Tag: mta

Hudson Rail Yards Deal is Dead

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The $1 billion deal for the Hudson Rail Yards development project is all of a sudden DEAD.

The deal fell through at some point late Thursday.  Apparently…

“…an “impasse” over zoning and the timing of payments, the rail yards’ owner said Thursday.” [Newsday]

So a big failing grade for the rail yard, as Gothamist puts it.  See their pictures of the development plans.

In case you’ve missed it, the Hudson Rail Yards were supposed to be developed into massive apartment buildings, a park, and more.  Bloomberg was also a big supporter.

Well, there goes that money too.  Lovely.

Use the East River to Power the Subway

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Well here’s an idea that finally makes sense.

This year, the surging current of the East River will help provide power to a nearby subway station. The lights that lace the ornate interior of Manhattan’s Grand Central Station have largely been replaced by bulbs that burn brightly but save energy. There are plans to make the rooftop of a Queens bus depot bloom like a garden. [USA TODAY]

Do some more of that and maybe the MTA can get their finances under control.  Save a little dough.

Maybe they could figure our a way to turn the oppressive summer subway heat into electricity.

Subway Idol Auditions

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The New York Times has really stepped up its online video mojo.  I haven’t looked at any of their vids in a long time, but today one caught my eye called “Subway Idol.”

It is a very well produced story or mini documentary about a musician auditioning for Music Under New York, a program that funds and supports subway musicians.  Personally, I think it would have been in the MTA’s best interest to give SUBWAYblogger a shout about the auditions for a little publicity, but that’s just me.

The program itself has been around for a few years now and has grown to receive over 50 auditions, held in Grand Central Terminal.

Watch the video here.  Very interesting if you are a subway music fan.

New Metrocard Today

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I just bought a new Metrocard, and was again reminded of how badly we monthy unlimited users were hosed in the fare hike.

I only bring it up because of yesterday’s news of a $3 billion deficit in the MTA budget.

Where the hell is all the money going? If there are millions of rides everyday, that means there’s millions in revenue everyday. However, it seems like that money is already spent before they even have it.

I also love how casually they say that the missing money was just for maintenance and repairs….nothing major. It’s the lack of repairs and maintenance that has caused the subway system to crumble in the first place!

Then you look around at stations like 59th Columbus Cirlce which is taking 2+ years to refurbish and you wonder what the hell is going on. They can build 30 story apartment buildings in a year, but they can’t pour fresh concrete and lay some tiles in less than 2 when it comes to the subway.

It’s a big scam.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

MTA: “Fellas…where’d that $3 billion go?”

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That’s what the MTA is saying these days when they look at the capital improvement budget.  There’s a gaping $3 billion hole smack in the middle of the budget responsible for general repairs and maintenance of the transit system.

Yep.  $3 Billion.  Oops.

“The [CAPITAL] program has some shortfalls in it,” Metropolitan Transportation Authority CEO Elliot Sander said at an agency board meeting. [AMNY]

Uhhh yeah, “shortfall” is an understatement.

While mega-projects like the Second Avenue subway are not affected, the “nitty-gritty” work of station repairs and upgrades, signal replacements, or purchase of new cars could suffer, said MTA spokesman Jeremy Soffin. {AMNY]

You know, just the minor things like repairs, and track signals.  And really, how badly do we really need working brakes?

Using the Water in the Subway for Good?

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Subway Rat and Dirt

I can think of few things more disgusting than using the water collected in the subway for anything other than chemical weaponry. However, it seems that the MTA may be looking into that as part of the sustainability plan.

For example, MTA plans to power a “significant portion” of the Roosevelt Island Subway Station with renewable tidal energy generated in the East River; add a high-performance roof at MTA Metro-North Railroad’s Harmon Yard Shop, and a white roof at the MTA Long Island Rail Road Hillsdale facility; offer incentive packages from various state agencies to encourage development at or near MTA stations; and evaluate ways MTA New York City Transit can use water harvested from the subway system. [Progressive Railroading]

I’m all for sustainability, energy conservation, and saving the environment. HOWEVER, what possible good can come from doing anything with the subway water “harvested” from the system? Gross!

Subway Crush Facilitates Subway Lovin’

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Remember that guy that saw a girl on the subway and fell in love with her immediately? Or perhaps you remember feeling a little nauseous when you read the story.

SubwayCrush.com Logo

Well now there’s a brand new site that allows you to get stalked find your missed subway love connection.

SubwayCrush.com is a new site that simply allows you to post a quick note about the person you saw in hopes that maybe they will see it and respond.

The little post lines remind me of a Twitter thread. They are just quick one-liners. However, in this case, they are organized by subway line.

It’s an interesting concept. Already has a few dozen posts.

Weekend Subway Service Changes Reach Whole New Level

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This was honestly what you had to deal with this weekend to get around the city.

Subway Changes Map

The MTA basically decided to turn the subway into a giant NASCAR track.  So you had to just get on and cross your fingers that you boarded the correct train in the loop.

The 2 train went down the west side as normal, but then returned back up the east side.  The 5 train went down the east side, but then came up the west side.

Hopefully you didn’t have your iPod turned up so loud you couldn’t hear the announcements.  Odds of noticing the posters were low.  Even if you did, you probably wouldn’t be able to read them without the special decoder ring.

Speakers on the Outside of Subway Trains

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Subway Conductor

What a concept! [sarcasm]

The MTA has finally decided to outfit the old trains in the system with speakers mounted on the outside [Daily News] of the trains. That way, people outside the train can hear the announcements while standing on the platform.

I think we’ve all been in the situation where we’ve boarded a train only to realize that it is going to skip some stops. By then, it’s too late because the doors have already closed.

On those days where service is all f-ed up, these external speakers will come in handy. Since you can never rely on the MTA to make timely announcements over the platform PA system, at least you will be able to hear announcements from the trains when they are in the station.Read More »

Bull Sh*t Alert: MTA Postpones Upgrades

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Remember way back when the MTA promised that part of the new fare hike would include some general system upgrades with a $30 million improvement package? Yeah well, the MTA has decided they’re just gonna hold off on that for a lil bit.

This is such bullshit, it drives me nuts. If this is the stuff they can get away with, they should have just promised to make $900 million in improvements. Either way, they weren’t going to do it in the first place.

Here’s what we’re not getting:

More frequent service on the G line in Brooklyn and Queens, extending B and W service on weeknights to 11 p.m. from the current 9:30 p.m., and shaving one or two minutes from waiting times for evening service on the 1, 4 and 6 lines.

So much for that plan.  I guess at the end of the day, it just means more of the same for your commute.  For the few of us that actually pay an strange amount of attention to the happenings of the subway, we will be the only ones that get ultra pissed.

But riders having to now pay higher fares should be pissed.  Part of the “agreement” were these system improvements.

They say that if the MTA finance department can get their act together by June, the improvements might still have a chance.  Forgive me if I don’t hold my breath.  I love how these financial troubles are all of a sudden brought up now…after the fare hike has already happened.  Where was this information earlier?  Saying that the numbers weren’t in is just bull.  It’s not like they are being sent in by carrier pigeon.  All you need to do is look up the tax forecasts etc. and you would have been able to see that the MTA wasn’t going to make as much this year.

So they should not have offered the improved services in the first place, or upped the fare $0.25 on the single ride fare.