On the TWU (and weekend service advisories)

We’re approaching the Eleventh Hour for the MTA. On March 25, the Board will meet to vote on what is looking more and more like an inevitable fare hike and service cut plan. If any news breaks over the weekend, I’ll have it.

In the meantime, mull over this one from the New York Post’s Inside City Hall column. Supposedly, Mayor Bloomberg and his aides are unhappy that the MTA isn’t, in the midst of a financial crisis, play hardball with the Transit Workers Union. The Mayor’s Office — and many New Yorkers — believe the TWU contract to be very favorable to the workers, and many critics of the MTA feel that the authority is held hostage by the union.

For now, any conflict with the union simply won’t be an issue. The MTA is too focused on securing its long-term financial position than on hammering out a deal with its workers. But when push comes to shove, the MTA and the TWU should evaluate the number of jobs currently in place in the transit agency and decide if they are all necessary. Accountability cuts both ways.

On to the service alerts:

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, 2 trains run in two sections (due to a track chip-out at President Street):

• Between 241st Street and Crown Heights-Utica Avenue and
• Between Franklin Avenue and Brooklyn College-Flatbush Avenue

Customers must transfer to the shuttle train at Franklin Avenue for stations along Nostrand Avenue to Flatbush Avenue. Note: In the early morning hours between 12:30 a.m. and 5 a.m., trains run every 30 minutes between Franklin and Flatbush Avenues.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, downtown 2 and 3 trains run local from 96th Street to Chambers Street due to station rehabilitation at 96th Street.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, uptown 2 and 3 trains run local from 72nd to 96th Streets due to station rehabilitation at 96th Street.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, Brooklyn-bound 2, 3 and 4 trains run express from Atlantic Avenue to Crown Heights-Utica Avenue due to a track chip-out at President Street. A shuttle train will operate between Franklin Avenue and Brooklyn College-Flatbush Avenue.

From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, March 14 and Sunday, March 15, Manhattan-bound 2 and 5 trains run express from East 180th Street to 3rd Avenue-149th Street due to switch work.

From 12:01 a.m. to 7 a.m. Saturday, March 14, from 12:01 a.m. to 8 a.m. Sunday, March 15 and from 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, Brooklyn-bound 4 trains run local from Grand Central-42nd Street to Brooklyn Bridge due to rail installation.

From 11:30 p.m. Friday, March 13 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, free shuttle buses replace A trains between Jay Street-Borough Hall and Utica Avenue due to the Jay Street rehabilitation project.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, there is no C train service. A trains run local between 168th Street and Euclid Avenue with free shuttle buses replacing A trains between Jay Street-Borough Hall and Utica Avenue due to the Jay Street rehabilitation project. However, note that during the late night hours between midnight and 5 a.m., Queens-bound A trains run express from 125th Street to 59th Street. Customers must back-ride on the Manhattan-bound side for missed stations.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, uptown D trains run local from 59th to 145th Streets due to switch renewal south of 81st Street.

From 11:30 p.m. Friday, March 13 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, Manhattan-bound E and F trains run local from Forest Hills-71st Avenue to Roosevelt Avenue due to a track chip-out north of Grand Avenue.

From 12:30 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 5 a.m. March 16, Jamaica-bound E and F trains run local from Roosevelt Avenue to Forest Hills -71st Avenue due to a track chip-out north of Grand Avenue.

From 8:30 p.m. Friday, March 13 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16 (until further notice), there are no G trains between Forest Hills-71st Avenue and Court Square. Customers should take the E or R instead.

From 11:30 p.m. Friday, March 13 to 5 a.m. Monday, March 16, free shuttle buses replace L trains between Rockaway Parkway and Broadway Junction due to track panel installation at East 105th Street.

From 4 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 10 p.m. Sunday, March 15, N trains skip Prince, 8th, 23rd, and 28th Streets due to switch renewal at Queensboro Plaza. Customers may take the Q instead.

From 4 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 10 p.m. Sunday, March 15, there are no N trains between Queensboro Plaza and Lexington Avenue-59th Street due to switch renewal at Queensboro Plaza. Customers may take the 7 instead.

From 5 a.m. to midnight Saturday, March 14 and from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday, March 15, there are no N trains between Lexington Avenue-59th Street and Times Square-42nd Street due to switch renewal at Queensboro Plaza. Customers may take the 4, 5, 6, Q or R instead.

From 4 a.m. Saturday, March 14 to 10 p.m. March 15, Q trains run local on the R line between Canal Street and DeKalb Avenue in both directions due to switch renewal at Queensboro Plaza.