Author

Benjamin Kabak

Learning a lesson from Walder’s departure

by Benjamin Kabak July 29, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 29, 2011

As New York’s transit-minded community has analyzed Jay Walder’s departure, our city’s infrastructure deficit has come under the microscope. With obstructionist politicians and mounting debt, the future is hazy for New York City’ transit system. Hong Kong’s MTR, on the other hand, is thriving.

In The Daily News today, Alex Marshall of the RPA looks toward Hong Kong for some transit lessons. The MTA would be wise to imitate the MTR with regards to development. In Hong Kong, the MTR has maintained its real estate holdings while developing and monetizing them. In New York, the MTA gave up the Atlantic Yards land in a below-market deal.

Ultimately, New York will have to reform the way it interacts with its transit network before we can truly move forward. But will the debt lead to a collapse before that time comes? Jay Walder, for one, isn’t sticking around to find out.

July 29, 2011 19 comments

Capital Program 2010-2014 Rolling Stock

For the R32s, another six years of keep on keepin’ on

by Benjamin Kabak July 29, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 29, 2011

The R32s, seen here along the E line in 2008, will have to last a few more years. (Photo by flickr user gmpicket)

When the MTA first unveiled the 2010-2014 Capital Plan back in 2008, the rolling stock investment of course drew some attention. In that document, the MTA put forth its plan to purchase the so-called R179s that would replace the R44s and R32s. Optimistically, we even expected them early on in the five-year plan.

Of course, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry, and as the MTA has struggled to get its financial house in order, the R179s have become a victim, for now, of the budget knife. In the three-year budget released this week, the MTA announced that the R32s, already 47 years old, will have to last until 2017 when the MTA can bring the R179s on line. Fifty-three year old rail cars will be a sight to behold.

The full text follows:

Due to the accelerated retirement of R44 cars caused by structural defects, the older 222 R32 car fleet is required to remain in service beyond their normal service life. The R32 cars are currently 47 years old and already well past the standard expected useful life of 40 years. Now these cars will be required to remain in service for at least another 6 years until 2017 when new R179 cars are delivered.

The R32 cars received their last SMS work in 2007 and require a new SMS cycle to maintain acceptable performance levels for the next six years. R32 car MDBF is the worst by far of any car fleet now in revenue service; in April 2011 12-month average MDBF for the R32 fleet was just 57,210 compared with a fleet-wide average of 171,553 for the same period. The failure to perform this needed SMS cycle would result in unacceptable further deterioration of this already low level of performance. The R32 SMS cycle will require an addition of 52 positions and costs of $7.9 million per year for three years.

Already, these cars are in poor condition, and riders along the C train have been complaining of failing air conditioners and generally decrepit cars. For another six years, we’re stuck with them.

July 29, 2011 90 comments

Buses MTA Technology

BusTime to hit Staten Island before 2012

by Benjamin Kabak July 29, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 29, 2011

The real-time bus tracking system currently in place along the B63 will be live on Staten Island by the end of the year. (Photo by Benjamin Kabak)

Even as uncertainty reigns supreme at the MTA right now, the authority is moving ahead with projects that will welcome transit-oriented technologies to New York City. This week, in fact, the MTA Board approved a deal with Verifone that will help bring real-time bus tracking to Staten Island by the end of this year. The $6.9 million contract will be the first of a series of deals that will eventually total an additional $48.4 million the on-board components of a city-wide bus tracking system. Verifone’s deal includes only Staten Island, and the contracts for the remaining boroughs will be subject to future competitive bidding processes.

“Today, our transit system is quickly catching up with our 21st century expectation that real-time information is available on the go for all New Yorkers,” MTA CEO and Chairman Jay Walder said. “That means knowing if your bus is on time before you leave home, getting updates on delays while you’re out and about, and unlocking opportunities for better service across our entire network. MTA Bus Time is a big part of this new vision for bus service in New York.”

Verifone’s role on Staten Island will be that of a systems integrator. They will install the necessary hardware in every Staten Island-based bus that will allow for real-time tracking. The MTA will soon award a contract for the software that integrates location and, as the authority puts it, “other relevant information.” Those who worked on the B63 pilot in Brooklyn will lend their expertise to this project as well.

