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NYCHA Now
News to Use November 2018 

Save Money with the Commuter Benefits Program

Michael Corwin

Did you know that you can save hundreds of dollars in taxes each year by taking advantage of the Commuter Benefits Program? You can deduct up to $260 from your taxable income each month for the NYC Subway, Long Island Rail Road, New Jersey Transit, and other mass transit options, and up to $260 a month for qualified commuter parking. Here are the five Commuter Benefits Program options, which are paid for by automatic payroll deductions:

  1. Commuter Card: Provides a commuter card that is used like a credit card to purchase MetroCards or other transit fares. The “unrestricted” option lets you set your own payroll deduction amount based on your monthly commuting expenses (and has an administrative fee of $1.77 a month). Alternatively, you can select the “no admin fee” commuter card, which deducts $121 a month from your paychecks, the cost of a 30-day Unlimited Ride MetroCard.
  1. Premium TransitChek MetroCard: Provides an annual Unlimited Ride MetroCard (good for a continuous 12-month period) through $121 in monthly payroll deductions. The employee must place an order for the Premium TransitChek MetroCard with WageWorks after enrollment.
  1. Transit Pass: Allows you to arrange for home delivery of a transit pass from any of the many participating Transit Plan providers. The employee must place an order for the Transit Pass with WageWorks after enrollment.
  1. Park & Ride: Uses pre-tax and post-tax payroll deductions to pay for transit-related parking.
  1. Access-A-Ride/Paratransit: Funds Access-A-Ride coupons or tickets from other paratransit providers for senior citizens and persons with disabilities.

You can enroll in any of these Commuter Benefit Program options on NYCAPS Employee Self-Service (ESS) by following these instructions. Before enrolling, make sure your mailing address, telephone number, and email address are up-to-date in NYCAPS ESS.

For more information, visit WageWorks, which administers these plans. If you have any questions, you can contact NYCHA’S Payroll Support at 212-306-3222 (select option 2).