Archive for Asides
Feb
05
At Tompkinsville, the first fare-beating charge
Posted by: | CommentsToward the end of January, the MTA had instituted fare collections at the Staten Island Rail Road’s Tompkinsville, and this week, cops nabbed their first fare-beater at the station. As the Staten Island Advance reported on Tuesday, not only did the cops get their first Tompkinsville fare perp, but the man arrested had an outstanding warrant in Massachusetts. Police say he will most likely be extradited back to the Bay State after he clears up that $100 fine.
At first, I was amused by this story. It’s fairly apt that the first person to get caught evading the new fare control measures was wanted in another state. But then I realized this is a far more common occurrence. Nearly three years ago, I noted how cops often find subway perps have outstanding warrants, and this is a prime example of that phenomenon. I’ve always wondered why people who are on the lam continue to break the law, and here it is again.
Feb
05
DiNapoli: MTA should rein in overtime spending
Posted by: | CommentsAccording to New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, the MTA could save significant amounts of money by overhauling its approach to overtime. In a letter sent to the MTA and obtained by the Daily News, DiNapoli said that overtime spending cost the MTA nearly $577 million in 2008. Furthermore, fewer than 5 percent of the authority’s workforce earned 30 percent of the overtime with some LIRR mechanics — the most egregious overtime earners — taking home $200,000 in overtime pay or more than three times their base salaries.
DiNapoli’s letter highlights the need for the MTA to reform its work practices and for its unionized workers to accept that reform. At a time when the authority’s deficit is spiraling out of control, the MTA simply cannot afford to be lax about its overtime regulations. “The high cost of the MTA overtime is a significant issue,” DiNapoli said. The overtime payouts “adds to concerns about whether the MTA has done all that it can to contain costs.”
For his part, MTA CEO and Chairman Jay Walder promised reform. DiNapoli’s study covers the 2008 time period, and Walder has been in the job since only October 2009. Cutting overtime abuse has been one of Walder’s recently talking points, and he reiterated that to the Daily News. “My top priority,” he said, “is finding ways to reduce our costs by targeting areas like overtime and contracting, and we are grateful for any help the controller can provide as we begin to make the MTA more efficient.”
Feb
04
On Long Island’s East End, a move toward secession
Posted by: | CommentsThe good folks out on the eastern end of the northern fork of Long Island aren’t too happy. Their estimated contributions to the MTA run to approximately $60 million a year, and the service offerings are sparse out to Greenport, to say the least. In its service cut plans, in fact, the LIRR plans to end all but some weekend train service between Ronkonkoma and Greenport in order to save nearly $1 million a year. While only 160 passengers per weekday and 190 over the entire weekend would suffer, Long Island pols are not happy.
Can you blame for it? Their constituents pay a reasonable amount of money and get very little train service. To solve this problem, the rumblings of secession are growing louder. East End pols are talking about establishing a local transit authority and taking over control of the Greenport Branch from the MTA. A recent study concluded that the trains could be operated on a more local level for approximately $45 million or a good 25 percent less than what East Enders pay to the MTA now. The MTA would be absolved of operating these trains, and the East End Long Islanders would be shelling out fewer bucks. That sounds like a win-win transit situation to me.
Feb
04
Paterson playing electoral politics with the MTA
Posted by: | CommentsHere’s a rather amusing story on the state of MTA politics in New York: Gov. David Paterson, facing the potential of a tough primary challenge from current state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, is slamming Cuomo for failing to lead on issues relating to the MTA. Cuomo hasn’t declared his candidacy for governor because, according to Paterson, he can’t answer the tough questions such as what to do with the MTA. “Why do you think he’s staying out?” Paterson said. “What does Andrew Cuomo think about the Wall Street bonuses, the last I checked he was for eliminating them. What does Andrew Cuomo think about the budget plans? What does Andrew Cuomo think about the way to pay for the MTA? He doesn’t have an opinion.”
There’s no small amount of irony in Paterson’s statement. He’s the current governor, and he doesn’t have any viable solutions for the MTA’s budgetary problems either. The promised payroll tax has been a disaster, and Paterson doesn’t have the political will, capital or power to force a congestion pricing-based funding plan. Paterson’s plan for the MTA has been to cut appropriations, cut state contributions for Student MetroCards, reject the agency’s five-year capital plan and run for the hills. That’s not leadership either, and until Paterson figures out how he plans to do his job and help the MTA through its current funding crisis, he probably shouldn’t slam others not yet in the same position of authority and responsibility.
Feb
03
With new state budget release, MTA’s finances head further south
Posted by: | CommentsWhen the MTA institutes its sweeping package of service cuts this summer, the agency will do so in an attempt to save nearly $400 million. It’s now going to have to find double those savings to stave off economic disaster. According to the latest budget totals from New York State, the estimate revenue generated by the payroll mobility tax will now be $700 million less than expected from 2009-2011. With this news, the MTA faces even more economic uncertainty and a 2010 budget gap that will grow to at least $400 million after the cuts are instituted. At this point, fare hikes for 2011 are shaping up to be quite substantial.
Meanwhile, the ideological divide between those who want the MTA to receive proper funding is growing. In response to this news — a development that highlights the need for a long-term fix — Gene Russianoff sent out a statement again supporting a short-term stimulus fix that won’t even close this new estimated gap. “The MTA’s widening deficit makes it more important than ever for the cash-starved agency to use currently available federal stimulus money to keep running as much transit service as possible,” he said, when in fact this widening deficit makes it more important to find a stable source of year-to-year revenue and not a funding source that will dry up after it’s tapped.
