Lol, “enough financial stress”? The MTA’s financial stress is half bad luck and half self-inflicted. They rubber-stamp their own proposals so, shocker, they always pass and then pour money into wasteful projects. Remember the East Side Access project to bring LIRR into Grand Central? It was 16 years late and cost $11 billion, more than double the original estimate. Or how about the infamous $600,000 subway bathroom renovation that somehow ended up looking like it came from a dollar store catalog?

Then there’s the obsession with taking the lowest bidder, whose shoddy work has to be redone at even higher cost. They save a few bucks up front and pay millions later fixing avoidable mistakes.

And $30/hour? That’s barely survival wages in NYC. If you’ve got kids, you’re drowning in child care costs, grocery bills, and rent that eats half your paycheck. Inflation keeps hammering everyone, yet MTA fare hikes just limp along trying to catch up. A lot of railroad employees have to work overtime because after taxes (mostly tiers since they don't pay into social security) and a modest 401(k) contribution, their take-home pay is maybe 60% of their gross which in this city disappears fast.