LIRR Special Ticket Package For NY Auto Show
If you are into cars, the New York Auto Show is the place to be. The MTA Long Island Rail Road wants auto enthusiasts to use the LIRR to & from the show. To encourage this, the agency is offering a special ticket page. Here are the details courtesy of a press release sent to me by the agency yesterday:
When heading to the New York Auto Show, MTA Long Island Rail Road customers should leave the driving to us.
See some of the hottest cars & trucks ever displayed under one roof at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center . That means more sneak peeks, more brand new ’10 & ’11 production models, more concept vehicles than ever before, and no salesman hovering over your shoulder! Don’t miss it!
The LIRR discount package includes up to 30% savings on admission and off-peak round trip rail fare. The package cost $25 for adults (zones 1-10) and $34 for adults (zones 12-14) and $4 for children 5-11. Seniors 65-plus should check current regular admission and rail fare and compare with adult package price. Commuters can save $3 off the Auto Show admission by presenting a discount coupon at the Auto Show box office at the time of purchase. Discount coupons are available at the Penn Station ticket office.
LIRR Auto Show package tickets must be purchased in advance at a LIRR ticket office or full service ticket machine. Tickets are good on trains arriving in Penn Station weekdays after 9:30 AM and returning up to 4 AM the following day, or anytime weekends.
Auto Show hours are:
Friday April 2 (Sneak Preview) – 11 AM-10:30 PM
Saturday, April 3 (Opening Day) – 11 AM-10:30 PM
Monday to Saturday – 11 AM – 10:30 PM
Sunday – 10 AM – 7 PM
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Fulton/Broadway-Nassau Look Ahead
If you ride any of the lines that stop at the Fulton Street/Broadway-Nassau complex, you would know that service to this station usually is under some sort of service diversion due to work on the Fulton Transit Center. Earlier this afternoon, MTA NYC Transit issued a press release with a look ahead to planned service diversions involving this project. Here are the complete details:
Due to ongoing construction of the Fulton Street Transit Center, the following service changes will be in effect for weekends in April:
April 3-5:
•
&
trains bypass Broadway-Nassau in both directions.
• No transfers between the
,
,
, &
at Fulton Street/Broadway-Nassau.
____
April 10-12:
• No Queens-bound
• No
____
April 17-19:
•
• No transfers between the
• No
station (from West 4th Street
____
April 24-26:
• No Brooklyn-bound
• No
station (from Canal Street
• No
____________
MTA NYC Transit apologizes for any inconvenience to our customers. Service changes at Fulton Street-Broadway Nassau station complex will continue for most weekends through October. As weekends approach, customers should:
• Pick up brochures that detail alternate travel options
• Look for signs and service change posters in stations
• Visit the website at www.mta.info and check on “Planned Service Changes” and/or “Current Service Status”
• Sign up for free email or text message alerts at www.mta.info
• Follow changes on Twitter at nyctsubwayscoop
• Call Travel Information at 718-330-1234The Fulton Street Transit Center:
Some of the work being done at Fulton Street/Broadway-Nassau during these weekends include reinforcing girders over the AC platform. There will also be elevator work, which consists of digging the pits on the AC platform and at least partially constructing the shafts up through all levels of the station.
For more information on the construction project itself, log on to www.mta.info . Once at the home page, click on Capital Construction (under “MTA Agency Links”), then click on Fulton Street Transit Center under Programs.
You can also view the calendar of these changes in a .pdf by clicking here.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Union Officers Hold Spot Inspections
The war between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) & Transport Workers Union Local 100 (TWU Local 100) has been going on for years. Yet another chapter was added to it this past Friday when angry union officers caused delays in bus service due to spot inspections. Pete Donohue of the New York Daily News has more in this report:
Transit workers angry over MTA layoffs and other cost-cutting moves slowed down the morning rush in parts of Queens Friday, the Daily News has learned.
Before dawn at the College Point bus depot, union officers conducted spot inspections on buses heading to the only exit.
Citing equipment defects, union officers and staff delayed 64 buses by more than an hour, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority confirmed.
The scheduled runs of an additional 16 buses were canceled by managers because of the logjam, the MTA said.
All told, about one-third of the depot’s available fleet was affected by what sources said was the biggest action of its kind in years.
After taking office in January, Transport Workers Union Local 100 President John Samuelsen said members would fight management if they tried to close budget gaps with layoffs.
Friday, he maintained the equipment inspections were not connected to MTA plans to let go up to 500 token booth clerks and bus drivers later this year.
Click here for the complete report.
Let me start this off by saying that new TWU Local 100 President John Samuelsen needs to cut the bullshit. I tend to support the unions as they normally get the raw end of the deal from the MTA & riding public due to the idiotic perception that they are the main reason for the MTA’s financial woes.
