Service Advisories

With the Official End of Summer in the rear view mirror, my weekly Friday afternoon recaps of the MTA’s weekend service alerts return. But first, some housekeeping.

Starting this week, this site has a new domain name attached to it. Since the site is ostensibly called Second Ave. Sagas, I decided it was time to acquire the domain name SecondAveSagas.com. It was simply too confusing with “Avenue” spelled out in the URL but not the name of the site.

So from now on, when you point your browser toward www.secondavesagas.com, you’ll land here. Good stuff.

With that out of the way, let’s look at the weekend service advisories. All in all, it’s not a terrible weekend for subway travel. For this weekend – and, sadly, this weekend only – 2 and 3 trains are running express up the West Side. But with the Yankees out of town, Bronx-bound 4 trains are running express from 125th St. to Burnside Ave., stopping only at 149th St.-Grand Concourse.

Similarly, D trains are skipping 167th, 161st, and 155th Streets as well. Road trips are a good time for track work in the Bronx.

The biggest news comes to us courtesy of the BMT Broadway lines. All trains Brooklyn-bound trains are bypassing Lower Manhattan and running over the Manhattan Bridge. For service to those stations, take a Manhattan-bound train at DeKalb or find one of many alternate trains that service Lower Manhattan. On a side note, the MTA no longer says the Cortlandt Street station is closed until July of 2007. That station is, obviously, closed indefinitely.

The full weekend service alerts can be found here and after the jump.

Leave it to amNY to bury the lead. In an obvious article about how the subways smell, the most interesting quote from a rider came in third graph, nearly 100 poorly written words into the article.

“The further you go uptown in Manhattan, and anywhere in the Bronx, it gets pretty bad,” Jamie Rocha said to reporter Marlene Naanes. “I don’t really know how to describe it.”

While Naanes then goes on to note that, yes, the subways smell bad and that New York City Transit plans to add 350 more cleaners to their employment rolls this fall, there is no follow-up here. This, people, is the news.

Is the MTA doing a better job of cleaning up high-volume stations through which tourists and working people pass everyday? Is the MTA neglecting stations based on where they fall among New York City’s socioeconomic geography? These are questions worth exploring, and yet, here, they go unanswered.

Over at Gothamist, the coverage of this article features an interesting conversation in the comments. One person astutely noted that public bathrooms in the subways would go a long way toward alleviate the stench on the platforms. While the MTA would still need to maintain a vigilant janitorial crew, keeping the smell in the bathroom is preferable to stinky platforms.

Meanwhile, speaking of things that stink, here are your your weekend service advisories. Lots of changes everywhere – but particularly on the West Side IRT and 8th Ave. lines. Stay alert when reading those signs. For the changes in convenient press release form, click here.

See you on Monday.

In a shocking move, the MTA has announced a generally stop order on all capital construction projects this weekend. After a nightmare on Wednesday in which every subway line shut down in the aftermath of a terrible storm, MTA CEO Elliot “Lee” Sander has decided that every train should run as normally scheduled this weekend. There will, in other words, be no service delays.

Wait, wait, wait. Who are we kidding? This is the Metropolitan Transit Authority. Of course, there will be service delays. And since it’s easier to list them here instead of linking, let’s get this party started. For all of the alerts in the less-convenient press release form, click here. Otherwise, keep reading. Enjoy your weekend.

Because of capital construction work on the NYC Transit subway system, the following changes will be in place over the weekend. This work is part of NYC Transit’s ongoing $10 billion Capital Rebuilding Program aimed at upgrading and maintaining our tracks, stations and signal systems in order to continue to provide our customers with safe and reliable service.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, there are no 1 trains between 14th Street and South Ferry. Customers may take the 2 or 3 between 14th Street and Chambers Street. Shuttle buses replace 1 service between Chambers Street and South Ferry. This is due to work on the Cortlandt Street underpinning.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, 2 and 3 trains run local between 96th Street and Chambers Street due to the Cortlandt Street underpinning.

From 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m., Sunday, August 12, 3 train service is replaced by M7, M102 and shuttle buses due to switch renewal south of 148th Street-Lenox Avenue.

From 6 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, Manhattan-bound 4 trains skip Mosholu Parkway due to station rehab.

From 4 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 10 p.m. Sunday, August 12, there area no 5 trains between 149th Street and East 180th Streets due to track panel installation north of Jackson Avenue. Customers should take the 2 instead.

