MTA's 'Fastrack' Track Blitz Repairs Program Moves To 7th Avenue IRT

New York City, February 9, 2012 - The 'Fastrack' right of way overhaul program that was hugely successful on New York City Transit's IRT Lexington Avenue line (4, 5 and 6) a month ago, is moving on to the 7th Avenue IRT (1, 2 and 3). The program means that a portion of the system undergoes a complete closure so a variety of tasks that normally need to be shoe-horned between moving subway trains, allowing for safe, seamless non-stop repairs to be completed more quickly than ever before for a week between Monday night at 10 p.m. through Friday morning at 5 a.m. By providing a more productive and safe work environment, Transit employees avoid the seemingly constant interruptions of repeatedly having to “clear up” for trains to pass. About 10 to 15% of subway riders during those hours are expected to be affected.

The affected stations next week are on the 7th Avenue IRT span from 34th Street-Pennsylvania Station in Manhattan to Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. Subway riders are being asked to switch to other lines at major stations such as Times Square and 59th Street-Columbus Circle. Bus service will supplement the adjoining subway service along the 7th Avenue line.

During January's Fastrack launch on the Lexington Avenue line, 300 tasks including repairing platforms, stairways, painting, light installations in addition to signal and switch inspections.

The next to get the Fastrack treatment will be the Sixth Avenue IND (Independent B, D and F lines) from February 27 to March 2.

Lower Manhattan Traffic Report: Traffic Jam Due To Giant's Super Bowl Ticker Tape Parade

New York City, February 7, 2012 - A huge morning-long traffic jam occurred as a one-time event - the N.Y. Giant's Super Bowl ticker tape (an estimated 40 tons) parade up the 'Canyon Of Heroes' on Broadway in Lower Manhattan today - and what a parade it was! The victors proudly waved their 4th Lombardi Trophy in the air that made the crowd cheer! The weather was beautiful picture postcard day but was overshadowed by the extravaganza starring our Sunday afternoon heroes, who were the real stars.

You're saying, ok, this is a transportation blog - so where's the transportation angle? Alright - here goes: aside from the traffic jam, City Comptroller John Liu rode on his own private float - a 1952 Chrysler 300.

New York City's subway system service was altered as extra trains were added and train stops temporarily closed as 11 am approached - when the parade began. All divisions in Lower Manhattan were affected as fans made the subway cars that are normally packed to the gills, were jammed cheek to jowl far above normal levels. I've never seen so many school children on parent sponsored field trips - lots of hookey was played today. Subway details:
Beginning at 10 AM to prevent overcrowding conditions, trains did NOT stop at these five stations:
Wall St, 4 or 5;
City Hall, R;
Chambers St, A or C;
World Trade Center, E;
and Fulton St, 4, 5, A or C.

These five stations were the best way to get to the parade route:
1 service to South Ferry or Rector Street;
2 or 3 service to Wall St or Fulton St;
4, 5 or 6 service to Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall;
J service to Chambers St;
R service to Rector St.

The MTA's commuter lines, Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road, will be adding extra trains to handle the added capacity.

Over a million fans of all ages and sizes attended the gala event that was a wonderful event that was culminated with the Giants getting the keys to New York City from Mayor Bloomberg.

Congrats to the comeback kids as they rebounded from a 7-7 regular season record to go on a winning streak that earned them the Super Bowl trophy. Coach Coughlin is worth is weight in gold as he kept the team on message and was definitely exhibiting leadership as he definitely kept communicating with his charges in a positive manner - I wouldn't mind working for a guy like that!

LIRR To Upgrade HQ Built In 1913

Jamaica, NY, January 30, 2012 - The new MTA Chairman and CEO Joe Lhota met with Long Island Rail Road officials and received a guided tour and update of the various facilities in Queens including East Side Access, train operations, customer communications and security.

The exterior of the almost century old headquarters built in 1913 is scheduled for repair work and the 3rd floor is being turned into a 'situation room' to help handle emergencies. The structure was originally built as part of the great grade separation project of a century ago that took all LIRR trains off street level and onto viaducts within New York City.

PATH Scores Ridership High For 2011

New York, January 26, 2012 - Either the economic conditions have improved greatly from 2008 or there has been a mass-eschewing of the automobile for commuters crossing the Hudson River. In any event,The Port Authority’s PATH rail system announced that  76.6 million commuter trips made during the year, the highest number since the agency took ridership in 2011 since they took over operation of the system in 1962.

