Comments on: 4th Ave. F station rehab to get budget axe

By: Rehab at 4th/9th to include reopened entrances :: Second Ave. Sagas

Rehab at 4th/9th to include reopened entrances :: Second Ave. Sagas — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 19:01:56 +0000

[...] a shape as those at Smith St. Still, as the rehab project’s cost ballooned, the MTA had to scale back work at 4th Avenue. Now, though, the on-again, off-again rehab at that station is firmly back on thanks to the [...]

By: Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog » Blog Archive » » An MTA problem grows in Brooklyn

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 04:50:26 +0000

[...] a permanent work zone. Further down the F line, a long-overdue rehab for the 4th Ave./9th St. stop got the axe when the MTA’s finances went [...]

By: Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog » Blog Archive » Roberts: NYCT stations in a state of disrepair

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 05:38:53 +0000

[...] overhaul as part of the Culver Viaduct Rehabilitation project. But when parts of the project were scaled back, the station rehab plans were placed in limbo. The station itself is a mess. The paint is beyond [...]

By: David Brown

David Brown — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:48:25 +0000

I really dislike the politicians as it relates to the MTA. There is NO leadership that is pushing for subway station renovation at a reasonable cost and time frame (Cortland Street is shut down SEVEN years after 9/11 just being one example). Another example is the Chambers Street Subway Station (If the politicians at City Hall ignore that station right at City Hall, how does anyone expect them to pay attention to the likes of Brook Ave?). Throw in the F Train stations to this discussion, there are so many awful subway stations on the F line it is not funny. Smith and 9th Street, 4th Avenue, East Broadway, Second Avenue, 14th Street, and 23rd Street to name a few. Instead of spending $2 billion to extend the 7 line, what about spending money at Chambers Street? That should be a priority.
Simply put, the entire transportation mess from Bloomberg to Bush, and the Democrats in between, really hurts the New York area, and the nation as a whole. We need poitive leadership on this issue (It would help long term with the gas shortages). However, Between Patterson, Obama and McCain, I don’t see it.

By: paulb

paulb — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 13:23:53 +0000

The viaduct reconstruction proceeds, which is important, and AFAIK, there’s been no backing off the promise to resurrect F express service to Church Avenue once that is done. There’s another point of view, isn’t there? OK, the MTA overpromised, but at least it’s got some plans in hand. I’m a grownup, I can suffer a little disappointment. It’s more likely a delay than that the renovation will never be done.

In terms of where the $$$ go, how does the MTA/NY Transit compare to other public transit operators? Not just in the US, but abroad, also. I don’t know quite how to phrase this, but what we see as defects in the way an agency like this does “business” must have much to do, since it is a public agency, with NY’s public sector culture, which is linked to it’s gov’t, i.e., democratic, culture. I guess what I’m getting at is patronage. NY Transit functions in a government environment that requires not just running efficiently but answering various “public needs” or “expectations”–hiring, promotion, which neighborhoods get the spending, civil service requirements, union precedents, unwritten quotas. If you stripped the MTA back and were somehow able to create an ideally efficient and competent organization, would the citizens of NYC be particularly pleased?

By: Todd

Todd — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 23:14:05 +0000

Cap’n Transit, I’ll give you the $52 million Albany cut. Heck, I’ll even toss ya the $354 million from Silver’s killing the congestion pricing proposal.

What I fail to understand is how they didn’t see the other part.

You know, the other $2,594,000,000.

By: Pjason325

Pjason325 — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 21:44:33 +0000

Hi Todd. I agree with your point of view. There’s more than enough evidence is that the MTA is making too many promises that they can’t keep. Whenever the vision fails, the people will suffer.

By: Boris

Boris — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 17:46:34 +0000

Friends:

I agree with Todd. Cap’n Transit, your comment is well noted but serves more as a devil’s (the MTA’s!) advocate. We need more details about their accounting practices, or lack thereof.

How DARE these fools raise our fares and then cut service? As Todd says, who the heck runs their accounting?

I applaud Ray’s suggestion (I suggested this in another rant…er, comment) to privatize part or preferably all of the MTA. While privatization has a host of ills (viz. Maggie Thatcher and British Rail), perhaps some combination of public oversight and private ownership would work.

By: ScottE

ScottE — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 13:17:34 +0000

“Work was never officially funded.” So, there’s nothing more to this plan than the ambitious expansion that Lee Sander spoke about a few months back re: the new “outer boroughs” line over existing track right-of-way. Except, of course, for some preliminary design and pretty pictures. If they can’t deliver on what IS funded, it’s kind of silly to publicize projects that AREN’T funded.

I suppose that quote was thrown in there to explain why the cancellation of this project doesn’t mean that there is a sudden influx of allocated money which can now be used elsewhere.

I wonder if an elevated station like this can be built pre-fab somewhere else in the country, and then just hoisted into place. It would probably be cheaper and quicker; though the local unions may have something to say about it.

By: Cap'n Transit

Cap'n Transit — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 11:36:02 +0000

Todd, I hope you have just as much hate for the state legislators who cut $50 million from the MTA budget instead of making up for the Pataki-era cuts.