However, I will not support outright lies by Mr. Samuelsen in saying these spot inspections had nothing to do with recently approved cuts to slash bus driver & token booth clerk positions. Growing up in a family of bus drivers, I know that spot inspections are rarely done & the times they are, it usually is out of spite for one reason or another. This is nothing but a case of that & any claim otherwise is bullshit.
Honestly Mr. Samuelsen, I think you need to get a clue with this. Screwing over the riding public will not endear you to them. They also are not the reason why some of your members will lose their job. If you want to send a message to someone, target the management via ways that do not hurt the public. Also take that same sentiment & aim it towards the elected officials who continue to short change the MTA in terms of funding. So next time, a stunt like this is suggested, ignore it & focus on something legitimate. Anything else is complete unacceptable!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Clerks Call In 400+ Emergencies A Day
With most of the focus on service cuts stemming from the current budget woes of the MTA, one of the other angles in the situation that needs some attention is the cutting of token booth clerks. The amount of clerks being cut will be up to approximately 500. As one would expect, the potential loss of these clerks has drawn responses from both sides of the aisle.
The initial reaction from the public tends to lean towards how this is a bad choice. These sentiments stem from the thought process of these clerks being a line of defense or a safety mechanism, even though they are not authorized to get involved directly with incidents. The other side of the aisle tends to lean towards the fact that these clerks are not needed & do not provide anything more than a false sense of security.
This past Friday, Pete Donohue of the New York Daily News wrote a report about how MTA token booth clerks relayed information to supervisors about emergencies almost 500,000 times in the last 3 years. Here is a brief sample of his report:
Token booth clerks – whose ranks are being slashed by layoffs – relayed information about subway emergencies nearly 500,000 times in the last three years, the Daily News has learned.
Dealing with everything from sick passengers to suspicious packages to lost children, the clerks used an emergency-only telephone line connecting them to the transit command center an average of 412 times a day last year, data provided by NYC Transit reveal.
Their calls summoned police officers, firefighters, ambulance crews or transit agency workers, depending on the situation.
The MTA is in the process of laying off up to 500 clerks, or station agents, to cut costs. Transit officials insist riders won’t be more vulnerable with fewer workers in the booths, citing the NYPD’s success in driving crime down to historic lows.
But some transit advocates and transit workers insist the MTA is going the wrong way.
“Riders know to go to a booth clerk to ask for help,” Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign said. “Now, they’ll have to ask: ‘Who you gonna call when most booth clerks are history?'”
At the MTA board meeting Wednesday, clerk Sabrina Greenwood told board members, “I save lives.”
Click here for the complete report.
When I look at those numbers, I must admit that it does help the case of those who feel these cuts are not that drastic. The average amount of calls considering the size of the system is next to nothing, especially when factoring in daily ridership. I admit that I understand the thought process of many who feel they provide a sense of security as it is human nature. However on the other side of it, I do understand that the sense of security is false in some ways due to the actual policies in place for the clerks.
In this economy, I can certainly feel for the clerks who might end up with no jobs. I also feel that if the MTA is so set on saving money by cutting these positions, they should apply the same principles on the management level. The fact is the way they have the agency structured leaves a lot to be desired. There are plenty of unnecessary positions on the management level that should be cut as well. If it is good for the blue collar part of the agency, it should be good for the white collar as well.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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MTA Appoints New Chief Financial Officer
Early this morning, the MTA officially announced the hiring of a new Chief Financial Officer to replace Gary Dellaverson who retired in December. Here is a brief press release sent out by the MTA:
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today announced the appointment of Robert E. Foran as Chief Financial Officer. Foran is one of the nation’s leading municipal finance experts, with 30 years of experience in the industry. He is currently a Managing Director and Senior Advisor at Samuel A. Ramirez & Co. and previously served as Senior Managing Director at Bear Stearns, where he worked for almost two decades. Foran has been an advisor and banker to major infrastructure issuers nationwide, including the MTA. Early in his career he worked as a CPA for Arthur Andersen. Foran holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.
“Bob’s expertise in municipal finance is unparalleled and his experience with the MTA means that he will hit the ground running,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Jay H. Walder. “His arrival will be critical in helping guide the MTA through one of the most difficult financial periods in its history.”
Foran succeeds Gary J. Dellaverson, who retired in December. David Moretti has filled the position on an acting basis and will return to his full-time position as Executive Vice President at MTA Bridges and Tunnels.
“Dave stepped into a difficult position at a difficult time and did an outstanding job,” Walder said.
I must say this is a very interesting hire considering Mr. Foran’s past experience with handling financial matters involving the MTA. This is the same person who was in charge of a critically panned debt restructuring plan which led the agency to continue funding projects without raising revenue via fares & other means.
Considering the amount of debt currently on the MTA’s plate & higher amounts waiting in the not so distant future, Mr. Foran has a huge task ahead of him. Hopefully he will be up to the task as the decisions he helps make will determine the long term future of the MTA & that is no joke.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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