Second Avenue Sagas, A New York City Subway Blog :: Second Ave. Sagas

Fulton St. hub beset with more problems · The Fulton St. Transportation Hub, originally set to open this month, may be facing even more delays as the MTA received just one bid for the contract to construct the ornate glass-domed centerpiece of the project. As Bobby Cuza details at NY1, this news belongs very firmly in the “Not Good” category. I’ll have more on this development later. [New York 1] · (1)

Jan

Citizens Advisory Committee critique rehashes familiar territory

By Benjamin Kabak · Comments (3) ·

Ah, the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA. Since 1981, this committee, which has the potential to be a voice for change, has been flying under the radar. For its fancy, the committee doesn’t get its name in the paper more than once a year really when the annual MTA Performance Review hits the news.

Well, guess what? Today’s the day. The Committee has issued their review (available here as a PDF), and the critiques are what you would expect really. For this post, I’ll look examine what the PCAC thinks about New York City Transit, and later this afternoon, I’ll look at the PCAC’s response to the MTA overall. If you’re interested in the commuter rail networks, page through the PDF. It’s a quick read.

Before jumping in, it’s interesting to note that, by and large, the PCAC, much like the Rider Report Cards, isn’t issuing any groundbreaking information. As you’ll notice shortly, I’ve hit upon nearly all of their critiques and praises at some point during the last 13 months. How can I get a spot on this committee?

And here we go.

The Good

With New York City Transit in the crosshairs, the PCAC starts out by praising the man in charge. PCAC likes Howard Roberts, the new head of New York City Transit. Considering that the Committee went out of its way to offer the same compliments to MTA CEO Elliot “Lee” Sander, it seems that no one really liked the old bosses. Nice work, Gov. Pataki.

In more tangible areas, the PCAC praised NYCT for its myriad service upgrades. The Times Square Shuttle is better; the L line is better; the 7 line, running express after Mets games, is better; and even the Staten Island Railway is better. The PCAC also praised the MTA for renovating their elevators. Way to go, guys.

Interestingly, the Committee highlighted the MTA’s communications efforts during planned service outages. They were particular impressed with the MTA e-mail alerts and the new service alert posters. I approved of those changes last year as well.

Needs Improvement

The PCAC wasn’t too thrilled with the Rider Report Cards. I concur. A flawed process and methodology as well as predictable results marred the process. Relatedly, the PCAC criticized the MTA for their vague performance measures. What exactly does it mean for a train to “on time”? What does it mean to suffer from delays during travel? These too are questions I recently posted.

While PCAC criticized a few bus issues — the odd placement of shelters, poor dissemination of express bus routes — they are not happy with the cleanliness, or lack thereof, of the subway system. As long as the stations remain open 24 hours a day, cleanliness will always be an issue.

Unacceptable

No big surprises here: The PCAC was not at all pleased with the inability of NYCT to communicate during the August 8th flood disaster. This story has been covered to death. We know the drill.

The Committee expressed dismay that 86 stations do not have public address systems. Coincidentally, NYCT head Howard Roberts announced plans to address this deficiency earlier this week. Do you think he had an advanced copy of the report?

Finally, the PCAC was highly unamused by the lack of progress with the Public Address/Customer Information Screen projects. We know that one from the lab rat that is the L Line. Those signs are, as The New York Times wrote on Sunday, hardly reliable. With the project already 34.4 percent over budget and three years behind schedule, the Committee questions when, if at all, we’ll see late 20th Century technology arrive in the New York City Subways.

Check back later for the PCAC’s look inside the MTA.

Categories : New York City Transit

Comments (3)

Jan

Franklin Ave. shuttle, SIR lacking in safety

By Benjamin Kabak · Comments (0) ·

I’ve got three trains left in this whole Rider Report Card thing, and I’m saving the Q — the future Second Ave. Subway — for last. Today, we’ve got two lesser-used train lines, and the results are a little bit different than usual.

The result, gradewise, are the same. The Staten Island Railway received a C-plus while the Franklin Ave. Shuttle received a C. But what the riders think are markedly different than the norm.

The Staten Island Railway is a lonely train. It runs for 14 miles from St. George and the Staten Island Ferry terminal to Tottenville and is completely disconnected from any other rail system in the nation. The Franklin Ave. shuttle is a single-track, four-car shuttle that connects the B and Q at Prospect Park with the 2 and 3 at the Botanic Gardens and the C at Franklin Ave. It makes four stops and connects the IRT to the BMT to the IND. That’s pretty nifty.