On the other side of the debate is John Petro of the Drum Major Institute. In a Huffington Post piece, Petro explains why bridge tolls and congestion pricing schemes are both inevitable and beneficial for the MTA and New York. With wider gaps projected for this year and next, Petro’s is the kind of proposal transit advocates need to be supporting right now. A stimulus fix, estimated to provide under $200 million in funding, just won’t cut it right now.
Feb
02
SAS, BRT to receive federal transportation money
Posted by: | CommentsEarlier today, the Federal Transit Administration released the list of local transit projects set to receive New and Small Start Grants, and New York’s big-ticket projects are set to benefit. Both the Second Ave. Subway and one of the City’s planned Select Bus Service routes will see federal funds flow its way. Elana Schor of Streetsblog was all over this story this morning, and she reports that SAS will get $197 million in federal funding and that the Nostrand Ave. BRT route will receive $28 million. FTA Administrator Peter Rogoff praised NYC DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Kahn for her “leadership on this and other related projects.”
The BRT grant is an interesting one because the Nostrand Ave. corridor has been subject to some car-based politicking. Local business owners who will lose their personal parking spots are not too happy about the project, and the vocal minority voices often tend to trump the silent majority who stand to benefit from faster surface transportation and a less congestion business area. While 19 elected officials have support the 1st and 2nd Ave. Select Bus Service plan without federal funding, politicians who represent the Nostrand Ave. neighborhoods have yet to speak out in favor of the Brooklyn-based plan despite the obvious need to speed up the painfully slow B44. Noah Kazis hopes that federal funds will change that anti-transit attitude. Either way, these grants are good news for some of the city’s cash-strapped projects.
Jan
28
In New York, ARC tunnel could face eminent domain delay
Posted by: | CommentsAs the Port Authority has begun its preparations for construction of an $8.7 billion commuter rail tunnel under the Hudson, its need for property has arisen to the forefront. In a report prepared for New Jersey Gov. Christopher Christie, an advising committee has warned that the start of construction on the New York side could be delayed by up to six months if issues relating to eminent domain takings are not resolved. Patrick McGeehan goes in depth into the issue today in The Times, but in a nutshell, some local business owners are questioning the need for a second train terminal so close to Penn Station. Still, the Port Authority says it is following proper procedure, and with the recent eminent domain holding concerning the Atlantic Yards plans, a legal challenge here would be highly unlikely to survive. [The New York Times]
Jan
28
On the history of subway maps
Posted by: | CommentsOver the last year, I’ve compiled an extensive collection of historical New York City subway maps dating back to the late 1940s. It’s fascinating to see how the subway map has evolved along with the geographical representations of the city. In my opinion, today’s map is far too cluttered to be absolutely usable, and the pinnacle of subway representation in New York with an eye toward both geography and ease of map use would involve a combination of the Vignelli map and the 1979 Michael Hertz Association version reworking. Once I have some spare time and access to a good flat-bed scanner, I’ll be writing a series of posts on the subway map over time.
Today in amNew York, Heather Haddon examined the history behind the evolution of our current subway map. She traces the move from the Vignelli map to the Hertz version and explains how the MTA’s color-coded system, still in place today, came to be. The current version is an outgrowth of Hertz’s 1979 rendering, and last year, it celebrated its 30th anniversary. “It’s an absolute work of art and very clear,” Peter Lloyd, a U.K. author writing a history of the subway map, said. It’s clarity might be lacking today, but the old maps are definitely works of art.
Jan
27
A ticketing blitz for two-seaters
Posted by: | CommentsI find people who intentionally take up more than one seat on the subways to be among the most egregious examples of the disregard straphangers have for each other underground. Most normal-sized people can’t fit on the made-for-tiny-people bucket seats in the R62s and R68s, but some people like to spread out, lie down or use the seat next to them for their bags. It’s rude, and when it interferes with the comfort and convenience of other passengers, it’s against New York City Transit Rules and Regulations.
That doesn’t mean, however, that the NYPD should begin a ticketing blitz to target everyone taking up too many seats. Yet, according to the Daily News, that’s just what they’ve done. Officers have handed out 8700 tickets to people taking up two seats, “a 17% increase over the previous year.” Of course, police officials declined to comment, and the stories are egregious. One officer ticketed a straphanger on an empty G train at 2 a.m. and told the person receiving the summons that the ticket “would probably be tossed out by the Transit Adjudication Bureau.” TAB, not known for adhering to normal legal procedures, upheld the ticket because the person arguing didn’t put forth “a legally recognizable defense.”
As a current student of law and a transit advocate, unnecessary ticketing along with shady adjudication procedures irk me. The Rules of Conduct clearly state that taking up more than one seat is a violation only “when to do so would interfere or tend to interfere with the operation of the Authority’s transit system or the comfort of other passengers.” A crowded train at rush hour would fall under that provision; a G train at 2 a.m. would not. I know revenue is tight, but the egregious issuing of summonses, as I said in December, should be put to a halt.
Jan
27
SAS recognized as a top Gotham blog by the Voice
Posted by: | CommentsAllow me to take a few minutes of your time this afternoon to toot my own horn. This week’s Village Voice, available today city-wide in those ubiquitous red boxes, features a cover story on 18 of the city’s “obsessive, cantankerous, and unstoppable” blogs, and yours truly was included in this elite list. The piece’s introduction starts right here, and my profile is on page eight. The print edition even features my head shot on page 18. So if you’re around New York City, check it out, and as always, thanks for stopping by.
