The NYCT, NYCDOT, NYPD and the New York State Legislature need to work together to renew and expand the bus lane camera program to ensure speedy bus travel to help alleviate the inevitable pressures that will come with the L train shutdown.
Public transit in Southeast Queens has not kept pace with the rapidly growing healthcare care sector. Without nearby subway connections and dwindling hope that new lines will be built, health aides here are in desperate need of better transit options. Access to affordable, efficient, and reliable transit is paramount on all modes be it subway, bus, or commuter rail.
A successful congestion pricing plan will decrease vehicles on Manhattan’s heavily clogged streets and substantially improve bus speeds and reliability, allowing the bus system to flourish. Additional bus lanes, improved bus stop infrastructure, and improved traffic signal timing, in conjunction with congestion pricing, can significantly enhance the quality of bus service and all mobility within the central business district, and may have wide ranging improvements on the transit system as a whole.
To better support the neighborhood and current development plans, the City and MTA must identify resources to invest in the East New York LIRR station. Improvements are imperative for this area to attain the economic vitality outlined in the City’s plans.
Calling 511, the New York State-run transportation information phone service, is often an exercise in futility. The system is a confusing, time consuming labyrinth, which makes it difficult for callers to obtain necessary information in a timely manner. Calling 511 is an obstacle to the MTA’s goal of achieving “Good Communication”. In a region this large, accurate and clear communication is crucial to keep over 8.7 million riders moving every day.
Earlier this week, NYC Transit unveiled a new innovative performance metric dashboard. For the first time we are all able to clearly and easily understand the trends for travel time performance, major delays and their causes, the amount of service delivered by line as well as legacy metrics such as car performance.
It is difficult to understand why riders must wait until 2019, when L train construction begins, to transfer between these two stations without additional expense when it could benefit a lot of people right now. The MTA should enable free out-of-station transfers, effective immediately.
The MTA and NYC Transit’s ability to side-step federal ADA regulations has continued to marginalize the disability community. The ADA community’s impassioned voices were rightfully heard at recent MTA Board meetings calling for a better Access-A-Ride program and overall system accessibility.
On August 9, New York City’s City Council approved the Greater Midtown East Rezoning. In a reassuring collaboration between the City’s Department of City Planning (DCP), Department of Transportation (DOT), and the state-run MTA, the rezoning shows a rare coming together in politics and policy between City and State. While the rezoning will help provide infrastructure improvement, there is still the question of ongoing maintenance funding that the impacted stations will require with additional use.
Since the mid-2000s, the MTA has been working to eliminate excess spending, through a series of initiatives aimed at reducing staff. However, in pursuit of financial rationality, the MTA has lost sight of the harm that incessant cuts can have on its ability to execute its mission.