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Asides

ARC legal fees beginning to mount

by Benjamin Kabak March 11, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on March 11, 2011

As Gov. Chris Christie fights with the federal government for the right to keep $271 million earmarked for the ARC Tunnel, the state’s legal bill is beginning to mount. After just one month on the job, D.C. firm Patton Boggs had billed New Jersey Transit $330,000 for the effort. “NJ Transit’s budget contains funds for legal and other such expenses and this will come out of that,” Paul Wyckoff, agency spokesman, said. “There are hundreds of millions of dollars at stake here. This is certainly, we feel, worth the best legal effort we can produce. Patton Boggs is a highly regarded, highly professional firm that is working to save state taxpayers money as efficiently as possible.”

New Jersey politicians who have fought with Christie over the ARC cancellation since Day One again lobbed grenades toward the governor. “I’m not suggesting the state shouldn’t have counsel. I hope the state wins,” John Wisniewski, chairman of the state assembly’s Transportation Committee, said. “But $333,281 — there are lots of good lawyers in New Jersey that don’t charge $485 an hour.”

If New Jersey thinks it has a valid case to make for those federal dollars, the state has every right to employ outside counsel to do so, and Wisniewski has every right to complain about the fees. Ultimately, though, if they get to keep any of the $271 million, the $330,000 a month will be but a drop in the bucket. Still, the attempts to keep the money seem to be garnering more attention than the efforts to build a new cross-Hudson rail tunnel, and that’s not helping anyone in the region.

March 11, 2011 7 comments

Asides MTA Politics

Appeals court dismisses $1.8M bus accident award

by Benjamin Kabak March 10, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on March 10, 2011

Over the past few years, I’ve burned more than a few pixels talking about the MTA’s legal liability. Most recently, in December, following a horrific accident involving a passenger and the gap fillers at Union Square, I wondered if the authority needed some tort protection. After all, does it make sense for the taxpayers to subsidize excessive jury awards when oftentimes the victims are contributorily negligent as well?

Yesterday, an Appellate Division state court showed that the system as it is established now seems to have enough legal checks and balances to work well. A Harlem man in 2009 won a $1.8 million verdict from the MTA when a jury determined he wasn’t drunk as he stepped in the path of an oncoming bus while crossing the street. The appeals court though tossed the verdict and ordered a new trial based on clear inconsistencies in the testimony and too much compassion on behalf of the jury. “Albeit very infrequently, juries sometimes make findings that are utterly without foundation in the law or the evidence,” the ruling says. “This is one such case, and the finding of no comparative negligence is so irrational as to require that we unconditionally direct a new trial.”

Usually, the multi-million-dollar awards make headlines, but those awards don’t trigger an instant payment. The MTA is bound to appeal most cases that would require a large outlay, and here, the judicial system functioned as it should. The authority may still wind up on the hook for some damages, but if Claude Williams was indeed intoxicated at the time of the accident, the award will be far smaller than originally assessed.

March 10, 2011 5 comments

Asides Second Avenue Subway

Skanska/Traylor bid leading the pack at 86th St.

by Benjamin Kabak March 9, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on March 9, 2011

Ben Heckscher over at The Launch Box has up an interesting bit on Contract C-26008 today. For those unfamiliar with the number, that’s contract 5B for the Second Ave. Sagas for work on the 86th Street station cavern. According to Heckscher, the bid results were recently made public, and the Skanska/Traylor joint venture is in the lead with a bid of $301,860,000.

Interestingly, as Heckscher notes, this bid is well below the amount the MTA expected to spend on the cavern and mining work around East 86th Street, and that low bid is in line with what Denise Richardson of the General Contractors Associate said at the Museum of the City of New York a few weeks ago. Because these contractors are itching to keep their workers employed and their machines running, now is a good time to submit contracts for bids. Companies are willing to operate efficiently if it means more work. As the MTA’s capital budget comes due for more money, I hope Albany is paying attention.

Meanwhile, the 86th St. contract will be an interesting one to watch because the litigation over the station entrances could pay a role yet. As Heckscher writes, it isn’t clear how the lawsuit will impact this work, but for now, the cavern work can proceed apace. Not until demolition work and entrance scoping begins does the above-ground machinations affect the construction below.

March 9, 2011 4 comments

Asides Buses

Transit orders 90 low-floor vehicles from Nova Bus

by Benjamin Kabak March 9, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on March 9, 2011

Nova Bus is readying an order of 90 low-floor systems vehicles for a New York City Transit test run, the company announced yesterday. As part of a plan to develop the next generation of rolling stock for New York City’s bus system, Transit has requested three different kinds of 40-foot buses, and Nova Bus will fulfill this $40-million order at its Plattsburgh, NY-based plant. “The Nova Bus team is keenly focused on sustainable business development,” Gilles Dion, the company’s president and CEO said, “and we are pleased to have the opportunity to pursue our partnership with one of the leading transit authorities in North America.”

