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NYCT Looking At Subway Line Shutdowns

Posted by
on November 21st, 2011 at 12:02 am

One of the biggest complaints from riders (and there are many) is how it seems like construction is always occurring on their line which causes inconvenience. There is truth to that as the MTA always has some sort of work being done throughout the system.

This should come as no surprise considering our system runs 24×7 & it is impossible to not impact the commute of some percentage of riders. The agency has tried cramming as much work as possible during the overnight hours & weekend when ridership is at its lowest technically. However with the amount of work that needs to be done, full weekends & overnight weeknight time periods are not enough time to get work done. This has caused the agency to endure trouble with keeping on schedule & budget.

Going back to former MTA CEO & Executive Director Jay Walder, the transit agency has been toying with the idea of having full line shutdowns at certain times to wrap up work faster. The idea did not get much traction publicly until recently when a Daily News story came out on the heels of a regularly scheduled Transit Committee meeting. Let us first take a quick look at that story courtesy of Pete Donohue:

Starting early next year, the MTA plans to periodically shut down a subway line through much of Manhattan for massive blitzes by workers inspecting, fixing and replacing equipment like signals and switches, the Daily News has learned.

Every three months, a line segment — possibly stretching from midtown all the way to the southern tip of Manhattan or even downtown Brooklyn — would be closed for three or four consecutive weeknights, sources said.

The new strategy likely will be tested first on the Lexington Ave. line between 42nd St. to the north and either Bowling Green in lower Manhattan or Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn, to the south, sources said.

Trains would stop running at about 10 p.m. each night and wouldn’t start up again until about 5 a.m. the next morning.

That would allow the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to get many projects and tasks done at once rather than piecemeal throughout the year. It’s a worthwhile tradeoff, one transit source familiar with the plan said.

“For a few nights, you won’t have service on a segment of a line but contrast that with work being done over far more nights and weekends with all the service diversions and train slowdowns.”

Commuters backed the all-at-once plan, but were anxious the service outages would be extended.

“I’d rather it be done quickly. I’m tired of construction on the tracks — if they could get it done quickly, that would be great,” said Kelly Murphy, 34, a customer service rep from Murray Hill.

The shutdowns will largely be limited to Manhattan below 42nd St. because there are parallel subway lines. A rider wouldn’t have to walk very far for alternate service.

Click here for the complete report.

During the meeting which occurred the next day, the agency noted how it could no longer cram as much work as possible into the weekends due to ridership during off peak & weekends rising by 82%. The first part of the plan calls for partial line segment closures which will take place over four consecutive weeknights between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m:

January 9 – 13: – 4 Train, 5 Train & 6 Train Grand Central-42nd St to Atlantic Ave

February 13 – 17: 1 Train, 2 Train & 3 Train 34 St-Penn Station to Atlantic Ave

February 20 – 24: B Train, D Train, F Train & M Train 59th St. to W. 4th St.

March 12 – 16: A Train, C Train & E Train 59th St to Jay St.

The second part of the plan calls for a continuous 24 hour shutdown of line segments over a series of days which are to be announced:

9 Days: Brooklyn-bound F Train trains between Parsons Blvd. & Forest Hills-71st Ave.

9 Days: Express D Train train service between Norwood-205th St. & 145th St.

16 Days: All Brooklyn-bound D Train service will terminate at Bay Parkway. No service between Bay Parkway & Coney Island-Stillwell Ave.

16 Days: No 2 Train train service between 241 St-Wakefield & Nereid Ave.

In my opinion, the second part of the plan has not received as much media attention as it should. This comes as no surprise considering the media sheep like to portray Manhattan as being the only place in NYC that matters. However these plans for the outer boroughs are pretty significant, especially in Queens where ridership on the E & F is pretty heavy. This will only add to the crowds on the E during those times.

In terms of the overall plan, I actually support it. Surprisingly not as much negative feedback as expected has come from the riding public which for the most part is usually misguided on their understandings of the system & its inner workings. However maybe the concept of dealing with inconvenience for the greater good is finally sinking in.

As far as overall numbers are concerned, if all goes well with these plans, the agency will not only attack issues with delays but with their budget as well. For example, shutting down the F in that portion of Queens will starve off 8 weekend & 20 weeknight shutdowns along with saving the agency $1.3 million (21%).

That sounds all good & fine in my book but only under the notion that work will be completed on time. Considering the agency’s track record of screwing things up on projects, are these savings really going to be realized? Only time will tell on that.

If you are interested in reading more about the MTA’s plans in terms of this project, click here to read the PDF. It is definitely worth checking out.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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MTA Talks Bringing Metro-North To The Bronx

Posted by
on November 20th, 2011 at 9:34 pm

Back in March of 2008, former MTA CEO & Executive Director Elliot Sander held his first ever State of the MTA address. One of the initiatives he listed for the agency called for the Metro-North to expand service in the Bronx by building stations to serve residents of Co-Op City, Hunts Point, & Parkchester.

Earlier this month, the agency met with various elected officials from various Bronx communities in Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.’s office to discuss their hopes of bringing new Metro-North service to the borough. The plans would also call for the Metro-North to service Penn Station with expected capacity to be available once the LIRR East Side Access project is completed later this decade.

For more on the meeting, let us take a look at a report from Patrick Rocchio of the Bronx Times:

Better transportation options may lie ahead in a plan that will likely introduce Metro North rail service to Penn Station by 2016 that could include the construction of four new stations in the borough.