“I’m certain that bus customers will be thrilled with MTA Bus Time,” said NYC Transit President Thomas Prendergast. “Having next bus arrival times right in your hand available at any point in your trip is part of our ongoing effort to improve the customer experience.”

Both future deployment and potential next-generation fare technology provisions are included in the Verifone commercial. First, through a competitive bidding process and subsequent negotiations, Verifone will be paid an additional $48 million to bring the bus-tracking hardware to the other four boroughs over the next few years as well. They will also hold an option to purchase smart card readers as the MTA gears up to replace the MetroCard. It’s all a part of Walder’s technology push, and the contract award guarantees that New Yorkers will at least see the bus-tracking project expand.

Furthermore, the contract represents the MTA’s new way of doing business as well. Verifone’s original bid came in at $8.9 million, and the authority negotiated it down to $6.9 million, a figure over $300,000 lower than the next lowest bid.

I’ve long been a big proponent of the MTA’s BusTime system. I explored the technology and development process behind it earlier this year, and I believe it will only get better and more popular as it spreads throughout the city. Right now, it’s of limited use as it is in place only along 34th St. in Manhattan in one form and along 5th Ave. in Brooklyn in another. By blanketing a borough in a bus tracking system, the MTA will have the opportunity to see how much easier and convenient buses will become when real-time location data is at our collective fingertips. It can improve everything from waiting to transferring, and I look forward to seeing it spread throughout the entire city.

“With a variety of ways of accessing MTA Bus Time, Staten Island customers will find it extremely convenient and useful. It’s another way we’re committed to improving bus service,” Darryl Irick, VP for Department of Buses and President for MTA Bus, said.

July 29, 2011 13 comments

Asides Bronx

Bronx stations come under fire

by Benjamin Kabak July 28, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 28, 2011

When I was a kid traveling to Yankee Stadium from the Upper West Side, I would transfer from the 2 to the 4 at the 149th St. stop, and it was a mess. It’s a deep, dark station, and pipes above the old mosaics had corroded. Mineral-laden water had basically ruined the walls. Today, the pipes are sealed, but the damage remains. The station, a very busy one in the Bronx, is in bad shape, and I’m not the only one noticing.

At this week’s MTA Board meetings, Charlie Moerdler chided the MTA for allowing the Bronx stations to become decrepit. A recent study showed that the Bronx stations are the dirtiest in the system and are ripe for an upgrade. “You cannot expect people in the Bronx who work hard to deal with the fact that the subway stations here are lousy but the stations in Manhattan are pristine,” he said. “Enough is enough.”

For its part, the MTA says that rehabs at 42 at 71 Bronx stations have been completed, and 17 more are set to proceed under the remainder of the capital plan. “The Bronx,” Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr., said, “will no longer be a punching bag.” The problem isn’t that the Bronx is a punching bag; it’s that stations everywhere are in disrepair. The Bronx stops might be the dirtiest, but they certainly don’t have a monopoly on chipped paint, rats or crumbling concrete.

July 28, 2011 15 comments

Capital Program 2010-2014 MTA Economics

For the capital plan, a $6.9 billion debt proposal

by Benjamin Kabak July 28, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 28, 2011

As the MTA looks to shore up both its operating budget and five-year capital plan, the agency is prepared to turn toward a set of familiar funding sources to stay afloat. In a sweeping budget released yesterday at its Board meeting, the authority reiterated that its operating budget will require fare hikes as planned in both 2013 and 2015 as well as the current mix of dedicated taxes if the agency is to maintain a balanced budget. Meanwhile, the capital plan will rely on even more debt as the authority plans to borrow nearly $7 billion to close its funding gap.

“By keeping our focus on making every dollar count, this financial plan brings stability back to the MTA’s finances,” outgoing MTA Chairman and CEO Jay Walder said. “As a result, we’re able to meet our commitments to avoid service cuts and fare increases next year. The savings also pave the way for a new funding strategy that will advance vital capital investments that protect the safety and reliability of our transportation network.”

