Archive for September, 2011
Sep
02
Open Thread: Notes and service advisories
Posted by: | CommentsLet’s try a new thing this weekend. For the service advisories, I’m also going to make this an open thread. Feel free to talk about anything. I have a few more notes to go over too.
- The Boardwalk Empire Nostalgia Train is going to net the MTA “north of $150,000,” according to an MTA spokesman. That’s not a bad haul for something that’s going to attract a crowd.
- The downtown platform at Cortlandt Street on the R train is going to open on Tuesday. The ribbon cutting is scheduled for 3 p.m., and the station will enter revenue service shortly thereafter. I’ll have photos following the photo op.
- The Village Voice’s Runnin’ Scared blog offers a primer on subway etiquette.
With that, here are you service advisories. As always, these come to me from the MTA and are subject to change. Trains on Monday will operate on a Sunday schedule. Enjoy the long weekend.
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, September 3 to 5 a.m. Tuesday, September 6, there are no 1 trains between 242nd Street and 168th Street due to station rehab work at Dyckman Street, platform edge and canopy work from 207th to 242nd Streets, and switch renewal work at 238th Street. A train, M3 and free shuttle buses provide alternate service.
From 4 a.m. Saturday, September 3 to 10 p.m. Sunday, September 4, uptown 2 trains run express from 3rd Avenue-149th Street to East 180th Street, due to track panel installation at Freeman Street and 174th Street.
From 12:01 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, September 3, Brooklyn-bound 4 trains run local from Franklin Avenue to Utica Avenue due to conduit installation (for new fiber optic cables) at Utica Avenue.
From 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday, September 3 and from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday, September 4, there are no 5 trains between East 180th Street and 149th Street-Grand Concourse due to track panel installation at Freeman Street and 174th Street. Note: Shuttle trains operate between Dyre Avenue and East 180th Street. For service between East 180th Street and 149th Street-Grand Concourse, customers should take the 2 instead.
From 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, September 3 and Sunday, September 4, downtown 6 trains skip Morrison Avenue-Soundview and Whitlock Avenue due to rail work at Elder Avenue. Note: At all times until October 2011, 6 trains skip Elder Avenue and St. Lawrence Avenue in both directions due to station rehabilitation.
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, September 3 to 5 a.m. Monday, September 5, Manhattan-bound D trains run on the N line from Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue to 36th Street (Brooklyn) due to structural repair and station rehabilitation from 71st Street to Bay 50th Street and ADA work at Bay Parkway. Note: At all times until Friday, October 28, the southbound D is bypassing 71st Street due to stair reconstruction.
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, September 3 to 5 a.m. Tuesday, September 6, E trains run on the F line in both directions between 36th Street (Queens) and West 4th Street (Manhattan) due to switch renewal north of Lexington Avenue, track panel and conduit work between Queens Plaza and Court Square-23rd Street and work on the 5th Avenue Interlocking Project.
(Nights)
From 11 p.m. Friday, September 2 to 6 a.m. Saturday, September 3, and from 11 p.m. Saturday, September 3 to 8 a.m. Sunday, September 4, and from 11 p.m. Sunday, September 4 to 8 a.m. Monday, September 5, and from 11 p.m. Monday, September 5 to 5 a.m. Tuesday, September 6, there are no G trains between Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. and Church Avenue due to installation and final inspection of track work north of Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. G trains operate in two sections:
- Between Court Square-23rd Street and Bedford-Nostrand Avs and
- Between Bedford-Nostrand Avs and Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts.
Note: A trains provide connecting service between Jot-Schermerhorn Sts and Jay Street-MetroTech.
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, September 3 to 5 a.m. Monday, September 5, there are no L trains between 8th Avenue and 14th Street-Union Square due to track work between Union Square and 6th Avenue. L trains operate in two sections:
- Between 14th Street-Union Square and Bedford Avenue every 16 minutes, trains skip 3rd Avenue and
- Between Bedford Avenue and Rockaway Parkway
M14 buses and free shuttle buses (overnight) provide alternate service.
From 4 a.m. Saturday, September 3 to 10 p.m. Sunday, September 4, southbound N trains run express from Astoria Boulevard to Queensboro Plaza, skipping 30th Avenue, Broadway, 36th Avenue and 39th Avenue due to track panel installation between Astoria Boulevard and 36th Avenue.
Sep
02
First Ave. emerging as SAS construction winner
Posted by: | CommentsFor the past three years, as Second Ave. Subway construction has slogged toward an indeterminate launch date, we’ve heard a lot about how the constant noise, dirt and debris has had a negative impact on the quality of life along Second Ave. Business is down by 30 percent in some locations, and residents must confront constant construction right outside their windows at all hours of the day. Not everyone on the East Side, though, is suffering from Second Ave. pain.
One big block to the east, First Ave. merchants and restauranteurs are enjoying a renaissance, as Laura Kusisto writes in The Wall Street Journal today. Long playing second fiddle to Second Ave., First Ave. is enjoying a boom time right now as businesses seek out East Side locales that aren’t under construction. Rents, while still cheaper than Second Ave., are on the rise, and real estate experts expect the trend to continue.