From 12:30 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 4:30 a.m. Monday, August 13, these changes are in effect
– There are no C trains running; F trains replace the C between Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts and Euclid Ave. due to signal work south of jay Street-Borough Hall Station
– A trains run local between 168th Street and Canal Street due to signal work south of jay Street-Borough Hall Station
– Free shuttle buses replace A trains between 168th Street and 207th Street due to tunnel rehab work between 168th Street and 207th Street stations

From 6 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 9 p.m. Sunday, August 12, Far Rockaway-bound A trains skip 88th Street and Rockaway Blvd. due to track panel installation south of the 80th Street station.

From 6 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 9 p.m. Sunday, August 12, free shuttle buses replace A trains between Lefferts Blvd. and 80th Street (Queens) due to track panel installation south of the 80th Street station.

From 6 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 9 p.m. Sunday, August 12, there are no E trains between West 4th Street and World Trade Center due to Chambers Street signal modernization. Customers may take the A to Chambers St. or Broadway-Nassau stations.

From 12:30 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 4:30 a.m. Monday, August 13, Manhattan-bound E trains run express from Roosevelt Avenue to Queens Plaza due to track chip out south of Queens Plaza station (overnight only).

From 12:30 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 4:30 a.m. Monday, August 13, F trains run between Euclid Avenue and 179th Street. G trains replace the F between Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. and Stillwell Avenue. Customers may transfer between the F and G trains at Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. station. This is due to signal work south of Jay Street-Borough Hall station.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 5 a.m. Monday, August 13 (and until further notice), there is no G train service between Forest Hills-71st Avenue and Court Square due to signal work south of Jay Street-Borough Hall station. Customers should take the E or R.

From 12:01a.m. Saturday, August 11 for 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, free shuttle buses replace L trains between Rockaway Parkway and Broadway Junction due to track panel installation south of Broadway Junction.

From 12:01a.m. Saturday, August 11 for 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, free shuttle buses replace M trains between Metropolitan Av. and Myrtle Ave-Broadway due to station rehab.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, Manhattan-bound N trains run on the D line from Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue to 36th Street (Brooklyn) due to track panel installation north of 86th Street station.

From 5 a.m. Saturday, August 11 to 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, Coney Island-bound N trains run on the local R track from 57th Street-7th Avenue in Manhattan to 59th Street-4th Avenue in Brooklyn due to switch work north of the DeKalb Avenue station.

From 11 p.m. Friday, August 10 to 5 a.m. Monday, August 13, there are no Q trains between 57th Street and 42nd Street due to a track chip-out south of Queens Plaza station. Customers may take the N or R instead.

From 5 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, August 11 and Sunday, August 12, R trains skip 5th Avenue, Lexington Avenue, and Queens Plaza in both directions due to track chip-out south of Queens Plaza station. Customers should take the E instead.

The Cortlandt Street Station is closed until further notice while the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey continues to build on the WTC site.

As New York City Transit struggles to overcome a subway deluge that virtually shut down the subways for hours this morning, New York politicians have entered everyone’s favorite part of disaster relief: the finger-pointing.

Before the trains are back up and running, before the tracks have dried, the names are flying with Eliot Spitzer, Elliot Sander, the City Comptroller and even the National Weather Center getting in on the act.

Earlier this afternoon, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and MTA CEO Elliot “Lee” Sander held the ever-popular press conferences about the event. amNY’s Rolando Pujol was on hand to report. Spitzer dropped the bombshell that this system-wide failure happened after a torrential storm that dropped three inches of rain in an hour. Three inches! Imagine if New York City ended up on the wrong end of a hurricane-like storm. It would be crippling.

Spitzer noted that the delays and problems constituted “a highly unusual event,” but I beg to differ. Just two weeks ago, I wrote a little-noted post on the inadequacies of the MTA’s subway drainage system. Prophecies of doom came to bear sooner than any of us expected.

Lee Sander decided to ignore the state of the MTA and instead blamed the weatherman. “The timing and intensity of this storm took us by surprise because it was not predicted by the National Weather Service,” he said. But really, Lee, you don’t need a weatherman to know which way the rains drain.

Meanwhile, City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr., used this flood to draw attention to his call for proper and adequate state funding of the MTA and NYCT. In another release from his office, Thompson called on the state to protect its infrastructure.

“I urge the MTA to take this matter seriously and consider all of the New Yorkers who were inconvenienced today,” Thompson said. “These are the same New Yorkers who are expected to dig deeper into their pockets to pay higher fares over the next few years. Time and again, the riding public has been inconvenienced because the State has not appropriately invested in New York City Transit’s infrastructure. Today’s system-wide disruption indicates that there still is much more work ahead.”