In its budget documents, the MTA made clear that its basic assumptions rely on continued support from Albany and continued inaction from those interested in repealing the payroll tax. In its release, the Authority noted that the budget was prepared based on four basic assumptions: a three-year zero wage increase initiative that “reflects new fiscal realities”; two fare hikes in 2013 and 2015 as planned; more cost-cutting measures; and “continued receipt of dedicated taxes and subsidies.”

Both union leaders and Albany representatives are likely nervous about these assumptions. With the TWU negotiations looming, a net-zero wage increase would either leave their members with stagnant salaries for three years or with their ranks reduced as the MTA can keep labor spending steady by simply cutting positions. In Albany, as Lee Zeldin and his ilk attempt to overturn the payroll tax, the MTA has made it clear that it needs the $1.5 billion in subsidies. If they want to reduce the tax burden in suburban counties that already enjoy mass transit benefits, they’re going to have find a way to replace those revenue streams.

Meanwhile, the MTA said it will turn toward debt financing and more state and city contributions to find its capital plan. With a $10 billion gap and $4 billion already cut from what was once a five-year, $28 billion plan, the MTA has applied for a $2.2 billion low-rate federal loan and will issue $4.7 billion in MTA revenue bonds, bringing the total debt to $6.9 billion. It anticipates drawing in around $890 million from the sale of 347 Madison and other underutilized properties and has asked the city, state and Port Authority for a combined $1.7 billion as well.

Transit advocates did not rush to embrace this plan. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign sent out a lengthy statement yesterday:

The financing plan announced today would all but guarantee that tomorrow’s New Yorkers would face much higher fares and future service cuts. It centers around borrowing an additional $6.9 billion to fund the transit system’s capital needs, saddling future generations with yet more debt. Seventeen cents of every fare dollar already goes to pay off old debt, and this plan would significantly increase that amount.

Furthermore, this plan is balanced only with the help of assumption after assumption. It relies on new revenue from the Port Authority and a loan from the federal government. It assumes changes in labor agreements. It relies on an increase in support from New York City. It relies on an increase in the agency’s debt cap by the State, and approval by the State Legislature of new bonds. It assumes that federal transportation funding will remain at existing levels, when many in Congress are calling for drastic cuts.

Much of our region’s economic dynamism can be traced back to the investments made since the MTA’s first multi-year rebuilding program was created in 1982. The capital program generates tens of thousands of new jobs and tens of billions of dollars in economic activity. The projects that the capital plan supports — such as station rehabs, signal modernization, track work, lighting, and customer assistance — are essential to the region’s prosperity. But this plan amounts to a ticking time-bomb.

The city and Mayor Bloomberg declined to comment, but the Citizens Budget Commission issued a call to action:

The new proposal is better than doing nothing to meet the essential infrastructure needs of mass transit. But it has a critical flaw – it proposes to borrow billions without presenting a corresponding plan for new revenues to match the increased long-run debt service burden. In the coming months, as the proposal is debated, this gap should be meaningfully addressed by our elected representatives…

The MTA Board, in consultation with the Governor and legislative leaders, should develop a revised financing plan. It should rely on prudent forms of borrowing and identify adequate revenues to cover future debt service. The best medicine for the MTA’s fiscal woes is new revenue from sources such as accelerated and larger fare and toll increases, increases in auto user fees such as vehicle registration and drivers’ license fees, and a better version of the much maligned efforts to charge for auto access to central Manhattan. Of course existing sources must be retained and optimized. A viable strategy for maintaining and enhancing mass transit inevitably requires that New Yorkers pay more in some way. Our political leaders should be honest about that fact and address the problem rather than temporarily dodging it.

It’s tough to feel too good about this plan. It would indeed help the MTA to finish its big-ticket items, and they must have this money. But saddling the authority with more debt will just lead to future cuts and fare hikes. Already, the MTA is carrying too much debt, and as it looks toward the next ten or fifteen years, debt will begin to hinder its actions.

For now, though, the lines have been drawn and assumptions have been aired. It’s a first step in what will be a long process, and how it ends will impact the long- and short-term futures of New York City’s aging subway system.

