Earlier this month, the Assembly and the Senate passed a bill (A.9020, S.5473) that provides a moratorium on the closing of token booths for up to three years after the bill goes into effect. The bill would also create a transit safety committee to study methods of making the subways safer.

The bill is currently sitting in the Senate in Albany, waiting to be sent to Governor Pataki. The bill does not have to be sent until December 31, but will likely be sent to him by late summer or early fall, according to sources in Albany. Once the governor receives the bill, he has only 10 days to decide whether to pass or veto the measure.

The bill has already put the governor in a difficult situation. The MTA wants him to veto it, and elected officials and riders want him to keep the booths open and increase security in the subway. Passing the bill would provide the governor with a chance to regain the respect of the riding public, who watched as he sat on the sidelines during fare hikes and the MTA accountability scandal. 

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