According to a company spokesperson, the buses will arrive in New York within the next few weeks, and the initial tests could lead to more orders if the trials are successful. “Not only does it benefit New Yorkers downstate who get to ride these Nova buses, but more importantly, this creates good-paying jobs right here in Plattsburgh,” Senator Chuck Schumer said. “The MTA is now a repeat customer with Nova, and this new contract reaffirms that Nova is a first-class facility doing great work in Plattsburgh.” Nova Bus is currently working on an order of 60-foot articulated buses for the MTA as well.

March 9, 2011 4 comments

Asides Subway Security

Security Hits: NYPD radio problems, state oversight

by Benjamin Kabak March 4, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on March 4, 2011

As the weekend nears, how about some good old fashioned subway security fearmongering? First up, in a story that should surprise no one, the 15-year, hundred-million-dollar effort to bring subway-to-surface NYPD radio access to the subways has not been a success, amNew York reported this week. The City, TA and NYPD have invested $144 million into a system that cannot bridge the gap between stations and the world above, and the three sides are deflecting blame as it will require at least another $28 million to fix the system. “All were aware of the significant challenges that getting this system in place posed,” Kevin Ortiz, MTA spokesman, said.

Meanwhile, in Albany, a state senator from Queens wants to usher a bill through that would add another layer of oversight to the MTA’s security efforts. The bill would, as the Queens Chronicle reports, allow the Department of Homeland Security to “examine bus and subway infrastructure safeguards, issue findings and recommendations and see that those proposals are implemented.”

Mike Gianaris, a Democrat from Astoria who has sponsored this legislation, issued a statement: “We need anti-terrorism experts to oversee the security measures in place and ensure all necessary steps are being taken to make our mass-transit system as safe as possible.” Gianaris, who is concerned with the decreasing number of MTA employees working in stations, has his heart seemingly in the right place, but this effort, if it goes anywhere, should add security oversight and not unfunded obligations which the MTA cannot afford.

March 4, 2011 6 comments

Asides MTA Politics

Meet the Assembly’s new Authorities Oversight boss

by Benjamin Kabak March 3, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on March 3, 2011

For much of the past decade, Richard Brodsky had been in charge of a legislative check on the MTA. As head of the Assembly Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, the Westchester Democrat had oversight power over the MTA and made sure to use his bully pulpit to push the authority toward improvement. He was, however, anti-congestion pricing, and while his good government initiatives should be applauded, he didn’t have a great grip on the financial picture. He stepped down to run an unsuccessful campaign for Attorney General, and James Brennan, a 27-year committee vet from Brooklyn, took his place.

This week, The Bond Buyer sat down for an interview with Brennan, and he talked about his oversight philosophy. So far, he’s saying all the right things when it comes to transit. “I’m a devoted supporter of mass transit because it’s the backbone of the metropolitan area,” he said. “The MTA’s got major capital budget shortfalls going forward which we’re probably not going to deal with right now.”

Recognizing that the MTA’s current financial model which relies heavily on real estate tax revenue cannot support something as necessary as the subways, Brennan is willing to look outside of the box. In fact, he was a congestion pricing supporter a few years back but didn’t mention specifics in the interview. “Real estate transactions have proven to be too volatile a financing source for them and they’re going to need something going forward that’s more stable,” he said. Brennan certainly does, as one member of the Citizens Budget Commission said have “big shoes to fill,” but for now, it sounds as though he’s up to the task. That’s welcome news indeed from Albany.

March 3, 2011 5 comments

Asides Buses

Report: SBS fare enforcement netting $1.4M

by Benjamin Kabak February 28, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on February 28, 2011

Carly Baldwin in Metro today has one of those Select Bus Service fare enforcement stories I just love. Alexander Barton, a 27-year-old accountant who apparently had not heard about the new service, tried to hop on a bus without paying. He alleges that the bus driver waved him on and said the MetroCard reader was “broken.” Meanwhile, other passengers tried to explain the pre-board payment system to Barton, but MTA cops gave him a $100 ticket when he couldn’t procure his proof-of-payment receipt. “The thing that extremely frustrates me is, I was totally unaware I’d done anything wrong,” said Barton.