Anyway, both of these subway lines are rather quirky. They run through some of the least safe neighborhoods in New York City and some of the most deserted, in terms of staffing, stations in the system. Those safety concerns are reflected in the rankings. Take a look.

Adequate room on board at rush hour
Sense of security in stations
Trains depart and arrive as scheduled
Sense of security on trains
Cleanliness of cars
Comfortable temperature in cars
Cleanliness of stations
Train announcements that are easy to hear
Minimal delays during trips
Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines

Reasonable wait times for trains
Sense of security in stations
Minimal delays during trips
Sense of security on trains
Adequate room on board at rush hour
Cleanliness of stations
Cleanliness of subway cars
Station announcements that are easy to hear
Working elevators and escalators in stations
Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines

Notice that? Riders ranked safety in stations second in both instances. Having ridden the Franklin Ave. shuttle on the way to and from JFK, I don’t blame frequent riders if they are a bit more on guard here. The rest of the complaints are what we’ve heard time and again with these report cards.

The full grades are after the jump. One more to go.

Categories : Rider Report Cards

Comments (0)

NYCT will not let you pee · According to a story in the Daily News, if you’re driving a New York City Transit bus and you have to pee, you better hold it in. William Torres was driving an overtime shift along the shuttle bus route mirroring the G train this weekend when, at the end of one ride, he had to relieve himself. The supervisor warned him against it and then sent him home when Torres made the pit stop anyway. The MTA is now investigating why a supervisor would not let a driver use the facilities at some point during a nine-hour shift. [Daily News] · (2)

Jan

Sander calls for a congestion fee

By Benjamin Kabak · Comments (0) ·

The MTA is banking its financial future on some form of congestion fee revenue, and MTA CEO and Executive Director Elliot “Lee” Sander began his congestion fee push with a stridently pro-congestion fee op-ed in Metro. It throws the weight of a very powerful MTA head behind a plan that is no sure thing.

In a short, concise and effective piece, Sander gets right to the heart of the matter:

Revenues generated by congestion pricing — hundreds of millions of dollars each year — would be used to provide a steady and predictable revenue stream to the MTA to make the capital investments needed to improve service throughout our system.

The new revenue is critical to the ambitious capital plan that we will present to Albany in March. The MTA hopes to move ahead with big expansion projects while investing in new technologies to improve existing service. For subway riders, that means more trains and less waiting. But congestion pricing would do even more for bus riders. It would allow us to purchase new buses to increase frequency on many routes, and to create new bus routes throughout the city.

Even better, it would speed trips for bus riders and make each bus less expensive to operate.

Furthermore, Sander notes, disarming critics, the increase in subway ridership expected due to the congestion fee is but a small percentage of the current ridership totals. With the added revenue, the MTA would be more than able to keep up with the increased demand.

Sander closes with a point that a lot of activists have been pushing lately. MTA ridership, he writes, “is projected to grow by another 20 percent by 2030 as the city is expected to grow by a million people and the region by 3 million. In order for the MTA to handle all those new riders, we must have robust funding streams in place, like the one provided by congestion pricing.”

For those of us supporting a congestion fee, Zero Hour is heading our way. With the panel set to issue a series of recommendations soon, the future of transportation and air quality in the New York area will soon come into view. But for the subways, this issue of funding should transcend congestion fee revenue. As I noted yesterday, the city and state should guarantee dedicated funding for the MTA outside of any money the MTA may take in from the congestion fee. The MTA really is that important to the economic well-being of New York State to warrant such an investment, and while the congestion fee should be implemented, the MTA’s future should not hinge on such a politically volatile proposal.

Meanwhile, it is refreshing and exciting to see Lee Sander come out in favor of a congestion fee. But to see his voice limited to the low-circulation Metro dampens some of that enthusiasm. Maybe next time, the important voices will find their way to the pages of the city’s more influential newspapers.

Categories : Congestion Fee

Comments (0)

Jan

IRT Locals get the same grade as every other train

By Benjamin Kabak · Comments (1) ·

We’re coming down the home stretch of the Rider Report Cards. With just three trains and the Staten Island Railroad left, let’s jump right now.

Today, we find ourselves visiting the 1 and the 6, the IRT Local trains. The 6 pulled down a C; the 1 fared worse with a C-minus. I’m familiar with both trains; the 1 was my ride up to high school for a few years. I probably would have given each a C-plus.

The 1 train runs from South Ferry — where the MTA is constructing a snazzy new terminal — north up 7th Ave. and Broadway where it stops literally everywhere. Why the train has to make six stops from (and counting) Chambers St. to 14th St. and then five stops from (and counting) 14th St. and 34th St. is beyond me. The 1 then shoots up the West Side through Harlem and and Washington Heights before ending at 242nd St.-Van Cortlandt Park. Once upon a time, it ran a skip-stop express service along with the now-defunct 9 train in northern Manhattan and the Bronx.

