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Foolish Propaganda If You Ask Me

Posted by
on December 24th, 2008 at 7:12 am

By now you have read or heard (or both) about the Ravitch Commission’s plan which proposes ideas in how the MTA can collect a steady form of revenue for their budget. Each proposal has sparked strong feelings for or against it from businesses to commuters & to drivers & everyone in between. One of the main proposals calls for adding tolls to the East River & Harlem River bridges. This specific proposal has received the bulk of attention from the blogs, media & drivers itself.

The Regional Plan Association released individual borough sheets which showcasing the service cuts that will occur if this budget becomes a complete reality in 2009. Here is the link to each sheet:

Bronx

Brooklyn

Manhattan

Queens

Staten Island

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign conducted their own survey to show how fare increases would hurt more people versus toll increases. Here is a sample of their report:

Yesterday, the MTA Board passed its “doomsday budget,” officially putting riders on the hook for massive fare increases and service cuts if state elected officials don’t pass the Ravitch Commission’s recommendations or some other plan to save the system.

The consequences of state inaction are dire. The Regional Plan Association has released fact sheets for each of NYC’s five boroughs detailing where service cuts would take place — virtually everywhere in New York City. In addition, broad cuts to Long Island Bus, the LIRR, and Metro-North (as covered in MTR) mean that if elected officials don’t act, transit riders throughout the region will suffer.
Joe the Driver, Joanne the Transit Rider

The most controversial aspect of the Ravitch Commission’s plan is the addition of tolls to currently free East River and Harlem River bridges. But new TSTC fact sheets show that few workers in New York City and the surrounding suburbs drive to Manhattan. For example, according to the 2000 Census, only 3.1% of Brooklyn workers, 3.5% of Nassau County workers, and 4.4% of Westchester County workers drive alone to Manhattan to work

Click here for the complete entry.

Click here for the complete fact sheets.

I am sure this survey pleased the hardcore group of believes who foolishly believe that most people drive vehicles as a luxury in life. Yes, they have it figured out, most people buy cars as a luxury item because they could get everywhere they need to go by mass transit. I am all for mass transit & advocate for improvements & growth to our mass transit infrastructure & the money needed for such things. However I do not go around foolishly sporting the belief that many who drive do so as a luxury instead of some sort of necessity being behind it.

With that in mind, one can safely assume that I am not the biggest fan of this study. However it is not solely because of what I wrote above. I question the accuracy of the data being spread out as fact considering the source used for their analysis. I am a big believer that most studies can not possibly be 100% accurate due to it being impossible to get data from every possible source.

This study is no different as it is basing its analysis on data from the Census Bureau. Many people do not even bother or have the opportunity to participate in them so the data they have is never close to being complete. So with this in mind I question the legitimacy of the numbers being used in this report.

As you know by now, I am of the belief that our elected officials must do everything possible to provide money it owes the MTA before the riding public has to once again foot the bill. I completely understand that we have to shoulder some of the burden but we already shoulder too much of it & piling on is not fair to us. I’m sure there is truth behind the belief that fare increases would hurt commuters more versus drivers. However please stop making drivers out to be richer people who drive needlessly. It is one thing to believe something & a whole other thing to be bias & spread foolish propaganda of what most drivers in our region truly are.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Transit Advocates Urge Governor To Fast Track Rail Project

Posted by
on December 24th, 2008 at 4:27 am

One of my favorite transit related blogs to read is the Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s “Mobilizing The Region” as it covers many different transit aspects involving our entire tri-state region. The campaign does a great job as being advocates for supporting improvement to the transit infrastructure of the tri-state region. So the next few entries will focus on reports from them.

The first report comes from General Counsel Kyle Wisell & is about the campaign joining forces with other transit advocates to urge Connecticut Governor Rell to fast track the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield commuter rail line. Here is a sample of their report:

Tri-State joined several transportation, environment, civic and business groups in asking Connecticut Governor Rell to fast track the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield commuter rail line on Tuesday. The coalition was joined at the press conference by House Speaker-Elect Chris Donovan (D-Meriden), whose district would be served by the line, and current Speaker James Amman (D-Milford), in calling for quick approval of the project that would add commuter service from New Haven to Springfield, Mass., stopping in nine other municipalities along the way, including Hartford.

According to the groups, fast-tracking the project to get initial service running within two years will help revitalize Connecticut’s struggling economy by providing short and long term jobs, help reduce the number of cars on Connecticut’s roads and promote transit-oriented development and mixed-income housing in towns along the rail corridor. The groups called for immediate action to get initial service operating as a first step towards full-scale commuter rail between New Haven, Hartford and Springfield.

Click here for the complete report.

This region is not one that I travel in frequently so I do not have a strong analysis to comment on it. However I found the responses left to the report interesting which questioned whether Gov. Rell really wants to get this project done. They also feel the construction would not take much time at all so that could not be an excuse for this service not being implemented.

