Sound Transit
Parsons on Dec. 5 reported being selected for a position on Sound Transit’s 2025 $1 billion-ceiling MATOC for design services. This five-year contract, with two potential one-year extensions, will support the transit agency’s $60 billion capital program. Under this MATOC, Parsons said it will provide architecture, engineering, and related services for light rail extension, system resiliency and sustainability improvement, and state-of-good-repair projects.
The consultancy has teamed with Sound Transit in the past, serving as lead designer of the Federal Way Link Extension, a 7.8-mile design-build light rail transit project that opened Dec. 6; as major design partner for the 16-mile Everett Link Extension, currently in the preliminary engineering phase; and as provider of track and rail systems preliminary engineering for the Downtown Redmond Link Extension, which opened in May 2025.
“This award reflects our deep understanding of Sound Transit’s system and our proven ability to deliver innovative, cost-effective solutions for complex transit programs,” said Mark Fialkowski, President, Infrastructure North America at Parsons. “We’re proud to continue supporting the Puget Sound region’s ambitious mobility goals and to help shape the future of sustainable urban transportation.”
WMATA
In the coming days, WMATA customers can “catch a sweet ride” on special holiday-wrapped Metrorail, Metrobus, and MetroAccess vehicles, the transit authority reported Dec. 5. The outside of the fleet will feature “a candy-filled wonderland” on a bright red backdrop, it said, noting that the train will also be “decked out with holiday spirit” on the inside.
Three wrapped buses, one train, and one MetroAccess vehicle will run throughout the Washington, D.C.; Maryland; and Virginia region during the season. Riders can track both the wrapped buses and train by visiting wmata.com/live and clicking on “special edition.”
Similarly for Veterans Day, WMATA wrapped train, bus and MetroAccess vehicles to celebrate the men and women who have served the United States. With a network of six rail lines, 98 stations, 125 bus routes, and paratransit service, WMATA is the second busiest transit system in the country, and nearly 25% of its workforce has served in the military.
In related news, WMATA in August announced that the public selected Option 3 for the exterior design of its 256 8000-series rapid transit cars from Hitachi Rail, which will start arriving in 2027. The public was able to vote for one of three design options. Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority in 2021 also asked the public to weigh in on an exterior graphic design; it was for its 254 new Stadler railcars. The winner was revealed in 2022.
MTA
MTA New York City Transit (NYCT) on Dec. 5 reported surpassing 4.6 million subway riders, setting a post-pandemic ridership record, while also achieving an on-time performance (OTP) record for November of 84.4%—“the best November since the pandemic.” On Wednesday, Dec. 3, 4.61 million customers rode the subway, and on Thursday, Dec. 4, 4.63 million customers rode the subway.
According to MTA, both days eclipsed the previous record set on Oct. 29, 2025, of 4.6 million subway customers, and were up 6% from the same dates in 2024. “These milestones come as 94% of subway and bus trips are now paid with the MTA’s new contactless tap and ride system,” the transit agency reported.
Additionally, the November OTP record “extends the trend of historically strong” subway performance in 2025, MTA reported. Subway OTP reached 85% in September (“the best September in modern history”), maintaining August’s 85.1%, which was said to be the best August in a decade; and building on May’s “record-setting” 85.2%, “the highest non-pandemic OTP on record.” MTA said these gains coincide with service increases on the A and L lines, reducing wait times for more than 100,000 weekday riders. Beginning Monday, Dec. 8, rush hour service will also increase on the M line.
Commented MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber: “No secret: transit is the best way to get around New York. When our subways are safe, frequent, and reliable, people will use them more and more. That’s what’s happened and the records are going to keep coming.”
“Hitting 4.6 million subway riders as we achieve another OTP milestone shows once again that when you deliver safe and reliable service riders will take it,” NYCT President Demetrius Crichlow noted. “We’re determined to carry this momentum into 2026, as we continue to tout all the opportunities available to riders to seamlessly switch to tap and ride.”
“New Yorkers have embraced tap and ride and we’re proud to see that as more and more people return to the city, they are choosing mass transit,” MTA Chief Customer Officer Shanifah Rieara added. “As the end of MetroCard sales nears, we are focusing on reaching the remaining 6% to make the switch and unlock the benefits and convenience of tap and ride technology.”
MTA noted that the last day to purchase or reload a MetroCard will be Dec. 31, 2025, with the acceptance of MetroCards ending in mid-2026. As announced in March, by eliminating the sale of MetroCard and fully transitioning to one fare collection method, MTA expects to save at least $20 million annually in costs related to MetroCard production and distribution; vending machine repairs; and cash collection and handling. Moving to a contactless payment, it said, also “unlocks potential for new customer-friendly promotions and fare discounts.”
Meanwhile, MTA also announced that new Ticket Vending Machines (VTM) are now in service at both Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad stations. All machines sell both commuter railroads’ tickets; riders have the option to scan the barcode of a previously purchased ticket to pull up a similar ticket purchase again; change is now offered in bills ($5, $10), instead of all coins; and the machines offer services in nine languages plus English instead of the previous three languages.
“For nearly 25 years, our legacy TVMs have been the backbone of fare payment, maintaining 97% availability and generating about 30% of all ticket sales,” MTA reported Dec. 5. “However, by 2024 the OMNY project for Metro-North and LIRR was significantly delayed and our TVMs and TOMs [Ticket Office Machines] urgently needed replacement. Teams at both railroads pivoted to launch a new contract with Scheidt and Bachmann, the vendor for the current legacy system, and kicked off a new project in June 2024. Moving from concept to implementation in just over a year is an extraordinary achievement.”
Full installation began in mid-October with a scheduled completion of mid-2026 to bring new TVMs to all LIRR and Metro-North stations. MTA said this project also includes new TOMs, which are scheduled for deployment in 2026. The work was driven by collaboration across Metro-North, LIRR, MTA IT, MTA Finance, MTA Construction and Development, Jacobs Engineering, and MTA Headquarters, with support from employees and long-time vendor Scheidt and Bachmann.
According to MTA, there will be additional upgrades being rolled out in 2026 to the payment options.
“The first thing every rider does before boarding an LIRR train is buy a ticket, and the LIRR offers several ways to do that including our groundbreaking TrainTime app and for riders who prefer a paper ticket, the new Ticket Vending Machines make that experience smoother and more convenient,” LIRR President Rob Free said. “We’ve been rolling out the new machines through the system over the last few months, and we’re excited to connect Long Islanders with all the great destinations in Metro-North territory and the new features they offer.”
“The MTA is a true regional rail system and these new TVM’s make it easier for riders to purchase tickets to any Metro-North or Long Island destination,” Metro-North Railroad President Justin Vonashek said. “All of the railroads’ new fare options will be available in these machines after the new year, making MTA riders’ trips even faster and smoother than ever.”
