Mhat are the MTA doing about smartcard ticketing on the Subway and
buses? ...

Why can't they just introduce one single smart card for the area, the
way they have in London? And there is compatibility between different
operating agencies as Oystercards are accepted not only on TfL modes of
transport, but also on National Rail in Greater London.

The MTA's Metrocard already works on four agencies' transit, MTA,
PATH, NICE, and Beeline. The MTA runs Metro-North and the LIRR so I
presume whatever they come up with will work on them, too. I presume
Metrocard doesn't work on Metro-North and LIRR because the current
system can't handle fares that vary by distance, but you can buy a
physical ticket which is Metro-North on one side and Metrocard on the
back.

The main question is NJ Transit. They already cooperate with the MTA
on the west of Hudson Metro-North trains, which are extensions of NJ
commuter lines, but they don't do joint fares with PATH even though it
would make a lot of sense for the many commuters who transfer between
the two at Hoboken and Newark.

R's,
John