Service Diversions 06-12-10
As I noted in the previous entry yesterday, I have updated the service diversions for the rest of the weekend. I removed the scheduled ones that have concluded for the weekend so everything is up to date. The next update will be Monday after all of the scheduled weekend diversions are wrapped up.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Service Diversions 06-11-10
I have just updated the “Service Diversions” page with the latest information for the weekend & following week (beyond in some cases). For those riding the 6 this weekend, do not forget to check out this entry with station service advisories due to Saturday’s 116th Street (Abrazo Fraternal) Festival & Sunday’s National Puerto Rican Day Parade.
Please note I will be updating the advisories again sometime after 12:01 AM EST Saturday morning to remove the ones that expired today. I suggest you print out a copy of the diversions to carry with you or use your mobile device to access the phone friendly version of Transit Blogger. Have a safe & wonderful weekend!
P.S. As someone who is part Puerto Rican, VIVA PUERTO RICO!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Telvent GIT Scams MTA Bridges & Tunnels
I was browsing the local papers & found a brief report about how the MTA Bridges & Tunnels division was scammed by Spanish firm Telvent GIT. The company schemed to lower their potential profit from a bid to maintain the MTA’s electronic-toll system. Bruce Golding & Tom Namako of the New York Post have more in this brief report:
The MTA awarded a $28.6 million contract to a Spanish company that hatched a fraudulent scheme to lowball its projected profits, a whistleblower suit filed yesterday charges.
Phillip Leshinsky of Brooklyn claims he was fired by Telvent GIT after voicing concerns that the alleged scam by the company’s top execs would be “unethical, dishonest and probably illegal.”
His Manhattan federal court suit seeks $875,000 in lost wages and other damages on grounds that he had engaged in “protected activity” under law to prevent mail and wire fraud.
Leshinsky, who had formerly worked as deputy CFO for the transit agency, says Telvent execs conspired to use an outdated audit that artificially inflated its overhead costs as part of a 2008 bid to maintain the MTA’s electronic-toll system.
MTA Bridges and Tunnels “had announced that it would not permit any company bidding on the contract to make a profit higher than 20 percent,” according to court papers.
Leshinsky, who was taken off the project before being canned from his $165,000-a-year job, doesn’t say in the suit how much his ex-employer actually made.
Neither Telvent nor the MTA responded to requests for comment.
On the surface, the overall amount in this deal is a drop in the bucket when it comes to MTA finances. I can’t deny that as the numbers speak for themselves. The real problem is the regularity that the MTA finds itself on the wrong end of deals with the companies it does business with. Whether it is companies allegedly lying about potential profits or the agency overpaying for goods or services compared to others.
This has been a long standing fundamental problem for an agency that is severely cash strapped. Why do they not do a better job in scrutinizing the vendors they do or have done business with or in the prices that they pay? I can’t be the only one notices how they have routinely been price gouged or been outright cheated. While picking the numbers on one specific deal might seem like a drop in the bucket, add them all up & it paints a very ugly picture. This picture needs to be fixed, end of story!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Service Advisory For Puerto Rico Events
A short time ago, MTA New York City Transit issued a service advisory for the upcoming Puerto Rican Day Parade & 116th Street Festival. Here are the complete details from the release I received:
The weekend-long celebration of Puerto Rican heritage begins on Saturday, June 12th with The 116th Street (Abrazo Fraternal) Festival which will be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on 116th Street between Lexington and Second Avenues and along Third Avenue between 106th Street and 122nd Street. Bus and subway customers in the area should allow extra time for their trips due to bus rerouting and exit only 6 station at 116th Street.
The 116th Street Festival is a very popular attraction with up to 50,000 people in attendance at any one time. Overall attendance for the day could reach upwards of 100,000. Due to an expected heavy concentration of customers, the 116th Street station (6) will be exit only in both directions from 12 noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 12th. Customers wishing to enter at 116th Street will be redirected to nearby stations on Lexington Avenue at 110th and 125th Streets. NYC Transit bus routes M101, M102, M103, and M116 will also be affected by street closures.
This year’s National Puerto Rican Day Parade will be held on Sunday, June 13th from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. The annual parade usually attracts upwards of 2 million spectators along the route, which this year runs up Fifth Avenue from 44th Street to 79th Street. Due to the change in the parade’s end point, the 77th Street 6 station will be exit only in both directions from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Parade-goers should use Fifth Avenue stations on the ENR and 7 lines. Additionally, NYC Transit will increase subway service on the 2456 and S (42nd Street shuttle) trains to accommodate spectators.
The following bus routes will be the most affected: M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M72, M66, M86, Q32. Other routes that will be affected in some way are: M31, M57, M79 and MTA Bus routes: BxM1, BxM2, BxM3, BxM4A, BxM4B, BxM6, BxM7, BxM7A, BxM9, BxM11, QM1A, QM2 and QM4.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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State Senate Approves Bus Camera Legislation
News about bus service continues to dominate this space. The never ending battle to bring survelliance cameras to bus only lanes continues. This legislation which would be a major key into improving bus service passed the State Senate’s Transportation Committee on Tuesday. Pete Donohue of the New York Daily News has more:
A plan to monitor bus-only lanes with surveillance cameras – and mail tickets to violators – cleared a bump in the road Tuesday.
The state Senate’s transportation committee approved legislation that would allow the city to use cameras as an enforcement tool on up to 50 miles of bus lanes, including the new ones along First and Second Aves.
Mayor Bloomberg and MTA Chairman Jay Walder have made this legislation a priority, saying fines will serve as a deterrent to drivers who now park or drive in bus-only lanes.
Click here for the complete report.
The headline is a bit misleading in my opinion since it has only passed a Senate committee. The real battle will be getting it to the floor for a full vote & having it pass. This is the same Senate that has turned its back on such legislation in the past. This should be an interesting battle that will unfold over the coming days & weeks. Will Albany do the right thing for NYC & its riding public? If past history is any indication, the answer is a resounding no.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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