The MetroCard system is pretty old, and the MTA is probably doing the minimum possible maintenance since it was planning on phasing out the system 2 years ago:

The MetroCard system is pretty old, and the MTA is probably doing the minimum possible maintenance since it was planning on phasing out the system 2 years ago: http://secondavenuesagas.com/2013/02/24/a-rudderless-project-to-replace-the-outdated-metrocard/ http://secondavenuesagas.com/2013/02/24/a-rudderless-project... And this leftover-money pattern will probably disappear once the base fare is raised, anyway. People who live in the city generally just repeatedly reload their Metrocard, especially since the MTA added a $1 charge for a new one, anyway.