MTA adds C, 1, 7 and F trains for World Cup Mta match days

The mta said it will run additional trains on the C, 1, 7 and F lines on World Cup match days, targeting riders headed to Penn Station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal for travel to New York/New Jersey Stadium. Shanifah Rieara, the agency’s chief customer officer, said the service plan is part of a broader push to keep the system moving for major events.

Rieara said the MTA has been expanding subway service on more than a dozen lines since 2023. For World Cup days, the extra trains are the most specific change riders will see on those routes, and they are aimed at handling the event-day spikes that come with stadium travel through two of the city’s busiest rail hubs.

Rieara on MTA service

In an op-ed about MTA investments, Rieara said, “Our goal every day is to make good transit a given.” She also said, “You don’t think about it because you know it’s going to get you where you need to go.”

She tied that reliability to capital spending, saying, “That doesn’t happen with a hope and a prayer.” Rieara added, “It takes investment, which the MTA has done a lot of in the last few years thanks to increased funding from the State under the leadership of Governor Hochul.”

Lines, stations and service

The World Cup plan sits alongside other MTA projects the agency cited as part of its capacity work. The MTA said it was able to increase service for the U.S. Open compared with 2018 because of Double Track, Third Track and Grand Central Madison, and said it plans to run an average of seven to eight additional trains per day for that event.

Rieara said, “This time, nobody’s being inconvenienced despite plans to run an average of seven to eight additional trains per day, while also increasing train lengths and offering more direct service options to and from the temporary Shinnecock Hills Station.” The MTA also said it is looking into ways to extend the Q line all the way to Broadway along 125 St after Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 is completed.

Second Avenue Subway Phase 2

The agency said it is in the early stages of redesigning Jamaica Station, and it pointed to last week’s groundbreaking for Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 as part of the same systemwide effort. For riders, the immediate change is on the C, 1, 7 and F lines, where the added trains are meant to carry more people to the rail options feeding World Cup stadium trips.