Beautiful mural (and appropriate for the construction work that awaits) in Times Square station from @l+q's stream.
Groundbreaking for the No. 7 extension is set for Monday morning. Coverage here and at amNY.com.
It takes place at 11 a.m. at the Times Square station, concourse between shuttle and 1,2,3 trains.
2007, meet 1937. (Photo: Kristen V. Brown)
Here's a dispatch on the Sunday vintage train rides from our intern, Kristen V. Brown, who also wrote a story about the cool trip back in time:
Like many other New Yorkers, I was confused this morning when a vintage subway circa World War II pulled up to the E/V stop at Lexington and 53rd. Also, like, many New Yorkers, curiosity forced me onto the train even though it wasn't the line I was actually waiting for.
Officials announced last Thursday that the train would be running from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m every Sunday throughout December along the V line from Queens Plaza to Second Avenue. Waiting on the train platform, I encountered many passengers who had come out just to ride the train. I talked to one who had ridden the train all morning, gotten off to get lunch, and planned on riding it all the way up to 5 p.m. He was a member at both the Trolley Museum of New York and the New York Transit Museum, and was wearing a cap with several train pins affixed to it. On the train another man dug through a folder of old pictures of the transit system in New York and Chicago to show to other curious riders.
Others, like myself, were just sort of confused as to how they'd ended up here. Cliche as it sounds, riding the vintage "nostalgia" trains really is like stepping back in time. These particular trains are all models R1 though R9, built between the '30s and the '40s and taken out of service in the 1970s — long before I was even born. Unlike today's hard plastic seats, the seats on these trains are comfy wicker, which one enthusiastic 8-year-old pointed out to me are particularly "bouncy." The cars are equipped with ceiling fans, and the original ads from the time still line the tops of the cars. Many of the ads look like something I would probably pay good money for at an antique shop — brightly colored illustrations advertising products like Campbell's Soup and Wrigley's Gum, and ads from Transit encouraging riders to cover their mouth when they sneeze. The insides of some had the same fluorescent quality that today's trains do; but with dark, rich, floors and tungsten lighting, the older cars were actually kind of homey.
The conductors for the most part had all operated these trains back when they were in regular service, so for many working this shift brings back memories. They will tell you all sorts of random facts about these cars, swelling up with pride as they do. For example, one told me, the reason the lighting goes out periodically is that when the third rail switches from the left to the right side, older cars loose power for a moment. The operator, Steve Davis, had ridden these cars as a child when his father drove them, so having the opportunity to drive the same cars was in a way the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for him.
Each car in the six car train is different — a different model, different year, different ads and in some even drastically different decor. And though they may be a little hotter, a little shakier and a lot louder, it's still a nice surprise to take a detour back in time on your way to work.
-- Kristen V. Brown
More of Kristen's photos after the jump:
(via flickr's The_WB)
The No. 7 train’s “Mets Express” will likely return next season, zipping fans from Shea Stadium after weeknight games, and possibly on weekends as well, transit officials said Thursday.
“About 70 or 80 percent of the customers chose the express [after night games], and so the odds are that experiment will continue,” said transit senior director Larry Gould.
Gould said post-game weekend express service, which was not offered last season, is also possible. He offered the promising statements Thursday at a transportation committee hearing on how the MTA responds to events that significantly impact transit.
The agency added weeknight post-game express trains to the roster in July, capitalizing on an 18 percent jump in Mets fan ridership this year. Two months earlier, amNewYork ran a cover story describing fans’ unhappiness with the lack of express service. At the time, the MTA said technical limitations impeded express service.
The agency Thursday said would not give a start date for the service’s possible return, and said that game attendance would be a factor.
Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing), head of the transportation committee, asked for No. 7 express trains after U.S. Open matches. Gould said he’d look into the option, but said local service is already ramped up during such times. Adding express trains could prove difficult, he said, because several matches end at different times of day.
“I would just encourage you to take a look at the Mets experience,” Liu said. “It’s not that difficult to make the leap to the U.S. Open matches.”
(courtesy New York City Transit)
New York City Transit is giving some lucky holiday shoppers a gift too big to fit under a tree.
An olive green circa-1930s train will pick up V line straphangers every Sunday in December, officials announced Thursday. The train will make stops between Queens Plaza in Long Island City and Second Avenue in Lower Manhattan from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Ceiling fans, padded rattan seats, incandescent light bulbs and nostalgic advertisements will highlight the ride back in time. The vintage train is similar to one that rolled down the A line on its 75th Anniversary and some of its cars are usually on display at the New York Transit Museum.
Some vintage train car facts:
Car No. 100 – Manufactured by American Car and Foundry, this R1-type car was the first car in the initial order of 300 cars placed in service for the opening of the IND subway.
Car No. 484 – Part of a 500-car order of R4 cars manufactured by American Car & Foundry. In 1946, this car received a retrofit of bulls-eye lighting and a public address system.
Car No. 1575 – Originally manufactured as an R7, this car was involved in a wreck in 1946. Sent to the American Car & Foundry factory, the car was rebuilt as prototype of the next generation R10 subway car.
