Fare Policy Memorandum
Yesterday, the MTA updated the “Proposed Administrative Actions/Fares/Service/Station Changes” page with a fare policy memorandum from Chief Financial Officer Gary J. Dellaverson. Here is a link to the .pdf of the memo which shows the details of different fare hike proposals: Fare Policy Memorandum
While I do not want to see any fare hike, I understand it is inevitable. If I had to choose one of the proposals as the right one to go with it, I would have to reluctantly choose Ravitch Proposal #2 as it does the best job of spreading the fare hike across all riders instead of unfairly attacking a specific rider niche. I especially like the fact it keeps the 30 day unlimited under the century mark for riders such as myself. In case you were wondering why I am reluctant on the Ravitch Proposal, it mainly lies with the fact I think the committee’s proposals are not exactly financially sound ideas. You can view my thoughts here.
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Mass Transit To Be Stimulated
In my opinion, one of the key issues ignored in the past election was how the federal government could better invest in mass transit. I watched every single debate hoping to get some sort of an answer besides anything auto related. Unfortunately I was letdown each time. However in researching the candidates, it was easy to tell which administration would be more transit friendly. So it comes as no surprise to find out that the President-elect is working on an economic stimulus package that would invest $20 billion in mass transit. Sally Goldenberg of the New York Post has more in this report:
The city’s delayed mass-transit projects will get a cash boost from President-elect Barack Obama’s economic-stimulus package, two New York lawmakers announced yesterday.
Sen. Charles Schumer and Rep. Jerrold Nadler, who are working with Obama’s transition team on details of the stimulus package through their leadership roles in Congress, said the state is expected to get $4 billion – most of it slated for mass-transit capital projects in the metro area.
“This stimulus could be a lifesaver for New York’s mass-transit system,” said Nadler, a senior member of the House Transportation Committee.
Obama’s package is likely to allocate $20 billion to mass transportation nationwide, and New York historically has received one-fifth of national mass-transit funds, Schumer said.
Click here for the complete report.
This is exactly the kind of investment our federal government needs to make to make sure our transit infrastructure is strong. I seriously hope this is just the beginning of such investments from this administration!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Service Diversions 12-27
I have just updated the service diversions page with the latest scheduled diversions for this weekend & next week (and beyond in some cases). Don’t forget to check in for any changes to the page. I also suggest printing out a copy of the page to use while riding the system. Have a safe & wonderful weekend!
P.S. Stay warm!
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Merry Christmas!
I wanted to take this time to wish all my readers a MERRY CHRISTMAS! If you do not celebrate Christmas, I wish you a merry holiday regardless of what you celebrate. I hope you have a safe & wonderful day!
xoxo ho ho ho Transit Blogger
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The 5 Produces More Of The Same
Dyre Avenue bound 5 train leaving the Morris Park station. Resized photo courtesy of Eye On Transit.
So it is back to Rider Report Card entries for me. Just a short while ago I talked about the M. Now it is 
‘s turn which produced more of the same in 2008. The line finished with an overall grade of C- which matches its result from 2007. Lets get straight to the breakdown:
5 Train Riders’ Top 10 Priorities; 2007 priority rank will be in ( ):
01. Minimal delays during trips (1)
02. Reasonable wait times for trains (2)
03. Adequate room on board at rush hour (3)
04. Cleanliness of stations (5)
05. Station announcements that are easy to hear (4)
06. Sense of security in stations (7)
07. Sense of security on trains (6)
08. Comfortable temperature in subway cars (8)
09. Train announcements that are easy to hear (9)
10. Cleanliness of subway cars (11)
—-
Now here is the entire order of M train riders’ priorities 2007 priority rank will be in ( ):
01. Minimal delays during trips (1)
02. Reasonable wait times for trains (2)
03. Adequate room on board at rush hour (3)
04. Cleanliness of stations (5)
05. Station announcements that are easy to hear (4)
06. Sense of security in stations (7)
07. Sense of security on trains (6)
08. Comfortable temperature in subway cars (8)
09. Train announcements that are easy to hear (9)
10. Cleanliness of subway cars (11)
11. Station announcements that are informative (10)
12. Courtesy and helpfulness of station personnel (13)
13. Working elevators and escalators in stations (14)
14. Train announcements that are informative (12)
15. Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines (15)
16. Signs in stations that help riders find their way (17)
17. Signs in subway cars that help riders find their way (18)
18. Ease of use of subway turnstiles (16)
19. Lack of scratchitti in subway cars (19)
20. Lack of graffiti in stations (20)
21. Lack of graffiti in subway cars (21)
—-
Now here is the graded breakdown for all 21 categories; 2007 grade in ( ):
01. Minimal delays during trips D+ (D+)02. Reasonable wait times for trains D+ (C-)
03. Adequate room on board at rush hour D (D)
04. Sense of security in stations C (C)
05. Sense of security on trains C (C-)
06. Working elevators and escalators in stations C- (C-)
07. Signs in stations that help riders find their way C+ (C+)
08. Signs in subway cars that help riders find their way C+ (C+)
09. Cleanliness of stations D+ (C-)
10. Cleanliness of subway cars C (C)
11. Station announcements that are easy to hear D+ (D+)
12. Station announcements that are informative D+ (D+)
13. Train announcements that are easy to hear C- (C-)
14. Train announcements that are informative C- (C-)
15. Lack of graffiti in stations C+ (C+)
16. Lack of graffiti in subway cars B- (B-)
17. Lack of scratchitti in subway cars C+ (C+)
18. Courtesy and helpfulness of station personnel C (C)
19. Comfortable temperature in subway cars C (C+)
20. Ease of use of subway turnstiles C+ (B-)
21. Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines B- (B-)
To be quite honest, I do not have much to add in terms of analyzing these results. The line graded out almost identical in every category from last year. So in all honesty, the same feelings I echoed last year apply today as well. You can view my 2007 analysis by clicking here.
I feel bad for 5 riders as these report cards will echo the same sentiments year after year until the Second Avenue Subway is completed to its full potential.
P.S. Once again the amount of responses received by the MTA was lower than last year. PATHETIC!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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