So while the Governor has ordered a commission to investigate the system-wide failure today, the finger-pointing has started before the subway system is back up and running. Meanwhile, service alerts are as follows:

Update 2:34 p.m. Things are returning to normal. The MTA has another set of promising updates out:
trains are suspended in both directions between the South Ferry Station and the Chambers Street Station.

and trains rains have resumed service but with residual delays.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 86th Street Station and the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall Station.

trains are running shuttle train service in both directions between the East 180th Street Station and the Dyre Avenue Station, and suspended in both directions between 86th Street and Bowling Green.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 59th Street/Lexington Avenue Station and the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall Station.

trains are running. (We have a winner! Back to normal first.)

trains are running local.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Brighton Beach Station and the 145th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Euclid Avenue Station and the 168th Street Station.

train service has resumed with residual delays.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 21st Street-Queensbridge Station and the Forest Hills-71st Avenue Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Queens Plaza Station and the Jamaica-179th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Long Island City-Court Square Station and the 4th Avenue-9th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 2nd Avenue Station and the Forest Hills-71st Avenue Station.

Franklin Avenue Shuttle trains are suspended in both directions between the Prospect Park Station and the Franklin Avenue Station.

42nd Street Shuttle service has resumed with residual delays.

trains are running with residual delays.

trains are running with residual delays.

trains are running with residual delays.

trains are running with residual delays.

trains are operating via the line between Stillwell Terminal and Dekalb Avenue and continuing on to 57th Street/7th Avenue.

shuttle trains operating between Kings Highway and Stillwell Terminal Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 57th Street-7th Avenue Station and the Forest Hills-71st Avenue Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Astoria-Ditmars Boulevard Station and the Whitehall Street Station.

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Update 1:50 p.m.: Still delays. Things are moving station-to-station. This update from the MTA is minor. Also, Digg me at left now. On to the service alerts:

trains are suspended in both directions between the South Ferry Station and the Chambers Street Station.

trains are suspended in in both directions between the Penn Station-34th Street Station and the Atlantic Avenue Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the New Lots Avenue Station and the Harlem-148th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 86th Street Station and the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall Station.

trains are running shuttle train service in both directions between the East 180th Street Station and the Dyre Avenue Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 86th Street Station and the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall Station.

trains are running with delays.

trains are running local.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Brighton Beach Station and the Bedford Park Boulevard Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Euclid Avenue Station and the 168th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 145th Street Station and the Norwood-205th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 23rd Street-Ely Avenue Station and the Forest Hills-71st Avenue Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Queens Plaza Station and the Jamaica-179th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Long Island City-Court Square Station and the 4th Avenue-9th Street Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 2nd Avenue Station and the Forest Hills-71st Avenue Station.

Franklin Avenue Shuttle trains are suspended in both directions between the Prospect Park Station and the Franklin Avenue Station.

42nd Street Shuttle trains are suspended in both directions between the Times Square-42nd Street Station and the Grand Central-42nd Street Station.

trains are running with residual delays.

trains are running with residual delays.

trains are running with residual delays.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Broad Street Station and the Bay Parkway Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Kings Highway Station and the 57th Street-7th Avenue Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the 57th Street-7th Avenue Station and the Forest Hills-71st Avenue Station.

trains are suspended in both directions between the Astoria-Ditmars Boulevard Station and the Whitehall Street Station.

When the MTA unveils something new, the Transit Fan in me totally geeks out. That’s what happened this week when I arrived back home in New York after my trip out west. I saw one of these posters (at right) announcing the service changes.

Now, every week these posters pop up, and most people have come to know and trust the old ones. A white background, some black letters and a red stripe would announce the change.

But no more! The new posters are colorful and, supposedly, more informative. Now we have a blue band at the top proclaiming “Service Changes.” We have a smaller, orange band telling us that it’s a weekend change. And then we have the text of the service alert as black text on a salmon background. The familiar black band of the MTA is on the bottom.

Now, while the MTA website in some places still refers us to the black and white posters, the new ones are here to stay. These new posters are intended to be easier to follow. The question, “How does this affect my trip?” provides a summary of ways to get to your destination in spite of this service changes.

I’m less thrilled, however, with the next section. “Why is my service being changed?” the poster demands to know. Well, on every poster I’ve seen so far, the answer is always the same: “We are performing XXX work to make sure that subways continue to operate safely along the X line.” Well, thanks. Good to know the MTA is making sure the subways are continuing to operate safely. And here I am, thinking that these service changes were in place simply to mess with tourists who don’t really know where they’re going anyway.

