MTA

We're quick to write off the MTA as incompetent whenever we experience a subway delay, but let this video convince you that they do indeed know what they're doing. This new short created by the agency explains why holding a train can actually prevent additional delays from happening. As it turns out, keeping gaps from growing and restoring evenness to a line will help keep service on schedule overall. Check out their awesome 8-bit video ahead to get the visual explanation.
Watch the video here

Transit

April 29, 2015

New Photos of the Second Avenue Subway Show Progress–and a Twist on the MTA’s Typeface

When we last wrote about the Second Avenue Subway back in February, word was that Phase I was about 79 percent complete and still on track for its December 2016 opening. Earlier this week community members and MTA officials gathered once again to go over progress, with MTA Capital Construction President Dr. Michael Horodniceanu toting a slew of new photos and renderings of the line. While the new images certainly give us a better look at some of the exciting architecture taking shape deep below our streets—in fact, the southern section is now 82 percent complete, Horodniceanu relayed—several photos also reveal some fun updates to the NYC subway's famous lettering.
See more here

April 28, 2015

Debt-Ridden MTA May Hike Subway Fares to $3.15

It might be time to trade in your metro card for a bike. Straphangers could soon see yet another fare hike if the MTA is unable to bridge its $15 billion budget gap. The NYDN reports that top transit officials are warning that the increase could ring in at as much as 15 percent, upping subway fares to $3.15 from $2.75. The agency tacked on 25 cents just last month to a single ride, much to the dismay of millions of commuters.
FInd out more here

Transit

Chatting with Strangers on Your Commute Will Make You Happier, Study Says

Photo via 2010-03-12 via photopin (license)

March 25, 2015

Chatting with Strangers on Your Commute Will Make You Happier, Study Says

Here's a way to bring some relief to those seemingly never-ending subway delays: strike up a conversation with the stranger next to you. Research conducted by behavioral scientists Nicholas Epley and Juliana Schroeder reveals that engaging in chitchat with your fellow straphangers can actually improve your well-being.
learn more about their study

March 20, 2015

MTA Releases MetroCard Calculator for Fare Hike; 190 Bowery Gets Retail Leasing Banners

To coincide with Sunday’s fare hike, the MTA has released an online MetroCard calculator. How nice of them! [NYDN] Brooklyn’s debt is double the national average. [amNY] The inevitable has finally happened — 190 Bowery, the former Germania Bank Building famous for its graffiti, now has retail leasing banners. [Bowery Boogie] A new city program aims […]

Uncategorized

March 6, 2015

Your Suspicions Are Correct, Subway Service Is Really Getting Worse

The platform pileups, the sick passengers, everyone's favorite recording, "we're delayed because of train traffic ahead of us"–subway service in New York City is getting worse, and it's not just in your imagination. In 2014, delays increased by a whopping 45.6 percent, and on the worst lines, the 4, 5 and 6, that number grows to 57 percent. The main culprits are right-of-way delays (caused by malfunctions of switches, signals, and rails) and overcrowding, the latter of which caused more than double the amount of delays in 2014, up from 6,942 to 14,843.
More details ahead

March 5, 2015

$19.05 Is the Perfect Amount to Load on a MetroCard so You Won’t Have Leftover Change

If you don't get an unlimited weekly or monthly MetroCard, you probably put random amounts on your card each time, or you might select one of the MTA's payment prompts–a $9.00 MetroCard with a $.45 bonus, a $19.00 card with a $.95 bonus, or a $39.00 card with a $1.95 bonus. If you fall into one of these two camps, you're likely always left with a useless amount of change on the card that will never add up to the $2.50 it costs for a single train ride. All of that leftover change going unused on thousands of MetroCards each day is being collected by the MTA, in what seems like a purposeful tactic. But now, thanks to statistician Ben Wellington, we have the solution to one of NYC life's biggest dilemmas–$19.05 is the is the perfect amount to load on your MetroCard so that you'll get eight subway rides without a penny left over.
Find out how Wellington arrived at this number

March 2, 2015

Animated GIF Shows How NYC’s Subway Has Evolved over the Last 100 Years

If you’ve ever wondered what subway lines were the first to appear in NYC, this cool animated map has all the answers and then some. Created by Appealing Industries via Paste Magazine (h/t Untapped), the map shows the evolution of the city’s various lines over the 100-plus years that it’s been in operation. Surprisingly, Brooklyn is the first to see action on […]

