Tens of thousands of runners (50k +) and tons of foreign runners among them with tons of hotel rooms and restaurants, bars, stores and tourist sites that get marathon induced revenue for more than just the day of the marathon. And, that includes family members & friends who come with their runner, if just to drop them off and then meet them after they finish.
I have a nephew that has done the marathon the past few years. We all usually make a day of it in Manhattan, and sometimes the nite before or the nite after. Anyone with the crowds trying to meet their runners west of Central Park after the race knows the total people involved is many many times more than the number of runners.
The MTA was stupid trying to make a money grab off the Marathon.
It's expensive running a crime infested subway where people don't have to pay.
I have a nephew that has done the marathon the past few years. We all usually make a day of it in Manhattan, and sometimes the nite before or the nite after. Anyone with the crowds trying to meet their runners west of Central Park after the race knows the total people involved is many many times more than the number of runners.
Either one of my daughters has done the marathon the last five years. We always make a weekend of it. Multiply that by 40K and that’s a big deal… even for NYC.