I still wish these posters had colors to match their subway lines. The posters for the West Side IRT should have red subway bullets; the one’s for the IND and BMT should have blue or orange bullets, depending upon the line in question. But for now, these new posters will work.

With that in mind, here are your service changes for the weekend. The highlights:

• Shuttle buses on the L past Lorimer St.
• Weekend Manhattan-bound N trains are going over the Manhattan Bridge until Monday when the N will run along the R at all times for a few weeks.
• Brooklyn-bound Q trains running on the R over the weekend.
• West Side IRT express trains are running local.

Enjoy the weekend.

What a week, huh?

We had the ups and downs, the deaths and reincarnations of congestion pricing. In between the politicking surrounding the congestion fee, the city’s steam pipes started exploding again. I picked an exciting week to head west for vacation.

Meanwhile, this week goes out with a bang tonight as at midnight, the literary event of the year takes place. At 12:01 a.m., just as the weekend subway service changes go into effect, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be unleashed to the world. So as you make your way home from whatever Harry Potter-themed parties (and maybe this party took things a bit too far), remember that the trains will be a bit messed up.

The IRT lines are doing some funky stuff. Uptown 2 trains are running on the 4 line from Nevins St. to 149th St.-Grand Concourse. The 5 is running on the 2 tracks from Chambers St. to the Grand Concourse, and the 3 isn’t running between New Lots Ave. and Times Square. At least the 4 is once again running from the Brooklyn Bridge stop to Atlantic Ave. and beyond.

There is no L service from Lorimer St. to Broadway Junction. Take those fun shuttle buses instead. The J has some shuttle bus shenanigans going on as well, and the Q is terminating at 42nd St. instead of 57th St.

For all of your weekend subway service needs, check out the MTA’s site. Enjoy your Harry Potter weekend, and I’ll catch you all on Monday when I’m back home in New York.

This destruction on Lexington Ave. is going to wreck havoc with the morning commute. (Photo by Peter Foley of the European Pressphoto Agency)

Mid-Day Update: The MTA announced shortly after the end of rush hour this morning that all trains are now stopping at Grand Central Terminal. Shuttle service has been restored as well. However, as many streets remain closed around the giant hole at Lexington and 41st, bus service on the M42, M98, M101, M102, M103 and M104 is slower than normal with some route detours. These changes could last a while.

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The notices came to me on my Blackberry this evening while I stared at animals in the San Diego Zoo. Three thousand miles from home, I could do nothing but check the mobile Internet to find out more about the steam pipe explosion that has left a gaping hole on Lexington Ave. just a block from Grand Central Terminal and a few feet above the subway tunnels underneath Manhattan.

While CityRoom and Gothamist each did fantastic jobs with their up-to-the-minute updates (CityRoom here and Gothamist here), I had to piece together the story as reports reached me during a Padres game. Such are the travails of vacation.

But the three-hour time difference always me to blog now, on the edge of the morning commute in New York City, with some bad news for travelers heading to Grand Central Terminal. Things, according to this MTA service alert for New York City Transit, do not look good.

As of 5:30 a.m., the East Side is a mess. While the tunnels escaped unharmed, the air around midtown could be filled with asbestos from the exploding pipe. As such, many streets are closed and access to Grand Central Terminal is limited to the 47th St. entrance. As for the subways, travel on the East Side is restricted.

First, the good news: Trains are running through the East Side IRT tunnels (and, yes, some of us still know what the IRT is) but are not stopping at Grand Central. The closest stops are as follows: On the 6, walk from 51st or 33rd Sts. On the 4 and 5, the trains will stop at 14th St./Union Square and 59th St.

The 7 coming inbound from Queens is skipping Grand Central Terminal. The nearest stop in this case is the 5th Ave. stop along 42nd St.

The Times Square shuttle is suspended for now, and the M104 and M42 buses are terminating at Times Square instead of on the East Side.

From Westchester, the morning commute should be okay. As the MTA reports, Metro-North is running into Grand Central, but only one entrance at the station is open. Plan accordingly.

It’s going to be a rough few days for East Side travel. Many streets are closed as WCBS 880 AM reports here, and Lexington Ave. will probably be closed for a while as the city tests the steam pipes, the air quality and the structural integrity of the pavement before moving onto the repair phase.

Keep an eye on the MTA’s service alerts, and I’ll do my best to keep everyone updated. It’s going to be a tough few days around midtown.