Riders wasted tens of millions of dollars less on their MetroCards in 2013 than the year before, according to new MTA data.
Straphangers let $52.2 million on their MetroCards expire in 2013, down from $95 million in 2012.
Officials have attributed this trend to a $1 surcharge added to new MetroCards early that year.
Fewer riders began littering subway station with their MetroCards after the MTA began charging for new cards, and were less likely to leave their balances on the floor.
The MTA expects the number to drop further, to $40.2 million in 2015.
The Independent Budget Office said last year that the 2012 numbers were particularly high, because some riders tried to stockpile MetroCards before fare hikes and ended up dumping or losing cards with balances.
But a November report said that customers’ behaviors have clearly changed since the surcharge went into effect.