USA ESTA Travel Pass News

Starting in January next year, the base fare for buses and subways in New York City will rise to $3. Additionally, fares on the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and Metro-North trains will increase by up to 4.5%, and tolls on all MTA bridges and tunnels will increase by 7.5%.The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) unanimously approved the proposed bus and subway fare increases on the 30th, along with the LIRR and Metro-North fare increases and the bridge and tunnel toll increases.

According to the proposed increases, the base fare for a single MTA bus and subway ride will increase by 10 cents, from $2.90 to $3. Additionally, the one-week (7-day) and one-month (30-day) unlimited ride passes for buses and subways will be eliminated. However, a new “weekly cap of $35” will be introduced to replace the current $34 one-week (7-day) unlimited ride pass. This means that after making the first payment using the same payment method, such as a credit or debit card, you will no longer have to pay after your total bus or subway fare exceeds $35 within seven days. In other words, after riding 12 or more times within a week, you will be able to ride for free without any restrictions, according to the MTA.

Express bus fares will also increase. For Express buses, the one-way fare will increase by 25 cents from the current $7 to $7.25, and the unlimited ride passes for one week (7 days) and one month (30 days) will also be eliminated. However, as with regular buses and subways, a new “$67 weekly fare cap” will be introduced, so after your weekly fare exceeds $67, you can ride for free without any restrictions for the rest of the period.

In addition, LIRR and Metro-North train fares will increase by up to 4.5% per section. In addition, the validity period of all one-way tickets has been extended to 4:00 a.m. the following day, and the age limit for the “Family Fare Program,” which allows one paying adult to bring up to four children for $1, has been significantly increased from 11 years old and younger to 17 years old and younger. Tolls for all MTA bridges and tunnels have increased by 7.5% based on EasyPass, depending on the vehicle type and bridge

.For detailed information on bridge and tunnel toll increases, please refer to the website (https://www.mta.info/fares-tolls/2025-changes).Meanwhile, starting in January of next year, the MTA will completely eliminate the use of the “magnetic MetroCard,” which is currently used as a fare payment method, and will operate only the Tap and Ride method, which includes the OMNY card, credit cards, debit cards, and smartphone payments.

The possibility of building an $8 billion mega-casino in Flushing, Queens, has increased significantly.

The New York State Gaming Facility Location Board announced on the morning of the 30th that the “Metropolitan Park” casino development project, currently underway in the Citi Field parking lot of the New York Mets’ stadium in Flushing, Queens, has advanced to the final round of bidding after its Community Advisory Committee unanimously passed with 6 votes in favor and 0 against. Even New York State Senator Jessica Ramos, who was initially expected to oppose the development, voted in favor, giving support to the Metropolitan Park development project.

This brings the final four development projects in the New York State casino bidding competition to 100,000: Metropolitan Park, Resorts World New York City in Queens, MGM Empire City in Yonkers, and Bally’s Casino in the Bronx.

The New York State Gaming Commission (GC) plans to review the four casino development proposals that advanced to the final round this year and ultimately issue casino licenses to three of them. New York State is reportedly considering allocating two casino licenses to New York City. The $8 billion Metropolitan Park Casino development project will feature a casino, hotel, 25-acre park, bars and restaurants, an outdoor live music venue, conference space, athletic fields, the Queens Food Hall, and a multi-use entertainment complex for the community, all on a 50-acre parking lot west of Citi Field, the current home of the New York Mets.

Following the Community Advisory Committee’s review, Metropolitan Park spokesperson Karl Ricketts emphasized, “The unanimous approval demonstrates the strong support of the local community.” He added, “We will do our best until the very end to make the community’s vision a reality.”

Meanwhile, John Savini, former chairman of the New York State Gaming Facility Site Selection Commission, drew attention last week when he predicted that Metropolitan Park would be the final winner in the state’s casino bidding competition, along with Resorts World near the Queens Aqueduct Racetrack and MGM Empire City in Yonkers, which already operate slot machines and other gambling venues.

