NYC subway sets a post-pandemic ridership high during UN week

More people rode the subway on Wednesday, Sept. 23, than on any day since before the pandemic. The MTA counted 4,696,692 rides, close to 4.7 million people in a single day.

That number tops the system’s earlier post-pandemic best of 4.61 million, reached in December 2025. The new high arrived during the United Nations General Assembly. During that week, heavy traffic and street closures lead the city to urge New Yorkers to leave the car at home and use mass transit.

How the new subway ridership record compares

The system has not yet returned to its old numbers. In the years before Covid, a typical weekday regularly drew more than 5.5 million riders. At the worst of the pandemic in the city, in April 2020, daily trips sank to roughly 300,000, a plunge of over 90%.

In a post on X, the MTA hailed the new record. The agency credited its investments in safety and reliability across the system and said the work is “paying off.”

Gridlock Alert Days and UN week traffic

Wednesday was also a Gridlock Alert Day. The Department of Transportation uses that label for days when it anticipates unusually heavy, slow-moving traffic on city streets. Some people who usually drive into Manhattan may have switched to the train instead, which could have added to the total.

The Gridlock Alert remains in place through Friday as the General Assembly goes on. Looking further ahead, the next stretch of heavy traffic is likely to arrive around Thanksgiving and last for much of December, as the holiday season gets underway.