It’s easy to laugh at the he said-he said battle between a rider who didn’t know about the Select Bus Service changes and a bus rider who denied wrong-doing, but there’s a different story at work here. According to Baldwin, the MTA has issued over 14,000 $100 tickets to those who could not procure proof-of-payment on the M15 Select Bus Service routes since October. That’s a whopping $1.4 million in revenue and an average of around 94 tickets a day.

Customers can’t be happy about it, and advocacy groups aren’t either. Transportation Alternatives, a group that has long fought for faster buses, bemoaned enforcement while Gene Russianoff made a rather obtuse point to Metro. “Clearly, education is an issue,” he says. “I can’t imagine issuing a million dollars’ worth of tickets in a country like Sweden, where they’ve had off-board fare collection for years.” For now, though, if we want buses to move faster, if we want people to pay before they board and keep the new Select Bus Service moving, a ticket blitz has become a part of that education process. Talk about tough love.

February 28, 2011 50 comments

Asides Taxis

T&LC upping service refusal fine for cabbies

by Benjamin Kabak February 25, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on February 25, 2011

As the Taxi & Limousine Commission works to bring more taxis to areas outside of Manhattan, the city is upping the penalty it levies on cabbies who refuse fares. According to a report in The Post, fines will jump to $500 for first-time offenders while a second offense carries a $750 fine and a 30-day suspension. A third conviction will result in a mandatory revocation of a license.

Over the last year, New Yorkers have either been confronted with ruder cabbies or are fighting back. The Commission says complaints over service refusals — especially to Outer Borough destinations — have increased 38 percent over the past year. “A core component of taxi service is that the passenger chooses where to go in the five boroughs,” T&LC Chair David Yassky said. “Unfortunately, it is getting to be like the bad old days when taxis wouldn’t go to Brooklyn. I strongly encourage taxi riders to call 311 each and every time they are denied service.”

Taxis are an integral part of the city’s transportation picture, and it has long been against T&LC rules to deny passengers service to any part of the five boroughs. Still, cabbies are often loath to take the trips, and some can be downright nasty. This fine increase, still to be approved by the City Council, is a welcome one.

February 25, 2011 16 comments

Asides PANYNJ

PATH’s WTC transit hub costs now at $3.44 billion

by Benjamin Kabak February 25, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on February 25, 2011

If any transit project in Manhattan deserves to be labeled a boondoggle, it is the never-ending one with the ever-increasing budget at the World Trade Center. As The Times reports today, the price on Santiago Calatrava’s World Trade Center PATH hub has now reached $3.44 billion, thanks to a sharp increase in the cost of the steel framework supporting the ostentatious hub. This new price represents, says Michael Grynbaum, “a 5.5 percent increase from the agency’s last estimate of $3.26 billion, issued in 2008.” Interestingly, though, this cost is in line with an estimate issued by the contractor in 2004, and the Port Authority, who described the total then as “simply unacceptable,” eliminated the retractable roof in response. So much for that.

When all is said and done, the Port Authority expects grand things for this PATH hub. It will be, as The Times notes, the third-largest transportation hub in the city with an estimated 250,000 people passing through each day, and the space will feature 500,000 square feet of retail. Yet, as the costs have spiked by $1.2 billion since the project was first proposed in 2002, I have to wonder if the Port Authority is spending altogether too much on a glorified PATH/subway station. The $3.44 billion certainly could have been used on projects that would have actually improved transportation into and out of the city.

February 25, 2011 45 comments

Asides MTA Construction

Wanting nicer stations without the inconvenience

by Benjamin Kabak February 24, 2011

written by Benjamin Kabak on February 24, 2011

I love stories such as this one. It’s a typical person-on-the-street piece from the Daily News about the station closures along the Pelham Line. As the final phase of this rehab project, the Elder and Lawrence Ave. stations are to be shut for eight months beginning next months. Some residents are unhappy with the project. Or not.

Basically, Daniel Beekman spoke to enough people to find those who want their cake and others who want to eat it too. “It’s going to be bad,” one commuter said. “Eight months is too long.” Another whose son will have to walk to another stop: “I’m concerned for my son’s safety. Why can’t they just do patchwork?” A third: “The paint is peeling. There’s a lot of graffiti. It looks terrible.”

It’s always easy to find a good number of people with varying opinions on anything in New York, and this is just another example of the tenuous relationship with transit improvements everyone has. We want our system to look good, but we don’t want to pay the price of a shuttered station for eight or nine months. Our stop needs work, but I don’t want to be inconvenienced, and as long as everyone else’s stop looks new, leave mine alone. Seems perfectly irrational to me.

February 24, 2011 12 comments

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