As federal immigration authorities launch a massive deportation operation against undocumented immigrants, a bustling arrest outside the main gates of a middle school in Montgomery County, Maryland, during rush hour, startled students and parents.

Montgomery County Councilwoman Christine Mink wrote on Facebook, “At approximately 8 a.m. on the 10th, two masked ICE agents chased down, handcuffed, and dragged away two people in front of the main gates of Eastern Middle School.” “Students, parents, and staff were shocked and horrified by what they saw,” she wrote.

A witness, a parent, wrote on a community forum, “Two heavily armed ICE agents exited an unmarked car and chased down the two individuals as they ran away, arresting and dragging them away in front of the students and parents. If their mission is to intimidate immigrants and instill fear in children, then they have accomplished their mission.”

Upon hearing the news, Montgomery County Executive Mark Ehrlich expressed his position that this should not happen.

He said, “This incident could make children even more anxious about coming to school. This is something we absolutely cannot allow to happen.”

Early voting begins today (the 19th) and runs until November 1st ahead of the Virginia election on November 4th. Early voting is available in person at a polling place or by mail. Absentee ballot applications are open until October 20th, and the deadline for mail-in voting is October 24th. If you haven’t registered to vote before, you must register by October 24th. This election will elect the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, and 100 members of the state House of Representatives.

Both parties are running for governor, heralding the election of the first female governor. Despite being a local election, it is attracting national attention as it precedes next year’s midterm elections.

Early voting locations will be set up at Fairfax County Government Complex, North County Government Complex, and Mount Vernon Government Complex, with locations expanding to public libraries, community centers, and other locations starting on the 23rd of next month.

Voters must bring identification to vote in person. For inquiries, call (844) 482-8683 or visit iwillvote.com.

Microsoft (MS), headquarters in Redmond, has also decided to require employees in the Puget Sound area, including Seattle, to come to the office at least three days a week starting next year. This represents a significant shift for MS, which has maintained a relatively flexible work-from-home policy since the pandemic began, signaling a shift toward more in-person work.

The policy will take effect at the end of February 2026 and will initially apply to employees living within a 50-mile radius of the office.

Amy Coleman, Microsoft’s Chief People Officer (CPO), stated in an internal announcement, “Data shows that more frequent in-person work leads to higher employee energy, greater productivity, and better performance.”

This move represents a further step forward from the hybrid work model Microsoft proposed after the pandemic. At the time, the company recommended 50% of the workweek depending on role, but did not impose a mandatory company-wide work-from-home policy. While employee ID entry records were monitored, no actual sanctions were imposed.

However, with major tech companies recently strengthening their in-person policies, MS appears to be taking a more proactive approach. Amazon mandated a three-day workweek starting in 2023 and transitioned to a full five-day workweek starting in early 2025. Meta has also adopted similar policies. Microsoft plans to gradually implement this policy for other US offices and international workers, but a specific schedule has not yet been released.

Coleman said, “Teamwork and innovation require actual time spent together,” suggesting that the future direction of the organization will be centered on “face-to-face interactions.”

Microsoft has laid off 42 more employees in its Redmond headquarters. The company has been laying off employees for months, citing workforce restructuring as part of its increased investment in artificial intelligence (AI). The layoffs were disclosed in documents filed with Washington state authorities. This brings the number of Microsoft employees laid off in Washington alone to over 3,200 this year.

Microsoft explained, “This is separate from previous layoff announcements and is small compared to the overall size of the company.” A company spokesperson stated, “Changes in our organization and workforce are inevitable in the course of running our business,” and added, “We will continue to support our customers and partners and focus our investments in strategic areas for future growth.”

Microsoft has been cutting staff almost every month since May of this year. More than 6,000 people were laid off in May and 9,000 in July, bringing the total number of layoffs this year to over 15,000. This represents one of the largest restructurings in the company’s history. Ironically, this summer, amidst the mass layoffs, Microsoft announced its highest-ever quarterly results. For the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2025 (ending June 30), Microsoft exceeded Wall Street expectations with revenue of $76.4 billion and net income of $27.2 billion.