The 6 runs from Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall (and around the City Hall loop) local up Lexington Ave. and then through the Bronx to Pelham Bay Park. It’s the local service to the 4 and 5 express. Some rush hour trains run express in the Bronx.

The riders, as you would expect, expressed their litany of familiar complaints. Here are the top ten lists:

Reasonable wait times for trains
Adequate room on board at rush hour
Minimal delays during trips
Station announcements that are easy to hear
Train announcements that are easy to hear
Cleanliness of stations
Station announcements that are informative
Sense of security on trains
Sense of security in stations
Working elevators and escalators in stations

Adequate room on board at rush hour
Reasonable wait times for trains
Minimal delays during trips
Station announcements that are easy to hear
Cleanliness of stations
Sense of security on trains
Sense of security in stations
Station announcements that are informative
Train announcements that are easy to hear
Working elevators and escalators in stations

The full grades are after the jump.

Categories : Rider Report Cards

Comments (1)

Jan

Report cards coming to bus lines soon too

By Benjamin Kabak · Comments (4) ·

Here’s an idea that should have been left on the drawing board: Howard Roberts, president of New York City Transit, wants the city’s bus riders to fill out rider report cards as well. With over 200 bus lines servicing the city, this seems like a colossal waste of money and resources.

“We plan to begin distribution of our report cards to the bus system sometime in the spring,” Roberts said at last Thursday’s City Council hearing.

I can understand why the MTA may want to have report cards for the subway lines. As the City Council noted, it certainly looks good as a PR move, and it helps the MTA prioritize the perceived problems with the system. But do we really need to grade the bus lines?

In an effort to save the MTA time and money, let me help them out with the New York City bus system: The New York City buses aren’t very good because they’re not reliable. Since the city hasn’t figured out that dedicated bus lanes are the way to go, buses are subjected to the whims of traffic. Right off the bat — and this is the number-one problem — they don’t really stick to the schedules posted in stations.

Next, they stop way too frequently. I can understand the idea that buses should provide transport for those who may not be able to walk to the subway, but is it really necessary for some buses in Brooklyn to stop four times in seven blocks? Is it really necessary for the M104 to stop at 82nd, 84th, 86th, 88th, 91st and 93rd Sts.? Buses seem to take forever because they stop everywhere. The MTA should either implement more express bus services along every north-south avenue in Manhattan or cut out half of the bus stops.

Third, buses seem to bunch. Waiting ten minutes for a bus to arrive only to find two of them at once, as is common on Madison and Fifth Aves. where multiple bus routes roam the streets, is annoying and inefficient. Loading passengers on buses should be more efficient, and bus spacing should be better maintained.

Finally, the MetroCard readers on buses are pretty confusing. Many people, used to swiping in the subways, don’t know what to do when confronted with a bus reader, and their inability to follow directions slows up the loading process. With a pre-board payment set up and dedicated bus lanes, the MTA could avoid this problem. With contactless smart card technology, as the buses in Washington, D.C., use, paying and board is as easy as a wave of the hand.

So there you go. I guarantee that every bus rider report card will come out with similar complaints. Does the MTA really need to spend more cash on a program that will just return results that we all know already?

Categories : Buses

Comments (4)

Jan

Money for congestion fee may not go to transit

By Benjamin Kabak · Comments (4) ·

It’s been a while since we’ve checked in on Mayor Bloomberg’s proposed congestion fee. As the various panels have examined the plan and proposed lesser alternatives, news has been slow. Last week, however, we heard that the plan enjoys greater public support if they money goes toward improving mass transit. Today, the news is worse.

According to two reports — one in the Post and one in the Daily News — the money from the congestion fee may not go to transit. I don’t think this guy is going to be too happy to hear this one.

Adam Lisberg from the News’ City Hall Bureau has more:

Drivers may soon be forced to pay up to $8 to drive into Manhattan – but there’s no way to ensure the money would go for mass transit as promised, the head of the City Council’s Finance Committee said Sunday.

“There is no guarantee that any of that money would be specifically earmarked,” said David Weprin, who represents a part of eastern Queens with poor subway access. “We shouldn’t be taxing the middle class if it’s not going to make a difference…”

Mayor Bloomberg and the MTA say the money should be used for bus and subway improvements that would get more drivers out of their cars and onto mass transit. But Weprin and former Councilman Walter McCaffrey fear government could instead use that money to offset other transit funding, or even to pay for projects upstate.