(The original Penn Station via flickr's moynihanstation)
Maura Moynihan is carrying the torch for a grand new Penn Station years after her father Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan died before his dream was turned into steel and glass. The Friends of Moynihan Station, a coalition of Maura Moynihan, elected officials and civic groups, revealed today a wish list of planning, design and preservation principles they hope the city, state and transit agencies overseeing the new Penn Station uphold.
The planning principles are:
o Give a strong voice to the public in the planning of the station, as both the Farley Building and Penn Station are publicly owned and the project will require substantial public funding.
o Maintain ownership of Moynihan Station in public hands. Empower the Moynihan Station Development Corporation to oversee financing, design and operations. Create a mechanism for ensuring that both Moynihan East and West are maintained and operated, in perpetuity, to the level required at Grand Central Terminal.
o Take advantage of the development rights that come with the station to build a great Moynihan Station District that knits together Midtown with the Far West Side. Ensure that development on each receiving site is of a scale consistent with the site’s surroundings, and that provisions are made to upgrade the area’s infrastructure.
o Give priority to the transportation functions of the station in its planning and design.
o Maximize the project’s intermodality by promoting connections to multiple transit services, airport access, taxis, walking and biking. Plan for a new transit connection from Herald Square to the Hudson River.
o Enhance the pedestrian environment throughout the Moynihan Station District, at street level and below grade. Emphasize East-West connections, from Greeley Square to the Far West Side and Hudson River. Connect Moynihan Station to the new ARC station at 34th Street. Create a below-grade pedestrian environment that rivals those of Grand Central Terminal and Rockefeller Center.
o Minimize train service disruptions and surface impacts during the multi-phase construction process.
(via flickr's barcoder96)
The City Council will decide Wednesday whether the Department of Transportation will post all parking restrictions on-line. The proposal, known as Int. No. 537, will make the laws searchable by block.
From a release when the committee held hearings on the proposed law:
Int. No. 537 was introduced by CM Liu because all too often, people
would find it easier to decipher hieroglyphics than some of the
parking signs in the city. Many people have received parking tickets
despite their good faith attempts to interpret signs and to park
legally. Transportation Committee Chairperson John Liu stated: "Putting parking restrictions block-by-block
on the internet will empower New Yorkers to better understand the
myriad of restrictions to be followed and reduce the issuance of
perplexing and maddening parking tickets. Moreover, it will
strengthen agency accountability so that people are not ticketed
unfairly for temporary restrictions that have actually been lifted and
for restrictions that don't even exist. It's good to hear that the
DOT is already beginning to work on this and passing this bill now
will help ensure that timely progress is made.
Chairperson Brewer (D-Manhattan), co-sponsor of Int. No. 537, stated:
"There are many benefits to having the parking regulations accessible
online, one of which would be to provide clarity for the public as
well as for the DOT and other agencies that need to coordinate traffic
signage with DOT. In general, this is another example where the
Council can use available technology to provide free and accessible
information for the entire public."
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and representatives of
Transportation Alternatives testified in support of both bills earlier this month.
(via flickr's arimoore)
Most transit riders may be hit by higher than expected fare hikes next year, the Post reports. By halting the hike of the $2 base fare, Gov. Eliot Spitzer may force the MTA to boost weekly and monthly passes by 6 percent. The proposed pass hike in July would have increased the cards by 4 percent.
Police found the man who police say killed a cabby in a road rage incident Tuesday. Luis Flores is accused of running over Mohamed El Waleed, 44, after the two crashed, the Post reports. El Waleed, who will be buried in his homeland of Sudan, is the 1,672nd taxi driver killed worldwide this year, according to the Taxi Driver Memoriam List.
The MTA announced today that the base fare for subways and buses will stay at $2, but comuter rail fairs, MetroCards and monthly and weekly passes will still go up next year.
The agency pojected it would finish the year with $220 million above projections in July, when the hike was proposed. The extra cash came from higher farebox revenues, real estate tax revenues and underspending by the MTA.
It's unclear what the future holds for commuter railroads and the price of discount MetroCards and passes, but they won't see as high an increase either. The MTA will present the board with details of its updated budget and fare and toll hike plan at a Finance Committee meeting Monday.
Two board members, Norman Seabrook and Mitch Pally, said they'll still vote down any hike, no matter how small.
The man himself at a 2002 presser outside the Farley post office. (Getty Images)
Our inbox this evening brings the news that Maura Moynihan, the daughter of the late New York Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, and Friends of Moynihan Station will distribute fliers at 8 a.m. Tuesday at Penn Station, pushing the cause of Moynihan Station, which they want to build across the street at the James A. Farley Post Office Building. They'll be at the site of one of the great architectural slaughters of all time, and hoping some of the spirit of the old Penn Station will be reborn across the street. Supporters will sport T-shirts and buttons that say “Build It Well. Build It Now.” AP today has an update on the effort. The exterior of the Farley building itself was recently spruced up.
-- Rolando Pujol
A week or so ago, we told you about an art project that will notch mosaics of Times Square revelers into the subway tile under Times Square.
We swung through the station this morning, and work was moving apace. Above are some shots taken around the escalator that rises from the No. 7 platform. The tile has already been cut and is awaiting further work, yet they have a haunting quality in their current state. Pay a visit the next time you're in the neighborhood.
-- Rolando Pujol
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