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“I hear from people when they’re unhappy and this is one of the biggest things they’re unhappy about,” said Gerry Bringmann, the chairman of the Long Island Rail Road Commuter Council, an advocacy group for riders, who has received dozens of complaints about money locked up in transit benefits.

Read Full NYTimes article Here: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/29/nyregion/commuter-transit-benefits-mta-covid.html?

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Prentiss was a legendary fighter perhaps because she new what it was like to be abled-bodied. She began using a wheelchair 25 years ago because of severe asthma and other debilitating health conditions. She then dueled with policymakers over the lack of accessibility to parks, taxis, police precincts, and most especially public transportation.

Watch Full Coverage Here: https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2021/03/19/legendary-advocate-of-nyc-disability-community-dead-at-69

The post NY1: Legendary Advocate of NYC Disability Community Dead at 69 appeared first on PCAC.

Read full Crain’s Op-Ed here: https://www.crainsnewyork.com/op-ed/straphangers-need-washingtons-help

The post Crain’s Op-Ed: Straphangers need Washington’s help appeared first on PCAC.

Below is the letter:

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is facing an unprecedented fiscal emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic, needing as much as $12 billion to get through 2021.

Without federal relief, Long Island Rail Road riders face deep service cuts, significant fare hikes and reduced cleaning. Layoffs would further erode our fragile economy.

“Ease the pain” [Editorial, July 26] noted that the MTA is “ … a crucial ingredient in a dynamic economy. Supporting [it and other transit agencies] is costly, but letting them languish would be far more expensive.”

It also could be deadly. Service cuts would lead to overcrowded trains and eliminate any possible social distancing — critical to getting through this pandemic. At the same time, system modernization is on hold and in jeopardy. Long Islanders deserve a 21st century system and we were close to seeing that dream realized. Without reliable transit, Long Islanders will give up on the train and opt to drive, clogging the roads and our air.

The LIRR is a vital economic engine for the region. Our recovery cannot happen without critical federal aid now being debated in Washington. The message to Congress must be loud and clear: Long Islanders rely on the MTA and the MTA is relying on you!

Gerard Bringmann,

Patchogue

Editor’s note: The writer is chair of the Long Island Rail Road Commuter Council.

The post LIRRCC’s Letter to Newsday: Washington must help MTA appeared first on PCAC.

The pandemic also has wreaked havoc on the authority’s finances. The formerly unfathomable loss of fare, toll and tax revenue, combined with significant additional cleaning and security expenses, is decimating the agency’s budget.

Basically, the MTA is going broke to help save New York.

Now the MTA is in dire need of lifesaving support—the kind that only the federal government can provide.

On May 6, the MTA—and a coalition of 14 of the other largest transit agencies in the nation—sent a letter to House and Senate leadership, noting its need for $3.9 billion in unrestricted federal funds through 2020, in addition to the $3.9 billion it already received from the Cares Act; it anticipates $10.4 billion in revenue losses and additional operating expenses through next year.

President Donald Trump has signaled his support for the request, and we hope that Congress will take up and pass this critical legislation this week.

These emergency funds are an investment in the future health of the region and the millions of riders who rely on the very transit system that will ultimately allow us to get back in business and looking forward to a new normal.

While that new normal is a way off, the MTA must be there to support it. New York cannot come back if the MTA isn’t whole to serve it and if riders don’t have the confidence to return. The agency must start working now with public health specialists on metrics and milestones to assure all stakeholders that the system is safe to ride—and that 24-hour service can resume.

We know the MTA is already beginning to take steps based on lessons learned, including distance markings on subway cars and Plexiglass separators on buses, and is considering the viability of a reservation system and metering bus and subway loads. We anticipate there will need to be permanent increases in cleaning and disinfecting, which means improving processes and providing workers with the needed products, equipment and training. All of this will take a great deal of money—the kind that only the federal government can provide.

The pandemic has exacerbated the importance of improving the system as a whole. We know one thing for sure: Reducing crowding by running more trains, faster, will be essential to our recovery efforts.

The MTA’s capital program is the lever that makes that happen. It is more important than ever to invest in signal upgrades—including communication-based train control and ultrawide-band frequency—which will allow subways to safely run with only a minute or two between trains. We also need station improvements, track replacement, beefed-up power and new rolling stock to ensure speed, safety, reliability and accessibility for all.

Yet the MTA can’t begin those vital upgrades until there is federal funding certainty to cover the necessary costs. Those funds will allow the MTA to keep the network operating without having to dip into capital funds—to avoid unlocking the lockbox that keeps the funds separate.

Equally important to recovery, the breadth of construction projects will put people to work and pump money into the economy. The MTA’s five-year capital investment strategy could generate more than $75 billion of statewide economic activity and create nearly 350,000 jobs throughout the state. That’s a shot in the arm that could begin as soon as funding is available.

Moving the region’s key transit system forward will move the region as a whole forward. That requires planning and vision for what the future will hold but, most importantly, it requires funding. If New York doesn’t succeed—if transit doesn’t succeed—it will have a long-term negative impact on national Covid-19 recovery efforts.

We hope Congress is listening.

Visit Crain’s New York to view published article: https://www.crainsnewyork.com/op-ed/funding-transits-recovery-will-fund-new-yorks-recovery

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Watch the discussion on NY1’s Inside City Hall here:

Part 1

Part 2

The post Lisa Daglian’s NY1 Inside City Hall Interview on Andy Byford’s Departure appeared first on PCAC.

https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-write-congestion-rules-in-broad-daylight-20200104-pkwb62uogzaa3j644ujldgdhiq-story.html

The post PCAC Calls for the Traffic Mobility Review Board to Follow Open Meetings Law for Congestion Pricing! appeared first on PCAC.

Video here: MTA Disability Etiquette for Bus Operators

The post MTA Releases “Disability Etiquette for Bus Operators” appeared first on PCAC.

– Lisa Daglian PCAC Executive Director

Read full Bond Buyer article here: https://www.bondbuyer.com/news/skeptics-want-details-as-new-york-mta-releases-capital-plan

The post The MTA’s Capital Program: Much-needed city, state, and federal funds! appeared first on PCAC.