Notably, Azure, which was disclosed for the first time, surpassed $75 billion in annual revenue, outpacing Amazon Web Services (AWS) when growth is considered alone.

CEO Satya Nadella acknowledged internal challenges last July, saying, “The discrepancy between performance and mass layoffs is causing confusion and uncertainty among employees.” This isn’t just Microsoft. Other global IT companies, including Amazon, Oracle, and Salesforce, have also been cutting staff this year.

Amazon laid off some employees in its cloud division in July, and Oracle laid off more than 260 people in the Seattle area alone over the summer. Salesforce also recently laid off more than 90 people in its Seattle and Bellevue offices.

Five unions are expected to make a final decision at a meeting on the 15th. The Long Island Railroad (LIRR) has announced its first full-scale strike in 30 years. The five unions, representing nearly half of the LIRR’s workforce (over 3,000), announced on the 11th that they could launch a full-scale strike as early as midnight on the 18th due to the breakdown in wage negotiations with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). If the LIRR union goes on a full-scale strike, it would be the first full-scale strike in 31 years, since 1994, and inconveniences are expected for approximately 300,000 LIRR riders.

The MTA claimed that the negotiations broke down because the unions demanded an additional 6.5% wage increase after proposing a 9.5% wage increase over three years. The unions, on the other hand, argue that their demands for additional wage increases are justified since wages have not increased since 2022. In response, the MTA has begun renegotiating and preparing for a strike.

If the union goes on strike as scheduled starting at midnight on the 18th, the MTA plans to run buses every 10 minutes during weekday rush hours from three LIRR stations. The buses will run from LIRR Hicksville and Ronkonkoma stations to the Mets-Willets Point subway station (connecting to the 7-train line), and from Bellmore station to the Howard Beach-JFK Airport subway station (connecting to the A train line).

Buses bound for Manhattan will operate from 4:30 AM to 9 AM, while those bound for Long Island will operate from 3 PM to 7 PM. Passholders will be eligible for refunds for the number of days unused due to the strike.

Meanwhile, the LIRR’s five unions will meet on the 15th to decide whether to launch a full-scale strike.

The Donald Trump administration has filed a lawsuit against the city of Boston, accusing it of obstructing the crackdown on illegal immigrants. According to Reuters, the Department of Justice filed a complaint in Boston federal court on the 4th, alleging that the city’s ordinance is unconstitutional.

The ordinance in question prohibits Boston authorities, including the city police department, from cooperating with federal agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to enforce immigration laws.

The Justice Department maintains that this ordinance violates the “Supremacy Clause” of the federal Constitution. They argue that Boston’s ordinance violates the Constitution’s principle that federal law should prevail when local laws, such as state or city laws, conflict with federal law.

In a statement, Attorney General Pam Bondi criticized Boston and Mayor Michelle Wu, saying, “They are blatantly enforcing policies that weaken federal law enforcement and protect undocumented immigrants.”

The Justice Department previously sent letters to 32 “sanctuary cities” that refused to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. The Trump administration is reportedly planning a large-scale crackdown on undocumented immigrants in the Boston area within weeks, intending to continue the same crackdowns in Democratic strongholds like Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

Mayor Wu, a Democrat, responded in a statement, calling the Justice Department’s lawsuit an “unconstitutional attack on Boston.”

Dozens of workers were arrested after immigration agents raided a confectionery factory near Syracuse, New York, forcing their way into the factory. This marks one of the largest workplace raids in New York state since the inauguration of the Donald Trump administration.

According to the New York Times and other sources, immigration agents raided the Nutrition Bar Confectioners factory in Cato, near Syracuse, at around 9:00 a.m. on the 4th.The raid, which involved up to 75 agents, including the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, and the Cayuga County Sheriff’s Office, lasted for several hours and reportedly resulted in the arrest of more than 70 employees.

A witness reported that federal agents arrived at the plant and forced their way into the plant with crowbars, blocking the exits and handcuffing those inside. The DHS agent told them the arrested employees were being transported to the Oswego Border Patrol Station.

