Class Is Part of a Push to Rebuild Front Line Workforce in Aftermath of Pandemic-Induced Hiring Freeze Last Year
New Employees Join Hundreds of Bus Operators and Train Operators and Conductors Who Completed Training in 2021 and 2022
View Photos from the Graduation Here
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced the graduation of 91 new bus operators following their successful completion of training at the Zerega Training Center in Castle Hill in the Bronx. These operators will help New York City Transit (NYCT) tackle crew shortage challenges and bolster the frequency of bus service. This marked the formal end of six weeks of intensive training that began in February 2022.
The graduation took place as New York City Transit Bus and MTA Bus Company combined ridership hovers around 60 percent of pre-pandemic levels. The MTA also announced it received a $12 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to repair the roof at the Michael J. Quill Bus Depot in Manhattan. That depot currently houses 16 electric bus chargers and 15 zero emissions buses that operate on the M14 SBS and M60 SBS bus routes, and houses 275 buses total.
“This new group of bus operators will help provide faster and more reliable service to the New Yorkers returning to the system,” said New York City Transit Interim President Craig Cipriano. “We are focused on increasing class sizes and improving recruiting to address the staffing challenges created by the pandemic."
“As riders continue to return to the system for work and school, the MTA is committed to returning to pre-pandemic staffing levels this year,” said MTA Bus Company Acting President and New York City Transit Department of Buses Senior Vice President Frank Annicaro. “I am excited to welcome this new group to our team.”
The new employees join the 545 bus operators, 425 train operators and 341 conductors who recently completed their training, and the hundreds of NYCT workers who are expected to be onboarded in the months ahead — part of a deliberate effort by the MTA to rapidly grow the number of bus operators, subway train operators and conductors. A hiring freeze, necessitated by a fiscal crisis that developed during the pandemic, depleted the ranks of bus operators with many veteran workers retiring or leaving their frontline posts.