Savvy NYC students still selling OMNY cards despite crackdown

NEW YORK CITY (PIX11) – Despite city agencies cracking down on the hustle, New York City students are still selling their school-issued OMNY cards loaded with free subway rides on Facebook Marketplace. 

Over a dozen of the lime green subway cards have been listed on Facebook Marketplace in the last two weeks, mostly selling for around $100. The business-savvy students are offering discounts on bulk purchases and markdowns on old listings. 

“Can meetup, cash, Apple Pay and Zelle only. Firm on price but [hit me up],” wrote one seller on Facebook. 

The MTA is working with Facebook and other resale platforms to have the listings removed. But on Monday, PIX11 News discovered listings for student OMNY cards being promoted in an Instagram carousel with the phrasing: "Discover listings you’ll love on Marketplace."

The cards were doled out to New York City Public Schools students at the start of the school year, and they’re good for four free rides per day year-round. 

Any cards that are “subject to unauthorized use,” including use by a non-student, will be deactivated, a spokesperson for the MTA told PIX11 News on Monday.

"The small number of student OMNY cards showing up on the internet — out of hundreds of thousands distributed at schools — are being deactivated, meaning their value is zero. So…buyer beware,” said MTA Chief Customer Officer Shanifah Rieara in September. 

New York City Public Schools told PIX11 in September it was “looking into” the sales. Meta did not immediately respond to PIX11’s request for comment.