Phase I of the Second Avenue Subway Now 78.7 Percent Complete–and Still on Track

Image: MTA Capital Construction / Rehema Trimiew

February 26, 2015

Phase I of the Second Avenue Subway Now 78.7 Percent Complete–and Still on Track

It seems to be taking forever for the Second Avenue Subway (SAS) to be finished, but alas, never say never. Yesterday evening, community members and MTA Capital Construction officials gathered at Temple Israel for the SAS eighth quarterly workshop to discuss the line's construction updates, future plans and to take any comments or concerns from citizens. In his opening statement, MTA Capital Construction President Dr. Michael Horodniceanu reported that Phase I is now 78.7 percent complete (as of February 1, 2015). The number seemed to please many, but in light of the MTA's budget crisis, the top question on everyone's mind was still: "Is this thing on schedule to be completed in December 2016?" Dr. Horodniceanu reassured everyone, "We've been having these workshops for four years, and the date has stayed the same."
the next stop will be...

POLL: Do You Support an $8 Bridge Toll to Raise Funds for the MTA?

Yesterday we looked at a new proposal from MoveNY to toll four East River bridges (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Williamsburg, and Queensboro) and 60th Street in Manhattan in order to “raise funds for the MTA’s five-year capital plan (which is about $15.2 billion short of its target), and to make the cost of the city’s transit more equitable.” Drivers with […]

Transit

Image via Wikimedia Commons

February 17, 2015

Group Proposes $8 Toll on Popular East River Bridges to Raise Funds for the MTA

Image via Wikimedia Commons Car-happy city folk are sure to grumble over this latest proposal from MoveNY to toll four East River bridges (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Williamsburg and Queensboro) and 60th Street in Manhattan. The group's plan, backed by former traffic commissioner Sam Schwartz, is looking to raise funds for the MTA's five-year capital plan (which is about $15.2 billion short of its target), and to make the cost of the city's transit more equitable. The new program would apply a $5.54 toll each way for bridge-crossers traveling with an E-ZPass, while drivers without an E-Zpass will have to shell out $8 to cross each time. The same tolls would also be applied to all avenue crossings at 60th Street.
Find out more here

Transit

The MTA Has More Debt Than Cuba, Iceland and at Least 28 Other Nations

Image via nycsubway.org

February 12, 2015

The MTA Has More Debt Than Cuba, Iceland and at Least 28 Other Nations

By Annie Doge

The MTA's $15 billion 2015-2019 Capital Plan funding gap may sound like a staggering amount, but the current debt that the agency carries ($34.1 billion to be exact) is apparently bigger than that of Cuba, Syria and Jamaica's total debt. In fact, according to a new Straphangers campaign, more than 30 nations have less debt than the MTA.
READ MORE

February 4, 2015

POLL: Would You Pay More for Better Subway Service?

The MTA’s fare hike will take effect in March, raising the price of a single subway ride from $2.50 to $2.75, and it’s made most New York train riders pretty unhappy. But what if service was better? If those flashing “delay” projections were few and far between; massive platform pileups were a thing of the […]

Transit

February 3, 2015

Mapping How the NYC Subway Could Operate in a 40-Inch Snowstorm

Though winter storm Juno isn't going down in history as the biggest snowstorm to ever hit NYC, it was the first time the city completely shut down the subway system due to a snowstorm. Governor Cuomo and the MTA said the shutdown was necessary because a portion of almost every train line runs outdoors. Not happy with that reasoning? Then you'll really enjoy this map from WNYC called the Snowpiercer; it proposes how the subway system could operate during a 40-inch snowstorm.
See the full map here

Transit

January 30, 2015

MTA’s ‘Courtesy Counts’ Etiquette Campaign Is Brought to Life in a New Video Parody

Regardless of which side of the man-spread debate you're on, you've definitely heard plenty about the MTA's new Courtesy Counts etiquette campaign. To get their point across, the MTA has deployed a new set of posters featuring the ubiquitous faceless green and red stick figures doing uncourteous things on the subway, including pole dancing, grooming, and, of course, manspreading. Two New Yorkers, Christian “CJ” Koegel and his partner Chris Zelig, have now created a one-minute, tongue-in-cheek video where they don full-body red and green spandex suits to bring Courtesy Counts to life as part of the #ridewithclass hashtag campaign.
Watch the amusing video

January 22, 2015

Visiting Harry Houdini’s Grave in Queens; A Subway Ride Will Now Cost $2.75

Did you know Harry Houdini is buried in Glendale, Queens? Naturally, there’s some controversy surrounding his grave. [Queens Brownstoner] If you’ve ever wondered how to build a squash court in the middle of Grand Central, here’s a time-lapse video showing you how. [WSJ] Start saving (or ask for a raise); the MTA fare hikes will take […]