For more on the budget, read through the MTA’s plans right here.

July 28, 2011 17 comments

MTA

Briefly pondering Jay Walder’s replacement

by Benjamin Kabak July 26, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 26, 2011

I’m taking the New York State Bar Exam on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, and so there will be no further posts today. If you’re looking for some thought-provoking transit-related materials, watch the above video. It seems as though Richard Brodsky, former Assembly representative, wouldn’t say no were he to be appointed head of the MTA. Considering his record while in Albany, though, I’m not so keen on that idea. Meanwhile, William Colton, a current Assembly rep from Brooklyn, suggested Gene Russianoff while The Journal says Gov. Andrew Cuomo will look nationally or within the MTA for a potential replacement. Intrigue indeed.

July 26, 2011 27 comments

Asides MTA

Donohue: Walder leaving in ‘third inning of a nine-inning game’

by Benjamin Kabak July 25, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 25, 2011

As much as I believe Jay Walder has done an admirable job in adverse conditions as the head of the MTA, his departure came as a disappointment last week. As I said in my coverage of the resignation, he is leaving midstream, before his job is done and with many obstacles still in the path. Perhaps he couldn’t resist taking a lucrative job in Hong Kong; perhaps he was fed up with dealing with Albany and folks like Lee Zeldin; perhaps he was sick of it all. But the bottom line is that he’s quitting barely a third of the way through his promised tenure.

While Walder deserves some praise for reexamining the way the MTA works, he certainly doesn’t for walking out, and that’s what Nicole Gelinas and Pete Donohue say today. In The Daily News, Donohue seems to be more annoyed that Walder ruined a good story, but the real problem is that he’s departing with labor contracts expiring, a hole in the capital plan and many projects in progress.

Gelinas, meanwhile, lays into Walder: “He didn’t achieve all that much to justify the quick departure. Much of those improvements that we see now, including the countdown clocks and the consolidation of back offices, are the fruit of efforts that started long before his arrival. As for fiscal stability: Sorry, but it would take more time to make sure his cost-cutting sticks.” With December’s snow emergency fresh in everyone’s minds, Walder’s negatives, she says, may balance out the positives, and “isn’t sticking around long enough to get his hands dirty in negotiating a tough labor contract.” Hopefully, the next MTA CEO can tough it out for the full tenure of his deal. A fifth CEO in six years isn’t good for even the best of businesses.

July 25, 2011 21 comments

Asides East Side Access Project

For a TBM, a Park Ave. resting place 14 stories deep

by Benjamin Kabak July 25, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 25, 2011

As the East Side Access project inches toward completion, one of the tunnel boring machines digging out the tubes in Manhattan has spun its last cutter head, and it won’t be coming up for air. The Spanish contract that owns Seli, the TBM that has been cutting through Manhattan schist since 2007, has decided to abandon the TBM 14 stories beneath Park Avenue. It would, simply put, cost more than the TBM is worth to pull it back out into Sunnyside, dismantle it and sell it for scrap, and so the nether reaches of Manhattan will be its final resting place.

Its exact resting place appears to be at around Park Ave. between 37th and 38th Streets, and the MTA and its contractors will use the laid-to-rest TBM for tunnel support. Later this week, it will be encased in concrete, and the 22.5-foot-long drill will be marked with a plaque only. As The Times notes, the decision evokes images of Planet of the Apes, and while other countries have buried TBMs, this is a first for New York. There is, of course, no room to do the same along Second Ave. or the 7 Line extension. “People will find it, and they will find it exciting to see it, if they ever unearth it,” Michael Horodniceanu, head of MTA Capital Construction, said. “Who knows? Maybe they will want to continue the railroad south, at which point they would have to take it out.”

July 25, 2011 23 comments

MTA

A big Apple splash at Grand Central Terminal

by Benjamin Kabak July 25, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 25, 2011

The Apple Store is coming, and Grand Central may never be the same. That, at least, is a dramatic take on the latest news.

