Month: July 2007

Subway Maps for iPhone

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iphone_map.jpg 

iPhone users can get a nifty little app for their device that shows a full New York City subway map.  It’s a spawn of the infamous iPodmaps.

iSubwayMaps.com now offers up the service.  It’s free.  SUBWAYblogger doesn’t have a iPhone, but we’d sure like one!  Have you tried it?  Let us know how it is.

Side note…with all the Blackberry mentions that SUBWAYblogger gives out, you’d think that maybe BlackBerry/RIM would throw us a bone and give us a new Curve or something?  Nope.  Of course.  No love at all for the little guy.  I can’t wait for the day that it’s time to upgrade from this device to a newer model and they slap me with the full MSRP price.  Caaaaan’t wait.  But if you work for BlackBerry, how bout it…ehh ehh??

Anyway, back to the maps.  The map itself appears to just be an image of some sort.  I don’t think it has any fancy functionality or anything.  However, I hear that there are issues with how iPhone encodes imported images that make something like a map a bit tricky.  So this website has gotten around that somehow. 

BOOOOOM! That’s the power of of a steam explosion blowing up your morning commute

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Steam Explosion in New York City

All I gotta say is two things.  1) I told you so and 2) good luck getting to work on the East Side tomorrow.

Ok, so earlier today, I ranted on and on about how shockingly perfect my morning commute was despite the horrible weather.  At the end, I mentioned that I hoped it would continue to the ride home, but that I wasn’t going to hold my breath.  Boy was I right.

The street literally exploded.  Blew up.  How bad was it?  Bad enough to have the 4, 5, and 6 lines not make any stops in Manhattan.  The trains were still running I guess, but they certainly weren’t stopping.  They ran nonstop from the Brooklyn Bridge to 125th Street.

The other thing I loved was how the FDNY and  MTA couldn’t get their story straight.  The FDNY and OEM were advising people to stay away from the East Side around Grand Central Terminal.  The MTA kept saying that the trains were running still, and that you could enter on the Madison Ave side.  So which is it?  Come catch your train or don’t go near the place?

Anyway, the whole event was way to reminiscent of past tragic events.  While it is very sad that one person died indirectly from the blast, it is absolutely shocking that there weren’t more deaths.  Folks, what was essentially a volcano opened up in the middle of 41st Street, and swallowed a tow truck.  It shattered windows 16 stories up.  We were lucky.

Anyway, it’s going to be dicey in the morning.  Make sure you check the MTA’s transit advisory before heading out in the morning.  Good luck to us all.

Photo via stuntbox

Rain? What Rain? The Transit Gods Smile Upon Me

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As many loyal readers know, the transit gods often poop on my morning commute.  Yes, that’s right…I said poop.

Today, however, they spared me from a complete nightmare.  As we all are completely aware, it’s raining like hell today.  When I woke up and looked out the window, it was coming down in buckets.

I did the morning routine, and headed out with my umbrella in hand.  Nothing.  It had completely stopped raining.  So I wandered over to the subway without having to take out my umbrella.

I thought for sure that the heavy rain was going to screw up my train.  I was waiting there, completely expecting there to be an announcement saying that the tracks were under water or something.  Nope.  The train showed up, and had no problems all the way to work.

I got off the train and started to hoof it over to the office.  Just as I was starting to get close, it started to sprinkle a little.  There was still no need for the umbrella though.  So, I got into work completely dry.  By the time I got up the elevator to my office, it was pouring again.  I looked out my window and could hardly see the building across the street it was raining so hard.

Then I heard that all the highways were flooded, Metro North was all f-ed up, and subways were starting to experience extensive delays.  Somehow, I had completely avoided transit hell.

Let’s hope it keeps up on the way home today.  I’m not holding my breath, though.

Ohh Congestion Pricing, How Short We Knew Yee

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A sad day.  Mayor Bloomberg’s Congestion Pricing Bill has been killed.  It was a bloody day in Albany.

There his plan fell to a confluence of local politics and a showdown between a mayor who knew he was right and a Legislature in no mood these days to be pushed around by an aggressive executive.

That about sums it up.  Of course state politicians always hate when local municipalities come up to challenge them.  So, they have to kick it around until it dies, then they can look like heroes.

I love how people act like Bloomberg has something to gain by passing congestion pricing.  Uhhh, hello…he’s a BILLIONAIRE.  Billions.  The man takes a $1 a year salary.  He couldn’t spend all his money if he wanted to.