The MTA is currently performing a Federal Environmental Assessment on the project that would bring its trains on the Hudson and New Haven lines into Penn Station, via existing tracks over the Hells Gate Bridge owned by Amtrak, said MTA spokesman Aaron Donovan.

“The review includes potential stations along Amtrak’s Hell Gate Line in the vicinity of Co-op City, Morris Park, Parkchester and Hunts Point, and we anticipate completing this assessment in 2013,” Donovan said.

A meeting was convened in Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.’s office on Monday, November 7 on the matter. All elected officials from areas that the MTA is considering placing new stations and community boards 2, 9, 10, and 11 were invited.

The group met with the president of Metro North, Howard Permut, to discuss the plan, which received a great deal of support, said Diaz spokesman John DeSio.

“This is an idea that has been around for decades, and the meeting was just a preliminary step where the MTA wanted to gauge the reaction of elected officials and stakeholders, with the reaction being very positive,” DeSio said.

The final plan could include the creation of new stations along Metro North’s New Haven line that would service Co-op City near Erskine Place, Morris Park near Einstein Medical Center and the Hutchinson Metro Center, Parkchester in the vicinity of Unionport Road and E. Tremont Avenue, and Hunts Point near Southern Boulevard, said Assemblyman Michael Benedetto.

The funding for the project, $250 million from New York State and $100 million from Connecticut, is substantial given these difficult economic times, but would provide a great amount of return, and is relatively inexpensive compared to other MTA capital projects, said Assemblyman Marcos Crespo.

Click here for the complete report.

I would like to hear more details about how exactly the service would be setup to maximize the potential of additional service in the Bronx along with it to Penn Station. Also would a station be built at Sunnyside? Such a station is absolutely key for success as a whole in terms of a modernized regional rail system. More on this as details come out.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Service Diversions 11-17-11

Posted by
on November 17th, 2011 at 9:13 pm

I have just updated the “Service Diversions” page with the latest planned work for the upcoming weekend, next week & beyond in some cases.

I suggest printing out a copy before heading to your destination. If you have an internet capable handheld device, you can use it to access the mobile version of this site.

While out traveling, if I notice or hear any changes, I will update them on the twitter feed so don’t forget to follow @TransitBlogger today which you can do by clicking the button in the sidebar.

Stay safe & have a wonderful weekend.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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MTA Releases November Financial Plan

Posted by
on November 16th, 2011 at 7:06 pm

Earlier today, the MTA sent out a press release with information on their November Financial Plan:

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today released its November Financial Plan and Final Proposed Budget for 2012. The November Plan updates a budget process that began with the presentation of a preliminary budget in July and culminates with a vote by the MTA Board in December. The November Plan shows only minor changes to the July Plan with the 2012 and 2013 budgets remaining balanced while out-year deficits have grown but remain manageable. However, risks remain, including continued economic uncertainty and the need for a labor settlement consistent with the budget.

An update was also presented on the MTA’s proposed funding plan for the final three years of its 2010-2014 Capital Program. A final capital funding proposal will be considered for approval by the Board in early 2012.

“The MTA has achieved a fragile fiscal stability by reducing expenses and operating more efficiently,” said MTA Executive Director Joseph J. Lhota. “It’s clear, though, that we’re still feeling the impact of the economic crisis and must continue to reduce costs even as we work to improve service.”

The four-year Financial Plan assumes $850 million in annual recurring savings by 2015 as a result of MTA management actions begun last year, including reducing administrative payroll expenses, consolidating back office functions, reducing overtime costs, renegotiating contracts with suppliers, reducing the non-revenue vehicle fleet and leased office space, creating paratransit efficiencies, and rebidding the healthcare program. The Financial Plan assumes the implementation of previously announced fare and toll increases in 2013 and 2015 each designed to yield revenue increases of 7.5%. And it assumes that the MTA will achieve $323 million in net zero wage savings for represented employees by 2015. There are no service cuts assumed in the financial plan.

Keeping these assumptions in mind, the MTA outlined a series of potential risks to the Financial Plan:

• Worsening of the economy

• Additional reductions in state subsidies and dedicated taxes

• Expense reductions are not achieved

• Labor settlements fall short of three “net zero” wage initiative

• Funding for 2012-2014 Capital Program still to be approved

The presentation also provided an update on the proposed funding plan for the final three years of the MTA’s 2010-2014 program that was presented in July. That plan calls for using revenues already committed to capital in the budget to fund new bonds, and it has three key benefits: it requires no new revenues; it protects the benefits of a Capital program that delivers safety and reliability to the transit system; and it delivers results including jobs and stability in the MTA’s Capital Program.

“In the context of the ongoing economic crisis in New York State, this proposal advances our critical capital investments in an affordable way,” said Robert Foran, MTA Chief Financial Officer. “It relies on revenues already dedicated to capital expenses and keeps debt service at a manageable level, with the percentage of debt to capital investment the lowest in 15 years.”

The full Financial Plan and presentation is available at www.mta.info.

In the coming days, I will take a look at the plan & write my opinions on it.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Service Diversions 11-15-11

Posted by
on November 15th, 2011 at 7:26 am

I just re-updated the Service Diversions page with all of the planned work for the rest of the week (and the future in some cases).

The next update will be on Thursday after the MTA sends out the official press release with the weekend diversions.

As always, if I hear or see anything important, I will update it on the official Twitter feed which you can follow by browsing for @TransitBlogger or by clicking the button in the sidebar.

Stay safe & have a wonderful week.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Service Diversions