Uncategorized

December 16, 2014

Daily Link Fix: 25 Percent of Subways Are Late; Celebrate Veniero’s 120th Birthday with Free Cookies

25 percent of all subway trains are late, up 6 percent from last year. How ya feeling about that MTA price hike now? [Daily News] Legendary East Village Italian bakery Veniero’s is giving out free butter cookies to celebrate its 120th birthday on Thursday. [DNAinfo] The Living Christmas Tree Co. lets you rent live trees…we need to bring this to […]

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The Verrazano Bridge Opened 50 Years Ago, but There’s Still a Myth About Its Toll

Verrazano Bridge via Sue L C via photopin cc

November 21, 2014

The Verrazano Bridge Opened 50 Years Ago, but There’s Still a Myth About Its Toll

Bridges and tolls are on everyone's mind these days, thanks to the MTA's latest proposed fare hikes. If approved, this would raise the toll of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to $16. And today, on the 50th anniversary of the bridge's opening, most Staten Islanders still think that driving across the bridge was supposed to become free once it was paid off. No one's really certain where this myth came from, but those who believe it are quite passionate about the subject.
More on the urban myth here

November 18, 2014

Daily Link Fix: SantaCon Heading to Bushwick; New MTA Campaign Will Teach Subway Etiquette

SantaCon’s drunken debauchery is abandoning its traditional East Village route and heading to Bushwick. [Bushwick Daily] All those backpack wearers and “man spreaders” are going to get a public shaming when the MTA rolls out its subway etiquette awareness campaign in January. [am NY] Explore the “poison cauldron” of Newtown Creek in photos. [Gothamist] After 15 […]

Uncategorized

October 22, 2014

NYC Subway Carries a Record-Breaking 6.1 Million Riders in One Day

If you feel like your subway rides are starting to feel more and more like squeezing into a sweaty sardine can, you're right on the money. According to the MTA, ridership is at an all-time high with 149 million passengers cramming into cars during the month of September alone. The MTA also met another milestone last month on September 23rd, when a whopping 6,106,694 took to the rails—this is the most of any day since ridership was first tracked in 1985; and it broke last year's record of 5,987,595 passengers on October 24th.
READ MORE

Transit

October 2, 2014

Daily Link Fix: Amazing Cartoon Map Tablecloth from 1950s; See How Subway Cars Are Built

You never step foot in a fast food joint (right? RIGHT?!), but for those times when it’s an emergency and you need that greasy, fried goodness I Quant NY reported on the cleanest fast food chain in the city, so you can at least eat some grub that wasn’t dropped on the floor first. Continuing on our food […]

Food & Dining

August 11, 2014

Light at the End of the Tunnel: The Second Avenue Subway Already Sending Real Estate Prices Soaring

By Lauren Price

Plans for a Second Avenue subway have been on the drawing boards since flapper dresses were all the rage. But not until now has this pipeline dream started to take shape. One of the hottest discussions among the locals is undoubtedly the new line, and according to the MTA, 65 percent of Phase I is now complete. When it debuts in December 2016, it is slated to carry 200,000 straphangers, which in turn will reduce overcrowding on the Lexington Avenue Line by as much as 13 percent (that’s 23,500 fewer passengers on an average weekday). Phase II will extend the line from 96th to 125th Street, and the MTA just announced that $1.5 billion (only a third of the total estimated cost) is now set aside with the hope that the federal government will chip in, too. But those who wonder when the 8.5-mile stretch of tracks (125th Street to Hanover Square), you’d better hold onto your hat—it's 2029! Though this is still 15 years away, that hasn't stopped the prices of properties flanking the SAS from riding high in anticipation.
Why buyers are looking at construction workers starry-eyed

August 8, 2014

Daily Link Fix: Plans for Phase 2 of the Second Ave Subway; A Zero Energy Clay Refrigerator

Avoid Sketchy Areas with This New App: You know that weird vibe you get when walking down a shady street? Now there’s to help you navigate those mixed emotions! Crains reports that SketchFactor, launched yesterday for iPhones, uses crowdsourced tips to warn users of areas that are less-than-desirable. How Rooftops Went from Servant Quarters to a […]

Uncategorized

July 31, 2014

Daily Link Fix: A Flower Pot That Grows With Your Plant; The Best and Worst NYC Trains