Speaking in general, I support an increase in mass transit options for commuters. I feel it not only benefits them but the area of the region as well since it can bring increases business, create jobs, & other economy stimulation actions. I would think that with the state of our economy from the local to federal level, any action that could help stimulate it long term would be welcomed. Lets see if Governor Rell does the right thing for the state.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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N Train Rider Report Card Handout

Posted by
on December 24th, 2008 at 3:48 am

Let me first apologize once again for being behind with updates to the blog. I also would like to apologize as this e-mailed press release features a hand out date that has already passed. However the second/last date is in the near future so it is still relevant. On that note, here is the press release for the N Train Train “Rider Report Card” handout:

In our continuing effort to solicit feedback from our customers, MTA New York City Transit is again distributing Rider Report Cards throughout the system. Riders on the N are next in line of NYC Transit’s over five million daily subway customers asked to rate the progress of their line since the initial round of report cards was distributed in July 2007.

The report cards are being distributed to riders during the morning rush hours on Monday, December 22nd and Monday, January 5, 2009. The cards will be handed out at several different stations along the line each day over both days. Grades will be used to identify rider preferences and to gauge how much improvement customers along the N line have noticed since last year’s report card.

Again, the Rider Report Card will ask subway riders to grade 21 specific areas of service from an A (Excellent) to an F (Unsatisfactory). Among the areas riders will grade include: car and station cleanliness, safety, security, quality of announcements, and the courtesy and helpfulness of front line customer service staff. Riders will also assign an overall grade for N service. From this list of 21 service attributes, riders are also going to be asked to rank the top three improvements they would like to see made to this line.

The Rider Report Card is once again being distributed in a mailer format, designed to be returned at no cost to the rider. Customers will also have the option of completing the survey on-line, on the MTA website at www.mta.info/nyct/index.html, where it is available in 3 languages: English, Spanish and Chinese. From the time the survey begins, riders will have two weeks to mail in their response or to complete the survey online.

Rider Report Card results are posted on line for riders to review once they have been tabulated.

Report cards are being distributed between 7:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. at each station. The schedule for distribution of Rider Report Cards along the N line is as follows:

• Monday, December 22nd – 86th Street, Avenue U, Kings Highway, Bay Parkway, 20th Avenue, 18th Avenue, Fort Hamilton Parkway and 8th Avenue.

• Monday, January 5th – 39th Avenue, 36th Avenue, Broadway, 30th Avenue, Astoria Blvd. and Astoria-Ditmars Blvd.

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Elliot Sander Discusses Downtown Mega Projects

Posted by
on December 24th, 2008 at 3:37 am

A week ago today, the MTA approved their 2009 “Doomsday” budget which will feature steep fare increases & service cuts. The very next day, MTA CEO/Executive Director Elliot Sander took the time to talk about some downtown projects such as the Fulton Street Transit Hub & Second Avenue Subway. Julie Shapiro & Josh Rogers of The Downtown Express have more in this report:

Nearly one year after the Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced it had run out of money to build the aboveground portion of the Fulton Transit Center, the agency still has made no decisions about the future.

“We have a couple of different options for what’s above ground,” Lee Sander, M.T.A. executive director, said this week. “The issue is really figuring out how we pay for it.”

He did not disclose any information on the alternatives under consideration. He said he was “highly confident” something will be built above street level, but he has made similar comments throughout the year and the M.T.A. had said they would have a new plan for the site by last February.

Sander spoke to community news reporters Thursday, one day after the agency passed a “doomsday” budget calling for 23 percent fare hikes and severe service cuts next year if there is no help from Albany.

The M.T.A. displaced 140 businesses in 2006 to make way for a domed Fulton station that was to become a new Downtown landmark. But while the M.T.A. has made progress on the belowground portion of the station — beginning to untangle 12 subway lines and ease pedestrian connections — a pit remains at Fulton St. and Broadway with no plan for its future.

Sander would only say Thursday that the M.T.A. is not interested in topping the station with a commercial structure to raise revenue.

“At this point that’s not in our plans, and given the fact that we’re in the environmental planning process, I think I will leave my comments there,” he said. He was more forthcoming when asked about other projects throughout the city.

A week earlier, Michael Horodniceanu, M.T.A.’s president of capital construction, also promised the station would rise.

“It’s going to be similar to what you’ve seen,” he said of the design.

Asked if the design included the much-praised domed glass oculus, which the M.T.A. shrunk several times before saying it was too expensive, Horodniceanu replied, “We have not made a decision.”

Horodniceanu said the M.T.A. had time to finalize the plans, because work on the building cannot start until 2010, when much of the belowground construction is complete.

—

Sander was asked several questions about the Second Ave. subway under construction on the Upper East Side, and every time he mentioned the full build plan to extend the line to Chinatown, the Seaport and the Financial District, he used some form of the word “hope.”

