Skip to content

Friday Video: Take Transit to the World Cup … If You Can Afford It

Why are some cities forced to charge high fares to World Cup visitors who want to take the train, while others are giving away rides nearly for free?
Friday Video: Take Transit to the World Cup … If You Can Afford It

FIFA’s World Cup is coming up fast, and cities across America are making big plans to get soccer fans to the stadiums … and sometimes, making headlines for their astronomical transit prices. But is it a smart way for agencies to cash in on fútbol fever, a necessary evil to recoup the costs of mega-events, or simply price-gouging visitors who are doing cities a favor by choosing shared modes?

We appreciate the latest podcast from Transit Tangents, which breaks down four host cities’ approach to shared transportation during the biggest sporting event in the world, including the infrastructure they built (or didn’t) to accommodate it. And that includes one $35-million station platform extension that’s drawing a lot of scrutiny.

Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.

More from Streetsblog USA

Even In NYC, Greenway Funding Falls Short

June 10, 2026

Wednesday’s Headlines Have a DD

June 10, 2026

Tuesday’s Headlines’ Goal Is Better Transit

June 9, 2026

Team Newsom Just Created a Massive Transit Funding Crisis. Now the Legislature Needs to Fix It. Again.

June 8, 2026
See all posts