Disturbing Yet Not Surprising Video…..
Last night I happened to have my television on CW11 so I caught the first couple of stories on the 10pm newscast. Normally I am watching My9 news at 10pm but I did not get the chance to turn the channel. One of the first stories in the newscast was about the beating on the A train that was caught on video & posted on You Tube that was brought to light by The Smoking Gun.
First off I found the video disturbing although not surprising. As I said in my analysis of the C train “Rider Report Card”, I find that the A like the C tends to have extremely shady individuals riding it especially in Brooklyn. So this was no surprise to see that the incident took place on one of the 8th Avenue lines. These kind of antics are nothing new on the subway & further illustrate why one must be prepared for anything every split second.
I am amazed at the restraint this man showed while being attacked. I do not condone hitting women but in cases of self defense, all bets are off especially with complete strangers. One has no idea if they have a weapon such as a box cutter, knife, or even worse a gun! If I was in his shoes, I would have struck back. I am quite confident the encounter would not have lasted long considering I am a pretty strong guy. Some might scream about how a man should never hit a woman, well you know what, these are not women! Real women do not go around looking for fights for no good reason! These women although they don’t deserve the label, clearly showed they want to act like men so let them get their ass kicked like men!
On a related note, it is quite pathetic when people use incidents like this to bring out their racial prejudices. I was reading a brief article about this video on the website for the Newsday. I noticed that the article contained a number of comments & unfortunately most seemed to be written by idiots playing games or bringing up their racial prejudices.
Lets see we have people pretending to be Rev. Al Sharpton, Bernie Goetz, & Charles Bronson. If that was not enough, we get idiotic statements such as “Who can possibly see this and not conclude that blacks are animals. They are worthless monkeys.” Thankfully at least 2 replies of the 17 that are there don’t show complete ignorance. Here is the link to read the comments.
I would like to end this by urging all of my readers to practice common sense & prepare yourself for anything while riding buses & subways. I wish all of you safe travel at all times!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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MTA Criticized For Its Plan To Cut Emergency Workers
3 days ago, I wrote about the MTA’s plan to eliminate an evacuation program along with approximately 100 emergency workers. As I & others expected, critics have come out panning the MTA’s plans. Yesterday, Manhattan Democrat Assemblyman Micah Kellner joined The Disabled Riders Coalition & the Straphangers Campaign in decrying the plan as they feel station personnel is needed for disabled riders when panic bars on emergency exits are broken.
As I stated in the entry linked above, I do agree with the MTA looking to cut this plan. However I will say I have some concern about the broken panic bar issue for disabled riders. I have noticed an increase in those panic bars being broken over the last 6 months. I feel that the main culprit is the continued misuse of emergency exits by lazy straphangers who are so desperate to save 5 seconds, that they use the exit instead of the turnstiles.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Staten Island Railway Express Service Expansion Debuts
Yesterday marked the debut of expanded morning express service on the Staten Island Railway. This is not exactly new news as I wrote an entry last month about the MTA’s plans to expand express service. However the MTA issued a press release on Tuesday announcing the debut. So here is that press release courtesy of the MTA:
MTA New York City Transit today announced the expansion of Staten Island Railway’s (SIR) morning rush hour express train service. The expansion is in response to a surge in SIR ridership, which has seen a 10.2 percent increase in ridership during the 3rd Quarter of this year. By comparison, ridership on heavy rail systems nationally grew by only four percent.
Evening express service was the first to be phased in during November, expanding express service by an hour and 20 minutes. Now, the morning expansion will provide additional service to commuters who rely on SIR express and local service to and from the Staten Island Ferry while also providing an alternative to construction-related delays on area highways.
On Wednesday, December 5th, morning rush hour express service will be expanded with the first express train to connect with the boat departing St. George Terminal at 7:00 a.m., instead of the current 7:15 a.m. boat. Express service will continue to connect with ferry boats departing St. George at 7:15, 7:30, 7:45, 8:00, 8:15, and 8:30 a.m., with additional express trains now connecting with the 8:45 and 9:00 a.m. ferries departing St. George Terminal. In all, the span of express service will be extended by 45 minutes, with three additional express trains added to the morning schedule.
Express service toward Tottenville will also be introduced in the morning rush hour with five express trips connecting with boats departing Whitehall Terminal between 6:30 and 7:30 a.m. Additional local service is being added to the morning schedule as well, with five local trains stopping at Huguenot, Annadale and Eltingville Stations. Those trains will connect with boats departing St. George Terminal at 7:00, 7:15, 7:30 and 8:00 a.m. New customer timetables are available at the St. George Terminal and on the MTA website at www.mta.info.
As I stated last month, this is great news for the riders who depend on the Staten Island Railway.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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NYCT & TWU Task Force Reveal Safety Recommendations For Subway Track Workers
According to the New York City Transit (NYCT) division of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), all NYC Subway track workers will carry emergency radios by early 2008. The announcement came yesterday as a task force consisting of New York City Transit staff and Transport Workers Union (TWU) representatives released 63 recommendations which focus on improving communications & safety for all track workers. The task force was created in the wake of the deaths of track workers Marvin Franklin & Daniel Boggs who were killed while working on the tracks in two separate accidents this past April.
According to NYC Transit, track workers already carry radios at work sites where emergency alarms & phones are broken. They plan on purchasing more than 1,000 radios for workers by early 2008. They also plan on intensifying their inspection & maintenance schedule for their fleet of emergency alarms & phones. They also have promised improvement in all flagging procedures. The last major plan they have is to require flaggers for small roving groups of workers to carry a device that can trip a train’s emergency break. The task will release a plan by January on how to implement the rest of their recommendations.
I personally think these proposed changes are great for the safety of all track workers. It is a shame that it took death to make these changes come to fruition. Why does it always have to be that way in life? Why??????
xoxo Transit Blogger
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NYC Para Transit Drivers Hope To Avoid A Strike
Yesterday’s Newsday featured a story on The Para Transit Drivers and Mechanics of the Amalgamated Transit Union. The story was about the union’s desire to return to the bargaining table to avoid a strike that would start next Monday. Here is the brief article courtesy of Newsday:
NEW YORK – A union representing 1,500 drivers for the disabled and chronically ill is calling for a return to the bargaining table to avoid a strike as early as next week.
The Para Transit Drivers and Mechanics of the Amalgamated Transit Union rejected a contract offer in the fall. Since then, the union says, management has turned down requests to resume talks, leading to a strike authorization vote.
The union said it would walk out on Monday if new talks are not scheduled.
The dispute is over wages and benefits between the drivers and four companies that contract with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
The MTA is not involved in the negotiations but is monitoring the situation. Spokesman Jeremy Soffin said alternatives will be offered if a strike does occur.
The drivers provide service to thousands of elderly, disabled and chronically ill, ferrying them around to doctor’s offices and grocers.
“They have made no indication when they’re returning to the table,” said International Union vice president Tommy Mullins.
Lets hope that all parties return to the bargaining table as a strike would hurt the riders who depend on this vital service!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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