Which organization created the New York City Transit Authority in 1953?

The New York State Legislature created the New York City Transit Authority in 1953.

The authority was established to operate New York City’s municipal bus and subway systems. Before that change, subway operations had been divided among the city-operated Independent Subway System and privately controlled companies, including the Interborough Rapid Transit Company and Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation.

The new authority was intended to consolidate operations and place public transportation under a single public-benefit corporation. It assumed control of the city’s subway and bus operations in 1953 and became a central institution in the system’s postwar history.

A common mix-up is confusing the Transit Authority with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The MTA was created by New York State in 1965, and the Transit Authority later became one of its major operating agencies. The subway is therefore operated by New York City Transit, a division of the MTA, rather than directly by City Hall.