New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on Thursday floated a new idea for fixing New York City's beleaguered subway system: corporate sponsorship. Speaking at a breakfast for the Association for a Better New York, Cuomo announced a new "adopt-a-subway" program to allow private business to flood individual subway stations with cash, which would then be used to make improvements at those stations.
Joe Lhota, the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs the city's subway system, clarified that it's "very possible" Cuomo's adopt-a-station plan would grant naming rights to the businesses. Businesses could sponsor general subway improvements starting with contributions in the "hundreds of thousands of dollars," Gothamist reports. To sponsor improvements on the individual station level, businesses would need to contribute up to $600,000, depending on the size and location of the station.
Per Gothamist, Andrew Albert, a non-voting member of the MTA board, said relying on private companies to infuse money for improvements would "run the risk of having improvements only made in specific areas. ... I could name far-flung stations throughout the system that would be a hard sell." Lhota apparently told reporters that details of the adopt-a-station plan were still being finalized.
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In the meantime, anyone interested in pooling some funds to sponsor 42nd Street-Bryant Park-Tweet Angrily at Gov. Cuomo Station should contact me immediately.
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