He said it would be more than 10 years before it is built and he offered no guarantees that it will ever happen. It’s the fourth and last phase of the project.

“That’s phase 1, 2, and 3 away,” said Lois Tendler, vice president of community relations for N.Y.C. Transit, who joined Sander at the meeting.

Sander remains passionate about the new line but said if he has to make drastic cuts to the capital program, he would sooner cut mega-projects like Second Ave. and East Side Access, which will connect Long Island commuters to Grand Central Station, than cuts to the existing system.

“If you had to make a choice between those two, there is no choice — it is the core program,” he said.

Modernizing the 70-year-old signal system, which Sander said could increase capacity on individual subway lines by 20 to 30 percent, is also more important than the big projects.

“That is a higher priority than the megas…. We can only do so many Second Ave. subways,” he said.

Click here for the complete report.

I am a supporter of getting the Fulton Transit Center completed as it would benefit many commuters. The station is one of the most important in the system in terms of transfers to other trunk lines. The maze like setup to transfer between most lines is beyond ridiculous & is long overdue for a complete makeover. However even with all of the positives this project would bring, I have to say the Second Avenue Subway is by far the most important capital project going. One could argue it could be the most important transit project ever for our region as it could possibly have that big of an effect on the system.

I do not find it comforting to hear the word “hope” being used in terms of whether the S.A.S. will ever be completed. No matter what is going on, the MTA must make sure this project is finally completed & is built to its best possible use. The Lexington Avenue corridor is already bursting at the seams or arguably already has. How much longer can they possibly expect to handle the crowding on that corridor without some form of help. Lets hope the project does not get yet another long term nail in its coffin. No one can afford to have this happen again.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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MTA Approves 2009 Doomsday Budget

Posted by
on December 23rd, 2008 at 4:16 pm

One of most common phrases used of late on this blog & across many on the net was “Doomsday Budget”. The proposed 2009 budget was considered of the doomsday type due to the drastic fare increases & service cuts that would face riders starting in early 2009. Six days ago the MTA Board officially approved the 2009 budget which would kick in unless the recommendations of the Ravitch Commission are implemented. Here is the press release they sent out via e-mail last Wednesday:

The Board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today approved the agency’s budget for 2009, including service cuts and a 23% increase in revenue from fares and tolls. These measures were necessary to balance the budget and close a $1.2 billion deficit. Agency officials and board members expressed hope that the recommendations of the Commission appointed by Governor Paterson and chaired by Richard Ravitch would be implemented to return the MTA to stable fiscal footing and eliminate the need for these measures.

“Today we fulfilled our requirement to adopt a balanced budget within the constraints of existing resources, and those resources are simply not great enough,” said H. Dale Hemmerdinger, MTA Chairman. “Our fervent hope is that available resources will grow in the coming months, so that this budget can be amended before it is implemented.”

“I have called this budget draconian, severe, and extremely painful, and it is all of those things,” said Elliot G. Sander, MTA Executive Director and CEO. “We are deeply appreciative of Governor Paterson for convening the Ravitch Commission and of the Governor and Mayor Bloomberg for supporting its recommendations. The transit system is the engine that powers the state’s economy. Implementing the Ravitch recommendations will secure its future and act as a stimulus bill for New York State, and I hope our legislators will act quickly.”

The budget closes a $1.2 billion deficit caused by plummeting tax revenues, higher fuel costs and elevated debt service obligations. In anticipation of pending deficits, the MTA undertook numerous cost-cutting measures beginning last year, including integration of its three bus companies, consolidation of back office functions and a 6% reduction in controllable costs over four years. With the vast majority of the agency’s staff devoted to service, operations and maintenance (only 7 percent are in administration), however, the impact of the recent economic crisis could not be covered without service cuts and fare/toll increases.

To bridge the gap, each MTA agency cut an additional 4.7%, including at least 5% of managerial costs. Proposed service reductions were identified because they could be implemented without compromising safety or security, and still provide MTA customers with alternative options for reaching their destination.

“As bad as the situation is, it would have been worse if not for efficiencies and administrative cuts initiated by the agency presidents and exhaustively reviewed by the Board, which then pushed us even harder to identify more savings,” said Sander. “We will pursue these efficiencies no matter what happens with the Ravitch Commission’s recommendations.”

The remaining deficit was made up by a 23% increase in the revenue yield from fares and tolls beginning in June 2009. This increase is projected to generate approximately $670 million in 2009. Hearings will be held beginning in January on the fare and toll increases and service cuts as required by law.

Lets hope our elected officials find a way to starve off this “doomsday” budget from becoming a nightmare on millions of commuters. With how bad the economy is, the last thing we need is huge fare increases. So Richard Brodsky, do you plan on doing something about this besides blowing hot air to get camera time? This is your chance to get the job done along with fellow elected officials from throughout the region.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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