New York – ‘Swipers’ Get Outbound Travelers Metrocards at JFK, Then Resell Swipes For Less Than Regular Fare

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    New York – Metrocard. Don’t go home with it.

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    That’s the pitch subway hustlers are making to tourists on their way to John F. Kennedy Airport and their flights back home.

    “What are the tourists going to do with them?” explained one of the men, showing off a handful of MetroCards he had scored. “Throw them in the garbage? I can hustle and make a buck.”

    The fast-talkers collect MetroCards at two eastern Queens transit hubs that connect the subway system to the airport-bound AirTrain: Sutphin Blvd./Archer Ave. in Jamaica and Howard Beach.

    With the still-valid MetroCards in hand, the so-called “swipers” then sell other straphangers entry into the subway system for less than the $2.25 fare.

    Undercover police periodically make arrests for swipe-selling, but most get off with a slap on the wrist.

    “If I got arrested, I’d be out the next morning,” said the hustler who spoke to the Daily News.

    The swindler – who called himself “J” – said he couldn’t find legitimate work. But he can make between $30 to $80 a day selling swipes, he said.

    “It keeps me full,” he said.

    One transit worker said some of the hustlers can be intimidating, if not menacing, to tourists laded down with baggage.

    A few out-of-town travelers, easily identifiable as they wheeled their luggage through the hub, said they weren’t fazed by being asked for their leftover MetroCards.

    “At first it was uncomfortable for me, but then I thought someone was asking me for help and I should stop,” said Masha Nebritova, 28, of Manhattan.

    Nebritova, a photographer, kept her MetroCard. She’s only going for a visit with relatives in Russia and will need it later.

    William Snoeren, 20, of Holland, and a friend gave up their weekly MetroCards, which were still good for two more days.

    “We don’t need it,” Snoeren said. “It’s fine by me.”

    The MTA says it could use the revenue it loses when swipers sell trips that otherwise would be paid for.

    Citing budget gaps, the MTA has cut service and laid off transit workers, including token booth clerks – who often are the ones to report such swipe-sellers to the police.


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    23 Comments
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    basmelech
    basmelech
    13 years ago

    I haven’t been on the subway since tokens were in use and I don’t know anything about metro cards or how to go about getting one. I think I’ll stay out of the city or just drive there if I have to be there.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Why is this illegal?

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Cool way of making money!

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Remember don’t steal the government hates competition

    13 years ago

    To # 2
    This is Illegal because the MTA are a bunch of crooks!

    BinderDundat
    BinderDundat
    13 years ago

    I’m trying to figure how the MTA loses money here. The metrocards are prepaid, they already got the money. Something doesn’t smell right.

    Facist States of A
    Facist States of A
    13 years ago

    why are they getting arrested? Police presumtion to detain people in this country is downright freaky

    13 years ago

    It’s just like the muni-meter scam. Once upon a time we New Yorkers would find meters with some time left on them. “Oh boy,” we’d say, “look at that, there are 20 minutes left on this meter and I’m only going to be in the store for 10 minutes. It’s my lucky day.” Then the evil muni-meters came into existence and our lives were made miserable. Now we have to run a block to pay at the muni-meter, run back to our cars and pray a meter maid didn’t get to it in the meantime (can’t you hear her snickering while she’s writing that ticket?), put the receipt in the windshield, and finally go to your destination. And what sticks in your craw is the fact that the lady who just pulled out of the space before you took it had put enough money in for an hour and she only used up 10 minutes of that time. So the city gets double the money for the same period of time at the exact same space. It’s illegal for lawyers to double-bill their clients, it should be illegal for the city too.

    Jimmy37
    Jimmy37
    13 years ago

    Why is it illegal for someone to sell a paid-for subway ride? It’s no different than me selling my prepaid gift card on eBay for less than the face amount. And if I gave my card to my friend, the MTA still loses the fare. This is the stupidest argument.

    enlightened-yid
    enlightened-yid
    13 years ago

    I can’t afford traveling in the city a lot by subway anymore. I’m forced to break the law and seek out these hustlers to sell me cheaper rides.

    13 years ago

    To # 13

    I’m sure if you’d put a post on craigslist you will get a few responses.

    13 years ago

    reply to #1 :

    What did you feel you were adding to the discussion here by your post?

    #1 – basmelech Says:
    I haven’t been on the subway since tokens were in use and I don’t know anything about metro cards or how to go about getting one. I think I’ll stay out of the city or just drive there if I have to be there.

    Matzoslocal101
    Matzoslocal101
    13 years ago

    It seems that #18 is the only one who understands the problem. The city is relying on a certain number of paid for metrocards not to be used. When they are used, the money the city thought they could pocket is no longer clear and free profit, it is a ride that they could have sold again. It is very similar to buying a 7 cents a minute phone card. when your balance is 6 cents the card is useless, that times a million cards is $60K. There are people that bought phone cards for trips and college and don’t use them. The phone calculates a certain percentage of phone cards are not going to be, or cannot be, used and it free money for them. The city (state?) recently passed a law preventing stores from offering gift cards with expiration dates or not reinmbursing the unused portion of the card. Stores are not allowed to steal but the city can. When you stop the city from stealing by using the total amount on the card, they charge you with a crime. people pay less because the kids hawking the cards got them for free, so they can sell them for less than the full face value, but the bottom line is, the full face value was paid by the original purchaser. The city is losing nothing.