Ultimately, First Ave. stands to benefit greatly from the Second Ave. subway. As Dean Valentino, a real estate broker, said to The Journal, “Once that subway is in there, then First Avenue is in great shape because then you’re only a block away.” It will no longer be a long three-block trek to the nearest subway line, and at that point, in 2016 or 2017 or 2018, the avenues east of Second that haven’t suffered from construction will truly see an increase in accessibility, desirability and, of course, rent.
Sep
02
What future for the Port Jervis line?
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The Port Jervis line will be out of service for months following Hurricane Irene. (Photo courtesy of Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Hilary Ring)
Metro-North’s Port Jervis line is in trouble. As the pictures have shown us this week, the west-of-the-Hudson commuter rail line was hit hard by Hurricane Irene. It’s currently out of service and will be for months, according to MTA CEO and Chairman Jay Walder. By all accounts, this is the worst weather-related transportation outage the region has suffered in decades.
Earlier this week, the MTA had to pull out its emergency powers to begin to ready the Port Jervis line for revenue service again. “The damage suffered by the Port Jervis Line can only be described as catastrophic,” Walder said during a tour of the destruction. “There are sections of track literally suspended in the air, and in many places we will have to build a new railroad from scratch, from the foundation to the tracks to the signals. I have directed Metro-North to take such steps as are necessary to expeditiously and fully address the catastrophic damage suffered along the Port Jervis Line as a result of Irene. Rebuilding this infrastructure is going to be a long and difficult process, but we are taking every action in our power to continue serving our customers, to reduce unnecessary delay and to communicate every step of the way.”
The worst of the damage is extensive. Near Sloatsburg, three sections of track totaling 1000 feet each are gone. A smaller section washed out to a depth of eight feet. Several bridges have sustained damage, and the signal system which is exposed and under water will have to be rebuilt. By using the emergency powers, the MTA can bypass lengthy procurement processes and can push through these badly needed repairs faster. “The Port Jervis Line is critical to the MTA’s West of Hudson customers, so it’s important that we use emergency powers to remove red tape and rebuild this infrastructure as quickly as possible,” MTA Board Member Susan Metzger said.
In The Times today, Christine Haughney writes about the trip to Orange and Rockland Counties, and the report from the devastation really brings it home. Walder, who said the time for repairs would be “measured in months,” seemed floored by the damage. “In nearly 30 years, I’ve never seen anything like that,” he said.
But beyond the emotional impact of the storm’s path, the MTA has to ask a lot of questions about the Port Jervis line’s future. It has been a long slow ride toward modernity for this 100-year-old rail branch, and while ridership is still low — barely 2300 per weekday and under 800 per weekend — it provides a vital lifeline to the city for a rapidly-growing part of New York State. For now, the authority will bus the commuters from Harriman to New Jersey Transit’s Ramsey/Route 17 station. In the coming months, the MTA will try to expand bus offerings.
Meanwhile, the economics of the situation are a cause for concern as well. As we know, the MTA has had to cut back its five-year capital plan, and for now, it will have to dip into cash reserves to fund this emergency repair work. The authority hopes that FEMA dollars will flow its way and that insurance proceeds can pick up some slack, but it also can’t afford to wait for the money to flow through the red tape. For now, the emergency powers will allow the MTA to get started on this project.
So now the MTA has an opportunity to recreate an old rail line or jettison something that many consider to be a drag on the MTA’s bottom line and a sprawl-promoting spur. They can improve the signals on the Port Jervis line. They can double-track some of the line. Or they could work quickly and do nothing much new but just work to get service running again. Taking the long view would pay off in the end, but transit authorities haven’t taken the long view too frequently these days. Now we’ll see what happens with the closest thing to a blank slate the region has.
Sep
01
A September nostalgia train with a sponsored twist
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A vintage IRT trainset will be decked out in Boardwalk Empire ads this month.
Railfans and regular straphangers love vintage train car rides, but the MTA has found them to be a bit costly. During times of austerity, the authority hasn’t been as willing to let loose the old trainsets as they once were, but it seems as though they’ve solved this problem through advertising. For the month of September, a Boardwalk Empire-branded vintage trainset will run on the West Side IRT on the weekends as HBO gears up to promote the new series.
Here’s what the pitch e-mail has to say:
Starting on Saturday, September 3rd an authentic vintage 1920’s train will run on the express 2/3 track in Manhattan throughout September (specifically, from 12 to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays). Originally operated by the Interborough Rapid Transit (IRT) system, the train began service back in 1917 and will once again be operational. Customers who have the opportunity to ride the vintage train will be transported back in time to the Prohibition era with authentic details such as rattan seats, ceiling fans and drop sash windows, as well as a custom branded interior featuring Boardwalk Empire-inspired period artwork.