Ohhh but he’s doing it for his political future.  Pleeeeeeease.  It’s such a divided issue that he’s not going to gain much political ground.  If it were to have passed, and was successful in reducing traffic, pollution, and noise then he should get political credit.

Mmmm Touch It

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What will you or won’t you touch in the subway? If you ask me, nothing unless I have to.

Sometimes, you’re forced into a crowd of people where you have to hold onto a rail or something while the train is moving. Otherwise, this BlackBerry is the only thing my hands will touch for the entire ride. Even the BlackBerry I disinfect every other day or so.

I bring it up because many (if not most) people grab right onto those hand rails even when they don’t need too. People sitting down even hold on sometimes! Unless I am about to fall on a pregnant woman carrying newborn puppies, I’m not touching a thing.

Take a long, hard look at some of the fine specimens riding the train with you. Then think about how disgusting some people are. To top off the grossness, then think about the homeless, TB infected bums that were touching that same rail or seat just last night.

Mmmm, gonna think twice next time?

Live from the subway, back to you in studio… .

One for the Transit Geeks

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Here’s one for fellow transit geeks. If you’re into all things transit related, this daily newsletter might be something right up your alley.

Bernie Wagenblast’s Transportation Communications Newsletter is a little newsletter publication that sends out links to transit related articles of the day from all over the country. It’s not just NYC, but it’s cool to see what else is going on in other cities. Many of our troubles are not unique to New York!

So if you’re interested, you can see some of the archive emails.

OR

To subscribe send an e-mail to: TCNL-subscribe@googlegroups.com

Congestion Pricing: Time to Sack Up

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Congestion Pricing Supporters

People are all over Mayor Bloomberg’s Congestion Pricing plan. The opponents keep calling it a tax, because the word “tax” sounds evil. In reality, it’s a toll. Sure, there’s an argument to be made about tolls really just being taxes, but let’s call it what it is. It’s a toll for driving in the heart of Manhattan during peak times.

And it’s not a toll just for New Yorkers. It’s a toll for anyone who wants to drive in Manhattan during peak times.

One thing people who appose the plan conveniently forget to mention is that the toll is not in $8.00 in addition to the tolls you paid to get into the city. If you paid a $4.00 toll on a bridge or tunnel, you would only owe $4 bucks more (for a total of $8.00). So you won’t be charged $12.00.

The technology exists to make all that possible, it’s just a matter of implementing it.

Also, studies have shown that there wont be much impact on outer borough residents. Most outer borough peeps take mass transit into the city anyway, so what’s the big deal?

For that matter, when are people going to wake up and realize that cutting back on pollution is going to cost money? Simply asking people to cut back on their driving doesn’t work. As Bloomberg says, the only way people are going to stop is if it his them in the wallet.

Not only that, but the plan makes NYC eligible for $500 million in federal funds to get the program off and running.

The opposition:

“It is not a coincidence that regions considered hubs for mass transit contain a significant percentage of the population affected by health disorders that stem from pollution such as asthma,” [City Councilman David] Weprin’s report said. “If … more cars equal more pollution, then how can it be argued that more cars going to these neighborhoods will not also lead to more pollution for them?”

Maybe the above is correct, but you’ve got to start somewhere. Any action is always going to produce some sort of negative reaction. Not doing anything is going to produce and even worse consequence. So we had better start trying things. First roll out the current plan. Then come up with other solutions for areas mentioned by Weprin.

Look at it from the flip side of the coin. SUBWAYblogger (and many other New Yorkers) doesn’t own a car, and rely solely on mass transit. So why should we have to breath in your exhaust? If you still want to drive, fine, but it’s gonna cost you. You $8.00 will go toward making life better for the rest of us.

Photo: Newsday

Bud Select Sexes it Up

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I’m glad to see that Budweiser Select has finally gotten back to its advertising roots. The latest campaign features a hot chick in a bikini, on the beach, holding a Select. The slogan underneath reads, “Step up to Select.”

Also, “Exceptional Taste. Never Filling.”. I agre with the second statement. The first is BS.

Anyway, back to the bikini…

They’ve finally agreed to get back to traditionalist beer advertising on the subways. The only thing that goes better that beer with girls is beer with girls in bikinis.

Bravo, Bud. Bravo.

Live from the subway, back to you in studio… .