The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced Monday plans to reinstate its fare-checking teams on New York City buses following a review prompted by two recent violent incidents involving team members and passengers. NYC Transit President Demetrius Crichlow said the agency is currently reassessing the teams’ training and operational protocols to address concerns raised by these episodes.
The fare-checking teams are part of the MTA’s Evasion and Graffiti Lawlessness Eradication (EAGLE) program, which was temporarily pulled from bus fare enforcement duties last week after surveillance footage surfaced showing physical altercations during fare inspections. While many EAGLE team members are former police officers, they are not peace officers under state law and do not carry weapons.
“It is not New York City Transit’s policy that our employees, any employees, should be getting physical with our customers,” Crichlow said during a Metropolitan Transportation Authority board meeting. He emphasized that such conduct does not represent the professionalism expected from the teams and noted they have since been reassigned to other duties, including graffiti investigations, train yard inspections, and patrols of transit facilities.
Crichlow added that the MTA remains committed to implementing a proof-of-payment system for buses, citing a 2023 blue-ribbon panel report that recommended increased fare enforcement by unarmed personnel. “We’re committed to doing that, having the teams in place,” he said, “but it can’t be like this. We have to do better.”
The incidents under review include one in mid-October captured on video in Brooklyn’s Brownsville neighborhood, where four fare checkers were seen physically confronting Kyle Taylor, a school aide, after he attempted to evade a fare check. The footage shows Taylor being pushed against a bus stop shelter and falling to the ground twice during the exchange. Following the exposure of this video, MTA Chairman Janno Lieber ordered the EAGLE teams off buses temporarily and criticized the delays in internal reporting of these incidents.
Separately, another altercation occurred on August 6 near the intersection of White Plains Road and Gun Hill Road in the Bronx on a Bx 39 bus. Surveillance footage reviewed by the MTA shows a confrontation between a passenger and several EAGLE team members, which escalated physically, with the passenger and an EAGLE member falling from the bus entrance onto the street. Sources familiar with the episode said the passenger later threatened the team with a knife, though the New York Police Department (NYPD) report makes no mention of a weapon. The NYPD confirmed a report had been filed against the passenger for harassment, noting no injuries or arrests resulted from the incident.
The EAGLE program has increasingly focused on bus fare enforcement in recent years, with team members authorized to check riders for proof of payment and issue fines to those traveling without paying. According to recent MTA data, just over half of city bus riders currently pay their fares.
The MTA is continuing to investigate both incidents and review the EAGLE teams’ training and operational practices. “It’s clear that there’s work to do,” Crichlow said.