New York Governor Kathy Hokul issued a statement that night condemning the raid, saying, “These raids by federal agents do not make New York safer. They shatter hard-working families struggling to make a living. This action is a direct antithesis to New York values.”

The company’s owner, Mark Schmidt, said, “All of our employees are legally permitted to work in the United States,” adding, “This raid was excessive.”

As President Trump declares war on crime in Washington, D.C., deploying many National Guard troops, the D.C. tourism industry is reportedly taking a significant hit due to a significant decline in tourists. Local media outlet WTOP.com reported on the 27th in an article titled, “D.C. Government Welcomes Tourists Amid Trump’s Crime Crackdown,” about the current state of the D.C. tourism industry, including lodging and food service establishments.

According to the outlet, the Washington, D.C. tourism industry has already been struggling this year, with a projected 5.1% decrease in international tourists. The tourism industry is reportedly growing concerned that the recent surge in federal law enforcement, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the National Guard, could drive away even more tourists.

An official from the Washington, D.C., Tourism Board stated, “Some international tourists are anxious about hearing about tanks rolling through the streets of DC,” while others are concerned about whether they will be welcomed and whether the entry process is acceptable.

Faced with this sharp decline in tourists, Washington, D.C., city government and the Tourism Board are striving to win back tourists, citing recent improvements in public safety and a safer environment thanks to their fight against crime.

The DC Tourism Board is expected to launch a new marketing campaign to attract more tourists soon. Meanwhile, the number of Korean tourists to the United States has recently decreased by 25% due to stricter US immigration procedures and the strong dollar.

Will ADHD medications help improve concentration in adolescents? A study has found that preschool-aged children diagnosed with ADHD are often prescribed medication too soon after their initial diagnosis.

Professor Yair Bennett and his team at Stanford University School of Medicine reported in JAMA Network Open that preschool-aged children diagnosed with ADHD are often prescribed medication immediately after diagnosis, contrary to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines, which recommend six months of behavioral therapy before starting medication. Professor Bennett said, “We’re not concerned about the toxicity of ADHD medications in children ages 4 and 5. However, because of the side effects, many families may decide that the harm outweighs the benefits and discontinue medication.”

ADHD is a developmental disorder characterized by hyperactivity, difficulty focusing, and impulsive behavior. The research team pointed out that early detection and treatment of ADHD symptoms in preschool children is important for reducing social, emotional, and academic problems, and clinical practice guidelines recommend primary behavioral treatment before considering medication for children aged 4 to 5.The research team analyzed the ADHD diagnosis rate, treatment prescription rate, and the period from first diagnosis to medication prescription through the electronic medical records of 712,478 children aged 3 to 5 who received treatment from 2016 to 2023 at eight primary care institutions belonging to the Pediatric Clinical Research Network (PEDSnet) in the United States.

As a result, 9,807 children (1.4%) were diagnosed with ADHD during the study period, and 7,414 of them (76.4%) were boys. Of these, 6,624 (68.2%) were prescribed ADHD medication before the age of 7, and 4,092 (42.2%) were prescribed it within 30 days of their initial ADHD diagnosis.

The rate of prescriptions within 30 days of initial diagnosis also varied by hospital, ranging from 26% to 49%. Furthermore, the likelihood of early prescriptions was 62% higher for children diagnosed at age 5 than at age 4, and boys were 17% more likely to receive them than girls.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends six months of evidence-based behavioral therapy, called “parent training in behavior management,” prior to medication for ADHD after diagnosis. This training helps parents build strong, positive relationships with their children and teaches them to reward positive behaviors and ignore negative ones. It also recommends developing helpful tools, such as visual schedules for organizing.

Professor Bennett said, “This study found that children are prescribed medication immediately after being diagnosed with ADHD. This is concerning, as we know that behavioral approaches to ADHD treatment are beneficial.” He added, “Stimulant medications, which are widely prescribed for ADHD, carry a higher risk of side effects in younger children, and their effectiveness diminishes as the medications break down in the body. Therefore, it is best to begin six months of behavioral therapy before prescribing medication.”