund.

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The US air traffic control system is safe but due for major technological updates

On any given day, over 3 million passengers fly on roughly 45,000 flights in the US. Flying today is safer than ever, but air traffic controllers deal with outdated technology that can interfere with pilot communication.

Broadway is a theater district in New York

There are 41 official Broadway theaters in New York City, all within a few blocks of Times Square, a key contributor to the area's prestige and economic success. These theaters host the productions eligible for Tony Awards.

The USPS spent $3.97B in 2024, accounting for .058% of the federal budget.

Broadway is the epicenter of the American theater world

Broadway is shorthand for the Broadway theater district, an area in New York City's Manhattan borough that occupies a segment of Broadway, a 13-mile road. Although the Broadway theater district has a relatively small geographic footprint, its 41 theaters stage some of the world's most popular productions of plays and musicals.

Why high-speed rail hasn't worked in the US

High-speed rail connects cities across Europe and Asia, but American attempts have faced ballooning costs and delays. California's failed attempt to connect San Francisco and Los Angeles is the most prominent example of the dysfunction.

Toronto's downtown has 18 miles of underground pedestrian tunnels

Known as the "Path," these tunnels have helped reduce pedestrian traffic on Toronto's busy downtown streets for over a century. They were first built by local business owners, prompting a network effect of add-on tunnels.

The federal agency dedicated to supporting museums and libraries spent $280M in 2024

The Institute of Museum and Library Services—a division of the National Endowment for the Arts and Humanities—administered $294M in FY 2024, accounting for nearly 40% of the National Endowment's total spending.

Niagara Falls is New York State’s biggest electricity producer

The Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant and Lewiston Pump-Generating Plant together produce up to 2.6 million kilowatts—providing about 20% of New York State’s hydropower and supplying electricity to over 3 million homes.

New York City's carriage horses are a holdover from a time when the city was home to hundreds of thousands of horses roaming its streets.