Month: December 2006

No Stopping in Times Square

subwayblogger1 Comment

newyearseve.jpg

If you are crazy enough to need to get off the subway in Times Square tonight, make sure you get there before 7pm.  After that time, there will be no Times Square stops.  All trains will be diverted away from there for security reasons.  Service will be restored around 12:15am for everyone flooding out of “New Years Central.”

Those planning to brave the insanity should get off at Penn Station and walk north.  Even before the Times Square station closes, it is till way to crazy to get off there.  Also, make sure you are on the side you need to be on since there is NO crossing Broadway or 7th Ave.

The Secret Battle: Online Route Planners

subwayblogger8 Comments

map.jpg

So maybe “Secret Battle” is a bit dramatic, but it is still somewhat telling. There is growing competition among online travel planners, especially those in New York City.

For years, New Yorkers had to figure out for themselves how to get from point A to point B. Now, there are a handful of online sources to help you out. They are sort of like MapQuest for public transportation…only you don’t end up in the middle of nowhere looking for a highway that doesn’t exist.

The most popular sites:

So which is the best?

HopStop [link] has been out for a little while now, and is probably the most popular of the sites at this point. The site has even managed to establish a partnership with AM New York. AMNY is one of the most popular free newspapers, available in just about every subway station in Manhattan. Hop Stop has set up operations in New York, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington DC. The offer subway and bus directions, but also have expanded into city guides, ratings, trips, and more. When getting directions, you can adjust your search to optimize for more walking, less walking, subways only, etc. depending on your personal preferences. The site is also very PDA friendly.

Public Routes [link] is similar to Hop Stop. They operate out of Connecticut, Dallas TX, New Jersey, New York, and Philadelphia. The directions tool also allows you to narrow your search by transportation method. One cool goodie is there soon to debut Traffic Alert system. Then, you will be able to see what areas to avoid on your trip, so that should be a time saver. The other features are kinda weak compared to Hop Stop, but the mapping/directions are just about as good.

onNYTurf [link] isn’t really a directions site. As a matter of fact, it is an open source blog about all things NYC. More of an online community for bloggers and information. However, they do have a cool Google API that overlays the subway and PATH system on top of Google Maps. It is really sharp, clear, and detailed. You can click on any on of the stops for more information too. It is definately the clearest straight up subway map on the web. It’s even better than the MTA map! It is cool too because it is a noncommercial project, so you gotta love that.

MTA Trip Planner [link] is brand new. It was just released by the MTA. Not bad for a city job. Unfortunately, it does not incorporate the maps. Just gives directions via public transportation. But, it does seem to work pretty well. One cool feature is that you can plan your route based on handicap accessible stations. So if you need that kind of thing, this will help you plan your route. Also, it incorporates the MTA Service Advisories right into the directions.

Read More »

Subway sketch artist

subwaybloggerLeave a comment

sketch.jpgSUBWAYblogger isn’t the only crazy one using the subway as a center subject matter. Cully from the blog A Child of Atom sketches the people he sees on the NYC Subway. His stuff is really cool. This is one of his most recent sketches.

I thought it was hard to type a complete posting in the time it takes to get from point A to point B. Yet somehow he manages to do an awesome sketch.

A full portfolio of his work is available on Flickr.

A new group of guys attempt to break the subway riding record

subwaybloggerLeave a comment

challenge.jpg

*****UPDATE*****
THEY MADE IT

******************

…for real this time. Allow me to clarify.

You’re probably saying to yourself, “Hey, didn’t a couple guys already break that record this summer?” Well, sort of. Yes, they broke a record, but it wasn’t the real record. They broke the amateur record.

They’ve caught a bunch of flack in the media for claiming to break the record, even though it wasn’t the official record. However, to their credit, they’ve never claimed to be official. Their website clearly states that they were just doing it for fun, and going after the amateur record. Click the read more link to see their route plan.

This group of dudes are attempting to break the…professional (?)…uhh…official subway riding record.

Let me break it down. There are two main subway riding record classes.

1. Full-system ride that requires you to stop at each station. (Class B)
2. Skip-stop ride that only requires you to pass through each station. (Class C)

The guys this summer broke the Class C record. They main distinction is that the riders can ride the express lines. In the Class C record, riders simply need to ride through a station for it to count. Therefore, they can ride the express trains for it to still count. With the Class B record, you basically need to take all local trains because you need to stop at each station, not simply pass through it.

Kevin Foster currently owns the Class B record, which he set back in October of 1989 with a time of 26 hours 11 minutes, and it is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records.

So who are these guys? Well, they are pictured above. Stefan Karpinski, Andrew Weir, Bill Amaosa, Jason Laska, Michael Boyle and Brian Brockmeyer. They have a live blog and website for their attempt.

At this point, you are probably thinking, “Holy shit, this stuff is a bit too official sounding.” Well, it gets freakier. There’s actually an official group that keeps track of the subway riding record, the rules, rider logs, etc. I know…WOW.

This summer’s record breaking event attracted the world wide media. That’s right…world wide. AMNY, The Daily News, CBS, CNN, NBC, ABC, BBC, etc all covered their ride. Must have been a slow news day. So SUBWAYblogger is left wondering if this more official attempt will get any where near the amount of coverage that these guys got.

They did make the 11pm news on CBS2, but not their website. Looking at their site, it seems that the Daily News and HBO have caught up with them mid-ride too, so we will look for that story in the morning. AMNY did a preview story too.

Read More »

A New Record for NYC Tourists

subwayblogger2 Comments

money.jpg

See, SUBWAYblogger wasn’t full of crap when we said that the city was feeling more crowded than ever. Mayor Bloomberg just announced that the city had about 44 million tourists come to visit in 2006, and that’s a smashing new record. Last year was about 41 million.

Interestingly, NYC & Company (the company designated to help the city hit the 50 million tourist mark by 2015) is starting the city’s first international tourism campaign. The company is buying tons of advertising in Europe to attract foreign travelers.

7 Million of this years visitors were from outside the U.S. 1.2 of the visitors from abroad were from the U.K. alone! That explains the much of the subway crowding in the tourist areas. British travelers are familiar with “The Tube” so they are more likely to take the subway. (Probably the French too, but who knows how many of them are traveling to the USA these days.)

So with a new, aggressive ad campaign planned to bring foreign travelers into the city, one can only assume that the subway and other public transportation will become more crowded.

Hey, the hostiles hostels are probably getting a bit more business too with all the backpackers!

Ho ho ho over

subwaybloggerLeave a comment

Well, we survived the holidays. SUBWAYblogger will return to normal schedule in a day or two. We are still out of town. Yeah, it is really strange to spend this much time in the burbs.

Anyway, it’s back to the city REALLY soon. We can’t wait!

Thanks for hanging tight.

Holy suitcases Batman

subwayblogger1 Comment

There’s probably 9 people in this subway car alone with rolling suitcases at their feet. Everyone’s clearing outta the city today. Looks like these peeps are trying to get a head start this morning.

Tonights outbound commute is going to be complete hell, and SUBWAYblogger will be in the heart of it. No, not on the subway…in a car. Shoot me now.

Ugh. Anyway, SUBWAYblogger wishes everyone a Happy Holiday!

Live from the subway, back to you in studio…