Filming on MTA properties

When you want to capture authentic New York for your movie, television series, advertisement, commercial promotion or sponsored social media content, you don’t want to fake it—you want the real thing. The MTA can make your vision a reality—including the iconic locations of Grand Central Terminal and Grand Central Madison.

Filming of Chanel Bleu commercial

Directors, artists and producers have been filming on MTA property and using it as a backdrop since the opening of the NYC subway system in 1904. The MTA’s bridges, tunnels, railroads, subways, buses, and various other properties are emblematic of life in New York City, and the MTA can support the technical, logistical, and scheduling requirements to bring a production to life.

The MTA has a look that fits any era you are trying to replicate on film. Some of the locations available for filming include:

• Active subway stations (entrances, mezzanines, and platforms)
• Bus stops throughout NYC’s five boroughs
• Seven bridges (including the Throgs Neck and Verrazzano-Narrows)
• Two tunnels (Hugh L. Carey Tunnel and Queens Midtown Tunnel)
• Unused subway stations and platforms isolated from public view
• Period-appropriate buses and subway cars from the early 1900s through present day
• Grand Central Terminal and Grand Central Madison
• Commuter trains and suburban railroad stations
• Exteriors that showcase a range of residential and city views

A. If your production requires you to bring equipment that is more than one handheld camera or ancillary piece of equipment on MTA property or may potentially impact MTA operations or customers: 

Those intending to engage in commercial filming, photography or audio recording activities on MTA property using ancillary equipment (lights, bounces/reflectors, tripods, carts, cables or more than one camera) or that will significantly impact transit operations or MTA customers must work with the MTA to obtain a location agreement or permit and pay a fee.  Examples of a significant impact on transit operations or MTA customers include the presence of celebrities, large props, more than 10 participants, or dancing or gymnastics.

The following are required:

• A letter of intent
• Description of the production scope and size
• Timing and location of filming or photography shoot
• Where applicable, a script and storyboard or other documentation to permit the MTA to assess production scope
• A description of the distribution channels and display duration of content filmed or shot on MTA property for evaluation of an MTA IP license.

Additional requirements:

• Fees: Location agreement fees will be calculated depending on the scope and nature of the project, the number of MTA personnel required to assist with the requested activities, the type of equipment required, and the duration of filming, photography or audio recording.
• Insurance: Most commercial shoots will be required to retain insurance minimums for general liability, automotive liability, and worker’s compensation. If your request includes a platform or a train, the MTA will also require proof of a Railroad Protective Liability insurance policy. Insurance requirements are set by the MTA and may differ by MTA agency and project scope.
• Safety: When you are filming, photographing or audio recording on MTA property, the MTA requires film crews to adhere to agency safety protocols and directives. These include without limitation MTA restrictions on equipment used and required safe distances between personnel and the platform edge. In some instances, film crews will be required to pass track safety courses.
• Depending on the scope of the project, location agreement requests require at least a three-week lead time.
• The MTA can arrange site visits to filming locations but will limit these to a maximum of two per production. Additional site visits may be subject to an additional fee.
• The MTA reserves the right to deny or condition a location agreement or permit based on the following grounds: (i) its aim to promote the safe and efficient operation of the MTA’s transportation services and terminals for customers and employees; (ii) staffing and equipment priorities in light of its obligations as a transit organization; and (iii) the anticipated impact on or impairment of MTA property.
• MTA IP License: MTA owns and controls all rights to the use of our intellectual property, which includes our name and logos, symbols and signage, images used on equipment and facilities, maps, and fare media. If you’re filming or photographing in our system or at Grand Central Terminal or Grand Central Madison, it is very likely you will capture our IP and require a paid license from us to use that IP in your production. The MTA reserves the right to deny an IP license in its sole discretion or to condition any MTA IP license on stated terms. Find more information about the MTA’s IP licensing program, including license fees, on the MTA Licensing Program page.

For commercial film and photography requests at Grand Central Terminal and Grand Central Madison: The MTA offers a short form permit for small and self-contained film and photography shoots at Grand Central Terminal and Grand Central Madison. Please allow ten days for processing permit applications. To learn more, visit the Grand Central Terminal Filming & Photography page.

Follow this link to apply for a permit at Grand Central Terminal.

Follow this link to apply for a permit at Grand Central Madison.

