As temperatures in the city climb toward the upper 90s for the second day in a row, New Yorkers are searching in vain for some relief from the heat. We huddle in air conditioned apartments and offices, hoping that the Con Ed power grid will hold up as the city’s streets remain empty. Of course, to get from one air conditioned site to another often requires a ride in the subway, and during heat waves, the temperatures below ground can spike. Take comfort though, in a Wall Street Journal investigative report: It’s actually cooler underground than it is above ground.
Armed with a store-bought thermometer, Joy Resmovits hit the streets. At Grand Central, enjoying air-controlled platforms, the temperatures were just 86.5 degrees while above ground the mercury hit 96. As temperatures reached 102 during the afternoon, the Times Square platforms registered at a downright chilly 99 degrees. But at 116th St., the differences were just a matter of one degree. Cooler they may be, the platforms are not comfortable.
Of course, this temporary equilibrium will last only as long as the heat wave does. Once outside temperatures drop to the high 80s, the platforms will remain stifling as heat generated by the subway’s air conditioners stays trapped underground. I’d rather have cooler train cars than not, but it doesn’t make waiting on intolerably hot platforms any easier during the dog days of a New York City summer.
Meet Jose Peralta. If his name sounds familiar, it’s because one of the newest State Senators made headlines when he won the special election of fill Hiram Monserrate’s seat earlier this year. He represents the 
Last night, on my way back from dinner in Manhattan, an elderly lady got on the train at Borough Hall and didn’t realize she was going the wrong way. When we pulled into Hoyt St., she asked me if she was on a Brooklyn-bound train, and then she wanted to know the best way to switch to train back to Manhattan. At Nevins St. and Atlantic Ave., she had the choice of navigating a few flights of stairs, but she preferred to transfer across the platform at Grand Army Plaza. I helped her with these directions, and she thanked me as I left.
As part of its never-ending mission to both close a $400 million deficit and make every dollar count, the MTA has announced a new initiative that will restructure the agency’s internal communications departments and save $10 million annually. Although the savings all small, the restructuring will lead to better organizational efficiencies across its various subagencies. 
For years, critics of the MTA have accused the authority of underselling its real estate offerings and not maximizing potential profits from its property holdings. In a report issued today, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli accused the MTA of doing just that. The authority, he says, doesn’t need to rent some spaces it does and hasn’t made all of its potential spaces available to rent. 
When the MTA announced its doomsday service cuts, unlike most straphangers, I was actually excited about them. The revamped M train was to replace the V train in Manhattan. This would affect my commute significantly, since I normally take the J train into Manhattan and transfer to the F train at Essex Street / Delancey Street. The changes would create a new line that I could take all the way to work at 23rd Street and would give me time to sit and read on my commute rather than having to worry about transferring halfway through.