Access-A-Ride (NYC Paratransit): On-Time Rates, Trips & Complaints
An Access-A-Ride report card from MTA open data, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026, updated monthly · Not affiliated with the MTA
To book or check a trip, apply or find the phone number, go to the MTA's Access-A-Ride page. This page shows how the service performs, from the MTA's own data.
How many people use Access-A-Ride?
Trips given to registered riders (personal care attendants and guests riding along are not counted). Access-A-Ride uses its own contracted vans and also books car services and taxis.
Access-A-Ride gave about 33,968 trips a day from Oct 2025 – Sep 2026, 11.6% more than the 12 months before.
Trips a day, by month
Where trips start
- Brooklyn
33.1% of trips11,243 a day - Manhattan
22% of trips7,456 a day - Queens
19.8% of trips6,712 a day - Bronx
19.1% of trips6,484 a day - Staten Island
4.7% of trips1,611 a day - Nassau
1% of trips342 a day - Westchester
0.4% of trips120 a day
Who drives
- Broker (car services)66.4%
- Primary (Access-A-Ride vans)19.6%
- Taxis6.4%
- Supplemental (extra car services)4%
- E-Hail (app-booked taxis)2.1%
- Contingency (backup providers)1.6%
When do Access-A-Ride trips happen?
Trips by the hour of the promised pickup time, average day.
The busiest hour for pickups is 12 PM, with about 2,906 trips on an average day.
- 12 AM184
- 1 AM87
- 2 AM64
- 3 AM93
- 4 AM297
- 5 AM642
- 6 AM1,381
- 7 AM1,997
- 8 AM2,434
- 9 AM2,691
- 10 AM2,696
- 11 AM2,652
- 12 PM2,906
- 1 PM2,764
- 2 PM2,675
- 3 PM2,351
- 4 PM2,105
- 5 PM1,696
- 6 PM1,215
- 7 PM858
- 8 PM745
- 9 PM620
- 10 PM465
- 11 PM351
Is Access-A-Ride on time?
Pickups compared with the promised pickup time, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026. The MTA's standard is 20 minutes. Covers Access-A-Ride's vans and car services (not taxis or e-hail).
88.5% of pickups came within 20 minutes of the promised time, compared with 92.5% the year before.
Pickups within 20 minutes, by month
By borough
| Pickup borough | Within 20 minutes | Pickups |
|---|---|---|
| Nassau, Westchester and other | 91.9% | 60,544 |
| Bronx | 90% | 2,107,264 |
| Queens | 89.9% | 2,199,850 |
| Staten Island | 89% | 557,805 |
| Brooklyn | 88.2% | 3,513,784 |
| Manhattan | 85.8% | 2,148,634 |
Do riders get to appointments on time?
Trips booked with an appointment time, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026.
50.3% of trips to an appointment arrived on time, meaning no more than 30 minutes early and not late.
- On time (up to 30 minutes early)
909,038 trips50.3% - 31–45 minutes early
410,269 trips22.7% - More than 45 minutes early
260,450 trips14.4% - Late
226,054 trips12.5%
How long are Access-A-Ride trips?
Completed trips, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026.
The average trip took 37 minutes. 98.6% of trips stayed within the maximum ride time the MTA sets for their distance.
| Trip length | Trips | Average ride | Within the maximum |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–3 miles | 2,760,068 | 17 min | 97.9% |
| 3–6 miles | 2,453,552 | 29 min | 98.4% |
| 6–9 miles | 1,585,804 | 42 min | 98.9% |
| 9–12 miles | 1,199,994 | 52 min | 99% |
| 12–14 miles | 582,513 | 59 min | 99.4% |
| More than 14 miles | 1,189,180 | 69 min | 99.3% |
No-shows and trip quality
Last 12 months of data. A no-show is when the driver doesn't arrive within 30 minutes of the promised time and the trip doesn't happen. "Every standard" means the trip was on time at pickup and drop-off, within the maximum ride time and not a no-show.
| Provider | No-shows per 1,000 trips | Trips meeting every standard |
|---|---|---|
| Primary (Access-A-Ride vans) | 0.97 | 86% |
| Broker (car services) | 1.42 | 87% |
What do Access-A-Ride riders complain about?
Complaints to Access-A-Ride by category, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026.
74,181 complaints, about 6 for every 1,000 trips.
- Service - No Shows20,402
- Driver18,268
- Customer8,389
- Service - Late Pickup7,131
- Service - Ride Time5,789
- Policy4,311
- Service - Other2,078
- Travel Services (Same Day)1,836
- Travel Planning (Res)1,706
- IT/Technology1,503
How fast does Access-A-Ride answer the phone?
The 12 months to Jun 2026.
| Line | Calls a month | Answered | Average wait |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reservations | 639,866 | 94% | 1.7 min |
| Trip status ("Where's my ride?") | 412,380 | 88% | 2.2 min |
Who is registered for Access-A-Ride?
People registered for Access-A-Ride, by where they live.
215,880 people were registered in September 2026.
- Brooklyn75,994
- Queens50,193
- Bronx41,818
- Manhattan30,114
- Staten Island15,432
- Nassau1,342
- Westchester987
Registered riders, by month
Questions
How many people use Access-A-Ride?
Access-A-Ride gave about 33,968 trips a day from Oct 2025 – Sep 2026 (12,398,270 in all), 11.6% more than the 12 months before. 215,880 people were registered in September 2026.
Is Access-A-Ride on time?
88.5% of pickups came within 20 minutes of the promised time (the MTA's standard), Oct 2025 – Sep 2026. 82.7% came within 15 minutes and 95.1% within 30 minutes. For trips to an appointment, 50.3% arrived on time (no more than 30 minutes early and not late).
How long is an Access-A-Ride trip?
The average trip took 37 minutes, and 98.6% of trips stayed within the maximum ride time for their distance (Oct 2025 – Sep 2026).
How long does Access-A-Ride take to answer the phone?
Over the last 12 months of data, 92% of calls were answered, after an average wait of about 1.9 minutes.
What do Access-A-Ride riders complain about most?
The most common complaint category was "Service - No Shows" (20,402 complaints, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026), out of 74,181 complaints in all.
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Data (data.ny.gov): Paratransit Ridership, Paratransit Ridership 2016–2023, Pickup On-Time Performance, Drop-off On-Time Performance, Ride Time, Provider No-Shows, Customer Experience, Customer Complaints, Call Center Performance, Registrants. Updated Nov 3, 2026.
Source code: github.com/MantieReid/mta-data-analysis · Analysis by Mantie Reid II (CC BY 4.0).
This is an independent data analysis project and is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).
Data is sourced from the MTA through the New York State Open Data Portal. Visualizations, calculations, and interpretations are independently produced. Data may be revised, incomplete, or delayed. For official transit information, visit mta.info.