Later today, the MTA Finance Committee will vote to approve a 10-year lease with Apple for the current Metrazur space, and after months of rumors, the computer and tech giant will begin preparation for the space. It is, for Apple, an ambitious undertaking. At 23,000 square feet, the Grand Central store will be the company’s largest, and Apple was the only company to respond to the MTA’s RFP for the space. They — and not the MTA — will pay Metrazur $5 million to terminate their lease early and have vowed to make only “modest alterations” to historic elements while keeping signage at a minimum. Still, the store’s presence will be felt.

First, the lease terms: Apple will be renting out the entire northern balcony for payments that start at $800,000 a year and grow to over $1 million by year ten. They will also be renting an additional amount of ancillary facilities for over $300,000 a year, growing to $400,000 by year ten. The lease contains two five-year options as well. In addition to the Metrazur space, the currently-closed northeast balcony will be a part of Apple’s retail store as well.

In its own materials, the MTA feels it is getting an above-market offer from Apple even though they were the only ones to respond to the RFP. They are paying significantly more than Metrazur does now. Apple has said that construction will last approximately 120 days once they obtain control over the property. So it seems as though opening in time for the 2011 holiday season would be optimistic at best.

What intrigues me most about Apple’s arrival is its sheer popularity. The MTA isn’t charging a sales percentage on the lease, but the authority anticipates that the presence of the Apple Store will boost gross sales to its other Grand Central terminal by at least 1 percent which would add $500,000 to the MTA’s take. The dollars, though, are the least of my concerns.

The staff summary of the lease has a sentence that piqued my curiosity. “Recognizing that the Apple Store is expected to attract many customers and entail a substantial back-of-house operation, Apple Metro-North and MTA Police Department personnel have engaged in intensive planning effort to ensure that Apple’s operations will be compatible in all respect, and not interfere with, the primary use of the terminal as a transportation facility.”

In other words, keep those long lines out of the way of harried commuters.

Even as Grand Central matures into a retail and food hub, it is as its most basic level a place that services people going somewhere else. It’s home to one of the busiest subway stations in the city as well as the largest number of train platforms in the world. Turning it into a destination has increased its popularity and made it a more pleasant place to wait for trains, but it still must get people to their destinations.

So Apple will have to compromise. When the iPad 2 came out in March, I checked out the line on 14th St., and it went from the corner of 14th and 9th Ave. to 17th and 10th Ave. That won’t work in Grand Central as commuters try to navigate gadget-crazed fans. Apple has vowed to make it work, and so has the MTA. In a few months, we’ll see it in action.

July 25, 2011 17 comments

Service Advisories

Weekend work impacting 16 subway lines

by Benjamin Kabak July 22, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on July 22, 2011

Stay cool.

From 11:30 p.m. Friday, July 22 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, there is no 1 train service between 14th Street and South Ferry due to Port Authority work south of Chambers Street. 1 trains run express between 34th Street and 14th Street. 2 and 3 trains run local in both directions between Chambers Street and 96th Street. Free shuttle buses replace 1 train service between Chambers Street and South Ferry.

From 3:30 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 10 p.m. Sunday, July 24, free shuttle buses replace 2 train service between East 180th Street and 149th Street-Grand Concourse due to track panel installation at Jackson Avenue, Freeman Street and 174th Street.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, Manhattan-bound 2 trains run express from Franklin Avenue to Atlantic Avenue due to platform edge repair at Bergen Street and Franklin Avenue and tunnel structural repair south of Atlantic Avenue.

From 6:30 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24, Manhattan-bound 3 trains run express from Franklin Avenue to Atlantic Avenue due to platform edge repair at Bergen Street and Franklin Avenue and tunnel structural repair south of Atlantic Avenue.

From 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m., Saturday, July 23, Sunday, July 24 and Monday, July 25, 3 service is extended to 34th Street-Penn Station due to Port Authority work at Chambers Street.

From 12:01 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24 and from 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, Manhattan-bound 4 trains run express from Franklin Avenue to Atlantic Avenue due to platform edge repair at Bergen Street and Franklin Avenue and tunnel structural repair south of Atlantic Avenue.