This statement by Weprin is not good, to say the least. First, without beating around the bush, it would be a tragedy if Albany used New York City’s congestion fee revenue to pay for upstate projects or use it to offset transit funding. I wouldn’t put past our upstate representatives who seem to have little love for this tiny geographical sliver of the state that is responsible for nearly the entire New York economy.

But more important is the money. Any money the city draws in from the congestion fee should, after paying for congestion enforcement efforts, go toward improving mass transit. If the congestion fee is implemented, a good number of drivers will eschew their cars for the cheaper confines of the subway and Bus Rapid Transit lanes that should be in place. But for the MTA’s various systems to handle the increased volume, they will need increased funding. That money should come from Albany and the congestion fee. It should not come only from the congestion fee with Albany’s thinking that they can slouch off on their financial contributions.

Right now, 60 percent of New Yorkers would support congestion pricing if the money goes to mass transit. The MTA and the mayor both expect those funds to go to mass transit, but Albany could still throw a wrench into their plans. Hopefully, our state representatives won’t do that. With Albany, however, all bets are off, and the congestion fee plan and mass transit upgrades are facing yet another hurdle in the state capital.

Categories : Congestion Fee

Comments (4)

Jan

Catching up on the MTA’s (bad) grades

By Benjamin Kabak · Comments (2) ·

As loyal readers of Second Ave. Sagas may have noticed, I’ve fallen down on the job a bit with the results of the Rider Report Cards. With only six subway lines and the Staten Island Railroad left, I haven’t posted the results in a while.

Honestly, I grew tired of the report cards. Basically, you know the drill: Riders don’t like the crowds, the wait or the announcements. Some lines are seemingly less safe than others, and the subways should be cleaner. These complaints are nothing new, and it’s little wonder than that the City Council criticized the MTA for running the report card project as a publicity stunt. Did they really have to spend a reported $15,000 per subway line just to find this out?

But now we return to the Rider Report Cards. I want to have all of the results up before posting my annotated report card later this week. So stay tuned for that.

Meanwhile, let’s turn our attention to the N and W lines. The N — the Broadway Express — runs from Coney Island to Astoria via the Sea Beach line, the Fourth Avenue line, the Manhattan Bridge, the Broadway line and the Astoria line. The W — the part-time Broadway local — runs from Whitehall St. up the Broadway and Astoria lines to Ditmas Boulevard. The W runs from 6:00 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. during the week, and during the weekends, the N takes the Montague Street tunnel instead of the Manhattan Bridge.

You know the drill with these lines: They’re not the most reliable; they’re a bit sluggish; and they can get fairly crowded. The report cards reflect this reality. The N received a C-minus, and the W pulled down a D-plus. That’s hardly a vote of confidence for the only trains servicing Astoria and large parts of South Brooklyn.

For the report cards, 6,384 riders graded the N, and 1174 riders graded the W. The top ten complaints are what you would expect:

Reasonable wait times for trains
Minimal delays during trips
Adequate room on board at rush hour
Cleanliness of stations
Station announcements that are easy to hear
Train announcements that are easy to hear
Sense of security in stations
Station announcements that are informative
Sense of security on trains
Cleanliness of subway cars

Reasonable wait times for trains
Minimal delays during trips
Adequate room on board at rush hour
Train announcements that are easy to hear
Station announcements that are easy to hear
Cleanliness of subway cars
Station announcements that are informative
Cleanliness of stations
Sense of security in stations
Sense of security on trains

After the jump, full grades.

Categories : Rider Report Cards

Comments (2)

NYCT is on top of the weather · Despite the fact that the NOAA is now predicting just 1-2 inches of snow for New York City, the MTA is on the case. New York City Transit says they are prepared for 5-7 inches and have the de-icing machines ready to go. They don’t expect any A.M. rush hour problems, and neither do I because, well, it just won’t be snowing that much. [New York City Transit] · (1)

Page 144 of 191« First...«142 143144145 146 »...Last »

Citizens Advisory Committee critique rehashes familiar territory

Franklin Ave. shuttle, SIR lacking in safety

Sander calls for a congestion fee

IRT Locals get the same grade as every other train

Report cards coming to bus lines soon too

Money for congestion fee may not go to transit

Catching up on the MTA’s (bad) grades

The Author

30-Day MetroCard Challenge

Categories

Archives

Second Annual MetroCard Challenge

Affiliates

Affiliates

Brooklyn Blogs

Manhattan Blogs

New York Blogs

NYC News Sites

Public Transit

Queens Blogs

Subway Maps

Meta