This follows the recent announcements by the MTA that Metro-North (82 million) and Long Island Rail Road (81 million) that commuters are coming back to ride the rails to get them where they're going within the region. It is also indicative of a national trend towards mass transit.The previous record by PATH was 74.9 million riders in 2008 - a 1.7 million difference and a 3.6 percent increase when compared to 2010. 

Port Authority Chairman David Samson said in a prepared statement that, “Our multibillion-dollar commitment to transform PATH into a 21st century rail system has paid dividends. More people are taking notice of what PATH has to offer and are choosing it as their preferred mode of travel between New York and New Jersey .”

It's Official - Metro-North Now Is The Top Commuter Rail Carrier In The USA

New York City, January 23, 2012 - Even with the economic downturn last year, July's heatwave, the snow storm outages and Hurricane Irene's devastation north of the town of Suffern, Metro-North posted its second-highest ridership levels in its history - topped only by 2008's figure of 83.6 million riders and became the top commuter railroad in the country and North America. It has been noted in recent months that Metro-North would supplant the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) in this category. 2011 saw Metro-North carry more than 82 million commuters last year with a 96.9% on-time performance record for 209,020 train trips.

That's not all - this year's ridership figures are anticipated to be 2% higher than last year.

MTA Metro-North President Howard Permut said in a prepared statement, “This growth is gratifying because people have a choice in travel. They are voting with their feet by taking Metro-North because of the value we provide. This growth is the continuation of a long-term trend and is a result of our unwavering focus on reliability, cleanliness, customer service and safety."

Among the improvements on the railroad are the new M-8 emu (electrical multiple unit) cars [see above] and their smooth ride which I enjoy immensely into the historic Grand Central Terminal [right].

I'm a daily rider on Metro-North and always find my interactions with their front line personnel to be courteous and professional - maybe there's more to this story than just commuters voting with their feet!

Full Service Resumes On Repaired Port Jervis Line

January 15, 2011, Harriman, NY - Full service has resumed months earlier and at a substantially lower cost than originally expected, the repaired Port Jervis line rail service resumed to the accolades of riders and MTA officials. It took about 3 months to repair the devastation of Hurricane Irene. Metro-North trains return to a full schedule of 26 daily trains and 14 trains each weekend day.

At an organized 'meet and greet' event on November 28, 2011 in Harriman New York, MTA Chairman and  CEO Joseph Lhota said, "We're very happy to provide for commuters to be taking the train again. I'm proud of Metro-North that it was able to get service back ahead of schedule and under budget."

Metro-North President Howard Permut proudly boasted, "It's great when I see people coming back to take the train, I am pleased to see it back as quickly as we could get it done."

Just as importantly, those praises were also sung by the riders. Frank Cervera of Westtown NY said, "I feel very optimistic, very happy, pleasantly surprised and very relieved to be able to travel to New York City and back. Myself and others rely on the line to earn a living. Without the train service, the commute was tedious, difficult and frustrating. I use the park and drive to commute to my job in mid-town Manhattan." Rebeca Diaz of Chester NY echoed a similar sentiment with, "I'm excited because its done ahead of time. It's a big deal, I work in New York City."

It should be noted that the situation hasn't been completely resolved as some work still needs to be done but a new top-service schedule has been put into effect. The Sloatsburg-Suffern trackage is still in need of repair. The original estimate for completion of all Port Jervis Line repairs was moved forward from fall 2012 to June 2012 with the hard work of Metro-North's employees and contractors.

Polar Bears Attack Coney Island, In a Nice Way

Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY, January 1, 2012 - What a way to begin the year, sand, surf, bikinis, Coney Island, January 1st - January 1st!!! What's going on here!!! Shiver me timbers!!! The Polar Bear Club jumped into the Atlantic Ocean surf en masse at 1 pm creating quite a scene for about the next hour. For a while it looked like summer came 6 months early!!! At 2 pm, the show was over on that warm for New Year's Day.

Many of the Polar Bear Club members took the BMT subway to the Stillwell Avenue, Coney Island terminal for a stress-free ride there and back.

Relaxation - definitely! Now quick, my shades, oil, blanket, radio - but not today!!!! An overcoat is more like it!!!