The MTA dropped their latest board committee materials this afternoon, and buried in the 281-page Transit Committee pdf is word of a service increase due to arrive in June. Already, the MTA has announced plans to increase G and M train service, and now we learn that the 2, 3, 4, 5, A, E, F and L lines will see modest bumps in service as well.
The details small, but the changes can reduce waiting times during specific time frames, particularly along the West Side IRT lines. The 2 and 3 trains will see three new weekday round trips each while A service will be increased by two round trips. The rest will see one additional round trip per weekday while Saturday and Sunday L service will be bumped up by four round trips each. In terms of wait times, the changes on the 2 and 3 will reduce average headways from 5.5 minutes to 4.6 during the 8 p.m. to 11 p.m window, and the weekend L train headways will drop from 6.3 and 7.1 minutes on Saturdays and Sundays between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. to 5.2 and 5.7 minutes respectively. Those are significant reductions during high-volume times from an agency that has long since resisted adding service.
According to the board materials, the service increases are driven by customer demand and the need to meet “MTA Board-adopted loading guidelines.” The changes will cost $4.3 million annually and are in line with the 2014 projected operating budget. The Board need not take any action as this is an informational update, but straphangers will enjoy increased service come June.
10 comments
something is missing here. the numbers don’t add up, for example to reduce 2 and 3 wait time by almost a minute by adding 3 trains per day per direction.
rough estimate now 288 trains per day [avg headway 10 min each line => 24 hrs x 12 trns/hr]. 1440 minutes/day / 288 trains = 5 min/train. 1440/291 = 4.95. A most negligible decrease.
they probably mean rush hour
for the E and F i swear there is a 5-10 gap of no trains at roosevelt ave between 8:20am and 8:30am.
My impression of the long gaps at Roosevelt is that its usually because of bunching. It might be 10 minutes at one point, but then theres probably 3 in a row 2 minutes apart.
Rob,
I’m with you, the numbers do not compute. Even with the 6 (not 3) additional round trips on the 2 & 3 lines, you could at best have that kind of effect only during the times those additional trains were running, part of rush hour maybe. I have no idea how to spin the numbers for the Saturday and Sunday changes to make them seem possible.
My fault. The increases are pegged to specific times. The additions on the 2 and 3 will be between 8 pm and 11 pm. The changes on the L are between 9 pm and 11 pm on Saturdays and Sundays. I’ll update the post.
So June is the target for the extended weekend M shuttle to Essex, then?
And when the R service through the Montague Street tunnel is fully restored next Fall what will the MTA do to provide sufficient trains then?
The MTA has sufficient rolling stock already.
Weekend 5 service to Brooklyn would be awesome the 2 runs horrible by itself on the weekends but the3&4 are consistent at all times
In my view, the upcoming eight line service growths are excellent news, promising improved transport choices and commuter comfort.
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