All transit companies in New York City are joining forces on Thursday for a loud show of support for transit workers across the city.
Subways, buses, trains, and ferries will all blast their horns at 3 p.m. on Thursday. The MTA, Amtrak, NJ Transit, Port Authority, NYC Ferry, and other regional operators have all collaborated on the effort.
“Our employees are heroes,” MTA Chairman and CEO Patrick J. Foye said in a press release. “They are courageously coming to work each day to perform their essential duties, which are critically important to this region… We hope this action will draw attention to their efforts and help further our employees’ spirit of solidarity with all New Yorkers.”
MTA has also been sharing the importance of transit workers with their #HeroesMovingHeroes campaign, which highlights the fact that MTA employees must continue to do their jobs in order for other essential workers to be able to get to work — including doctors, nurses, first responders, grocery store employees, and childcare providers.
“Our region’s frontline transit employees deserve all the thanks and recognition we can give them right now,” NJ Transit CEO and President Kevin Corbett said in a statement. “This effort is a small yet powerful way for us to show our appreciation for the brave, selfless transit workers who continue to show up every day, under some of the most challenging conditions any of us have ever seen.”
The noisy show of solidarity will be shared online with the hashtag, #SoundTheHorn.
Other essential workers have been receiving similar tributes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Across the world, clapping every night for essential workers has become a tradition, from the UK to Seattle to Italy.
In NYC, this applause takes place every night at 7 p.m. Not only do these gestures show gratitude for medical staff, but they also provide a moment of catharsis for residents in lockdown.
There are now over 636,000 coronavirus cases in the United States as of this writing, according to The New York Times. Over 213,000 of those cases are in New York State.
