A New York City subway passenger won a free monthly MetroCard Thursday for taking a picture of the subway's ugliest rat, officials said.

ADVERTISEMENT

Michael Spivack's photo of a brown-haired, boil-covered rat won the Transport Workers Union's contest to find the ugliest subway rat, the New York Post reported.

Spivack said he encountered the rat at 3 a.m. at the Seventh Avenue station in Manhattan.

"It was so disgusting, I just thought I had to get a picture of it," he said. "I showed it to my co-worker and she ran out of the room, it was so ugly.''

The TWU asked subway passengers to send in photographs of the ugliest rats they ran into as part of its "Rat Free Subways" campaign, a drive to bring awareness to rodent infestation in NYC subways.

Spivack said he is thankful to the rat for helping him win the free subway pass. "If he could understand me, I'd say good luck in your rat life," Spivack said.