From 11 p.m. Friday, July 22 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, downtown 4 trains run local from 125th Street to 14th Street-Union Square and uptown 4 trains run local from Grand Central-42nd Street to 125th Street due to track work south of 77th Street.

From 12:01 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24 and from 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, downtown 4 trains run express from 14th Street-Union Square to Brooklyn Bridge due to work on the Broadway/Lafayette-to-Bleecker Street transfer connection.

From 3:30 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 10 p.m. Sunday, July 24, there is no 5 train service between East 180th Street and Bowling Green due to track panel installation at Jackson Avenue, Freeman Street and 174th Street. A free shuttle bus is available between East 180th Street and 149th Street-Grand Concourse. Customers between 149th Street-Grand Concourse and Bowling Green may take the 4 instead. Note: Shuttle trains operate all weekend between East 180th Street and Dyre Avenue.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, downtown 6 trains run express from 14th Street-Union Square to Brooklyn Bridge due to work on the Broadway/Lafayette-to-Bleecker Street transfer connection.

From 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24, Flushing-bound 7 trains skip 82nd, 90th, 103rd, and 111th Streets due to the installation of cable trays and brackets.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, there is no A or C service at Fulton Street in either direction due to work at the Fulton Street Transit Center.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, uptown A trains run on the F line from Jay Street-MetroTech to West 4th Street, then local to 59th Street-Columbus Circle due to work on the Fulton Street Transit Center.

From 6:30 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24, uptown C trains run on the F line from Jay Street-MetroTech to West 4th Street due to work on the Fulton Street Transit Center.

From 6:30 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24, downtown C trains skip 50th, 23rd, and Spring Streets due to electrical work at Jay Street-MetroTech.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, Bronx-bound D trains run on the N line from Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue to 59th Street in Brooklyn due to structural repair and station rehabilitation from 71st Street to Bay 50th Street and ADA work at Bay Parkway.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, Coney Island-bound F trains run on the A line from West 4th Street to Jay Street-MetroTech due to electrical work at Jay Street-MetroTech.
Page 4 of 5

From 11 p.m. Friday, July 22 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, there are no G trains between Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. and Church Avenue due to track work north of Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. G trains operate in two sections:

Between Court Square and Bedford-Nostrand Avs and
Between Bedford-Nostrand Avs and Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. (every 20 minutes)

Note: The A provides connecting service between Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. and Jay Street-MetroTech.

From 6 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 6 p.m. July 24, L service operates in two sections due to installation of fencing at Canarsie Yard:

Between 8th Avenue and Broadway Junction and
Between Broadway Junction and Rockaway Parkway (every 24 minutes)

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, there are no N trains between Queensboro Plaza and 57th Street-7th Avenue in Manhattan and the N operates on the R line between Canal Street and 36th Street in Brooklyn in both directions. This is due to rail and plate installation north of 57th Street-7th Avenue. Customers should use the 7 train between Queensboro Plaza and Times Square.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, Coney Island-bound N trains run on the D line in Brooklyn from 36th Street to Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue due to track panel installation south of 59th Street in Brooklyn.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, July 25, there are no Q trains between 57thStreet-7th Avenue and Times Square-42nd Street due to rail and plate installation north of 57th Street-7th Avenue.

From 6 a.m. Saturday, July 23 to 6 p.m. Sunday, July 24, Manhattan-bound Q trains skip Neck Road and Avenue U due to overcoat painting of the Brighton Line Bridges.

From 5:15 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24, R trains are rerouted to the D and M lines in Manhattan due to rail and plate installation north of 57th Street-7th Avenue. Queens-bound R trains run on the D line to Broadway-Lafayette Street, then via the M (6th Av to 53rd St) to Queens Plaza and normal R service to 71st Avenue. Brooklyn-bound R trains run on the M (53rd St to 6th Av) line from Queens Plaza to Broadway-Lafayette St., then via the D to DeKalb Avenue, and then normal R service to Bay Ridge. Note: N trains run on the R line between Canal Street and 36th Street in Brooklyn all weekend. Customers may transfer between the N and R at 34th Street Herald Square or DeKalb Avenue.

July 22, 2011 4 comments

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