For the weekend of the premier — September 24 and 25 — so-called “brand ambassadors” will be giving away free MetroCards as well. HBO is apparently going all out, and as you can see from the image above, the faux-vintage ads in the Nostalgia Train cars have given way to Boardwalk Empire branding.
This is of course a rather unique promotion since there aren’t too many period pieces on TV that take place in New York, but I’m curious about the economics of it. I’ve reached out to the MTA for more information, and if I hear a pricetag, I’ll pass it along. In the meantime, click through for another look at the sponsored subway car. I wonder if it’ll be an air conditioned ride. Read More→
Sep
01
A dubious distinction for 138th Street
Posted by: | CommentsOver the past few months, Transportation Alternatives has been pushing its Rider Rebellion campaign on the public. They want to show how transit riders support “affordable fares, better service and the end of service cuts.” In essence, its goal is to convince politicians to invest more heavily in the system to avoid decay, and they’re trying to do so by highlighting some of the more unsavory aspects of the system. Recently, they named 138th Street/Grand Concourse the smelliest system in the station to highlight how budget woes have led the MTA to cut cleaners. It’s quite the dubious distinction.
“We asked our fellow transit riders to stand up, cover their noses and tell us which station smells the worst,” Paul Steely White, TA’s executive director, said. “While recent budget cuts by the state legislature have forced subway riders to deal with higher fares and less frequent trains, it has also led to cutbacks in the general upkeep of stations. Stations have got dirtier and smellier and the conditions are unacceptable.”
The 138th Street station edged out 34th St./Herald Square, Jamaica Center and Grant Ave. in a text poll. Unfortunately, though, only 229 folks voted so the results aren’t entire scientific. Still, the point remains: Stations aren’t as clean as they should be, and riders have to suffer the stench because of it.
Sep
01
Paying for it now, later or not at all
Posted by: | CommentsWhen the MTA starts operating trains to 11th and 34th Street in a few years, it will be doing so to a station paid for by the City of New York and over tracks paid for by the same. It’s all well and good that someone else decided to foot the bill for this transit extension, but once construction wraps up, that’s all she wrote. For the rest of its existence, the MTA will have to pay the operating and maintenance costs for this extension of the subway system.
The same thing, of course, happens all around town. Phase 1 of the Second Ave. Subway will increase operating costs as the MTA will have to run trains to the Upper East Side while maintaining levels of service to Astoria and Brooklyn along the BMT lines. The East Side Access project will require more rolling stock, more personnel and more long-term upkeep for the LIRR as well. Even as the capital dollars stop, these projects still cost the MTA money.
Meanwhile, politicians are often arguing for an increase in the MTA’s expenditures without even realizing. Constantly, elected officials and community boards call upon the authority to increase bus frequency or add new routes to better serve neighborhoods. But who is going to pay? In an ideal world, any new fares generated by the increased service would cover its operating costs, but since we live in a world in which transit fares are kept artificially low to stimulate ridership while direct subsidies are eliminated, no one ends up paying the operating costs. The MTA’s expenses mount, and they have to cut from somewhere else in the budget.
Recently, we’ve seen a somewhat similar drama play out with the Port Authority. A few weeks ago, the PA proposed a massive increase in tolls and fares, and the proceeds were to go toward an ambitious ten-year capital plan that would have improved rivers airports, roads and rails throughout the region. After a faux-political uproar, the PA approved a reduced fare and toll hike package but had to scale back some upgrade projects as well. For example, upgrades described by the authority as “critically” at Newark and LaGuardia Airports will be delayed.
Earlier this week, Port Authority head Chris Ward lashed out at politicians who refused to accept the Port Authority’s budget on the one hand and want fancy new projects on the other. “The reality,” he said to the New York Building Congress, “is that you cannot always do more with less. Sometimes you simply must do more, and we’ll be playing catchup with the rest of the world until that reality becomes a part of our political conversation.”
During his speech, Ward also praised Governors Chris Christie and Andrew Cuomo for ultimately accepting the Port Authority’s budget. “We live in the reality of practical decision making and decisions were made for what can in fact be a level of tolls that work within this region, and the governors showed their leadership,” he said. (For more on Ward’s speech, check out Transportation Nation’s coverage.)
Now, of course, Ward has to strike a conciliatory tone toward the two state executives, but his first statement bears a closer look. For years, we’ve heard a lot about doing more with less. The MTA is trying to make every dollar count, as they remind us frequently, and Albany is still pushing for a forensic audit. Some politicians want to roll back the payroll tax; others balk at tolling the East River; and everyone wants more, more, more.
At a certain time, though, more is going to cost something. If we want more reliable service, better airports or even a smoother ride into the Lincoln Tunnel, we’ll have to pay for it. As I wrote last week, decisions we make now burden the future and that includes decisions made to avoid funding a project. If we can’t stomach the costs now and the infrastructure falls into further disrepair, it’s just going to be more costly to fix it in the future. Chris Ward knows what he’s talking about, but does anyone controlling the purse strings see it that way too?
