They should do some sort of incentive program for those who pay…after x number of taps, you get entered to win a gift card or some sh**.

Wiseguys in Chinatown area. Source: I lived in NYC for 12 years before moving here.

For real-time bus arrivals, I use the Metro & Bus app. It’s not perfect (actually sometimes buses come more frequently than WMATA predicts, ironically), or the bus comes about a minute after the app thinks it has departed. But it’s overall accurate and useful! It also shows any active alerts.