Comments on: The long, slow trek from Coney Island to Jamaica brings home a C-minus

By: Ed

Ed — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 04:58:54 +0000

Keep in mind that the F has a split personality. In Queens, where it runs express, and in most of Manhattan its a beautiful line. Its probably the quickest way to get downtown from upper midtown in the city, though it doesn’t go to lower Manhattan. As the train runs through the Lower East Side the Mr. Hyde part of its personality emerges.

By: Marc Shepherd

Marc Shepherd — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 20:56:07 +0000

Scott makes a good point. I had forgotten about HEETs. And they are a nuisance at high-volume entrances and exits, some of which formerly had standard turnstiles and staffed booths.

I’m not sure whether that’s where the B– is coming from, though.

By: Scott

Scott — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 20:22:41 +0000

I’ve got a couple of theories on what might drag down the turnstile grades (even though they’re already among the highest):

- How often do you, or the person in front of you, repeatedly swipe the Metrocard and see the message “Swipe card again” over and over? (this, by the way, is part of the drive towards the RFID/PayPass type of system — no magnetic strip reader to get dirty, so less chance of problems)

- HEETs (High Entry/Exit Turnstiles – those enter/exit revolving door things) are a real pain in the butt. They are extremely slow, especially when you’ve got a line of people, and if you’ve got large bags or packages, you may be in trouble. (Ever take the LIRR to tracks 1 or 2 at Flatbush/Atlantic Ave and then go down the stairs the HEETs entering the subway system?)

- We all know (or should know) about subway courtesy — let passengers leave the train before boarding. But what happens when you’ve got a line of people on both sides of the turnstile? Let incoming passengers through first, and a crowd develops waiting to exit. Let passengers exit first, and someone coming in might miss their train. Leave via the Emergency Exit door, and an alarm goes off and you risk getting smacked around by MTA Police. The HEETs only slow this down even further. If someone swipes their card, and then another person exits through the turnstile, do they lose the fare?

By: Benjamin Kabak

Benjamin Kabak — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 18:43:44 +0000

Marc,

I’m also mystified as to the causes behind the low grades for “Ease of use of subway turnstiles.” As most New Yorkers really too challenged to figure out how to use subway turnstiles. It’s just not that hard.

By: Marc Shepherd

Marc Shepherd — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 18:41:58 +0000

There’s not a lot of nuanced opinion in these grades. In fact, most of them are interchangeable. Part of the reason is that most voters spend most of their time on just one subway line, and don’t have a good perspective on the whole system. I mean, if F riders had to ride a C train for a week, suddenly they’d realize they have it pretty good.

The B– on availability of MetroCard Vending Machines is pretty hard to figure. How much more available could they be?

As Ben notes, the F express (which, of course, should be a V express) won’t be physically possible for another four years. There’s not much that can be done about that, unless you want the Culver Viaduct to collapse.

By: Kid Twist

Kid Twist — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 15:31:35 +0000

I’ve found that the F has some of the easiest-to-use turnstiles in the entire system. They’re easily my most favorite!

By: Todd

Todd — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 15:20:01 +0000

I’m having serious trouble believing these grades. Aside from the joke catagories of ‘Ease of use of subway turnstiles’ and ‘Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines’, the F line should have earned an F.