For all other location agreement requests, email filming@mtahq.org

B. If your production does not require equipment beyond one handheld camera and does not affect transit operations and MTA customers: 

Those intending to engage in commercial filming or commercial photography on MTA property using only one handheld camera and no additional equipment (e.g., lights, bounces/reflectors, tripods, carts, cables, or more than one camera) must work with the MTA to obtain a location agreement or permit. The MTA may assess a small fee to process the location agreement or permit. Those engaging in these activities in Grand Central Terminal or Grand Central Madison will be required to meet the requirements for a fee-based permit for small and self-contained commercial filming or photography. Commercial filmmakers and photographers may separately be required to enter into a licensing agreement for the use of MTA intellectual property. 

• Applicants should submit the same documents outlined in Section A above.
• The MTA reserves the right to deny or condition a location agreement based on the following grounds: (i) its aim to promote the safe and efficient operation of the MTA’s transportation services for customers and employees; (ii) staffing priorities in light of its obligations as a transit organization; and (iii) the anticipated impact on or impairment of MTA property.
• MTA IP License: MTA owns and controls all rights to the use of our intellectual property, which includes our name and logos, symbols and signage, images used on equipment and facilities, artistic works, maps, and fare media. If you’re filming, photographing or audio recording on MTA Property, it is very likely you will capture our IP, and require a paid license from us to use the IP in your production. The MTA reserves the right to deny an IP license in its sole discretion or to condition any MTA IP license on stated terms. Find more information about the MTA’s IP licensing program, including license fees, on the MTA Licensing Program page. 

In the social media era, we recognize—and welcome—that the MTA system is a popular venue for filming, photographing, or audio recording Instagram videos, TikToks, and other promotional material. Here’s how it works:

• If the content of your project is commercial speech, aka a “sponsored” or “paid partnership” post, then the MTA’s prior permission in the form of a location agreement or permit is required for filming on MTA property. Commercial speech is any speech which promotes at least some form of commerce or proposes a commercial transaction.
• For “sponsored” or “paid partnership” posts, the same rules apply as stated above for other forms of commercial filming, photography, and audio recording. In other words, a location agreement or permit and fee are generally required if your filming requires you to bring equipment onto MTA property that is more than one handheld camera, disruptive to MTA’s transit operations or customers, or if you are in Grand Central Terminal or Grand Central Madison. Further, a license fee for the use of MTA IP will be charged where applicable just as we do for movies, TV, and advertisements. Find more information about the MTA’s IP licensing program, including license fees, on the MTA Licensing Program page. 

If you’re filming, photographing, or audio recording non-commercial content solely for a personal purpose (examples: content posted to a personal, non-commercial Instagram or TikTok account), the MTA welcomes you to film, photograph and record on MTA property, but requires you to do so safely and in a manner that does not disrupt MTA operations or customers and is in compliance with the New York City Transit Authority Rules of Conduct and other rules applicable to all other users of MTA facilities and property.

• Using a mobile phone or a small hand-held camera or audio recording device? No prior registration or fee is needed.
• Using additional equipment such as lights, reflectors, or tripods? Planning something disruptive to transit operations or MTA customers? Examples include the presence of celebrities, large props, more than 10 participants, or dancing or gymnastics. The MTA must approve your project and enter into a location agreement or permit with you and a fee arrangement will be required similar to that of commercial filming (as outlined above).

The above provisions regarding commercial filming, photography, or audio recording activities do not apply to journalists (“Journalists”).  Journalists include any person or entity who is regularly engaged in gathering and publishing information on current events of public interest on a news media platform with the aim of informing the general public of such events.   

Journalists seeking to film, photograph, or audio record on MTA property for purposes related to journalism will not be charged a location, permit, or IP licensing fee.

Journalists seeking to film, photograph, or record audio on MTA property should first contact the MTA Press Office at (212) 878-7440 or by form. Upon receipt of such a request by a Journalist for a particular story, the MTA will address any issues related to the safe and efficient operation of the MTA’s transportation services, stations, and terminals for employees and the public, and will authorize such filming, photography, or recording of audio consistent with these concerns including whether the relevant MTA property has been closed to all members of the public.

All parties, including those engaged in commercial or non-commercial filming, photography, or audio recording, including Journalists, must follow safety directives from authorized MTA employees, including without limitation the closure of stations in the event of an emergency.

We look forward to working with you.

Please contact us if you have any questions at filming@mtahq.org.

Follow this link to apply for a permit at Grand Central Terminal.

Follow this link to apply for a permit at Grand Central Madison.

For all other location agreement requests, email filming@mtahq.org