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1.
Expand and Improve Service in Underserved Neighborhoods Via the Commuter Railroads
- TheMTA’s capital plan includes a number of important projects to expand subway servicefor the first time in several generations. Nevertheless, there are a number ofcommunities, particularly in Queens and the Bronx, which will remain withoutadequate access to rail, despite the fact that commuter line tracks run through theirneighborhoods.
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Expand CityTicket
- CityTicket, which the MTA introduced in 2004 at the City’surging, allows riders within the City to travel on Long Island Rail Road orMetro-North at a discount. However, this discount, which cuts commuter railfares approximately in half, only applies to travel on weekends. In order toencourage mass transit, this program should be expanded, with the goal ofserving all stations at all times. The MTA should conduct rider surveys todetermine how much this would cost and work with the City and within its ownplan to assess the feasibility of funding. Expanding CityTicket would benefit tensof thousands of Bronx and Queens riders, including Queens residents living in
Long Island City
,
Far Rockaway
, and
Hunters Point
, which the mayor isworking to transform into a new middle class neighborhood, whose stations arecurrently not covered by the program, as well as residents of
Eastern Queens
and the
Northern Bronx
that lack adequate transit options and face lengthycommutes every day.
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o
Reopen Existing LIRR Stations in Queens
- A series of Long Island Rail Roadstations in Queens have been closed, despite the fact that the trains continue torun along the adjoining track, thereby depriving New York City residents of anadditional mass transportation option in areas that are underserved. The MTAshould reopen stations in
Glendale
,
Richmond Hill
and
Elmhurst
to serveQueens residents via the expanded CityTicket program. The MTA should alsowork with community leaders to reduce noise coming from these stations so asnot to unduly disturb local residents and businesses.
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Expanding CityTicket to weekdays will also directly benefit the following currently-servedneighborhoods: Woodside, Corona, Flushing, Murray Hill, Auburndale, Bayside, Douglaston,Little Neck, Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Jamaica, Hollis, Queens Village, St. Albans, LocustManor, Laurelton, and Rosedale in Queens; East New York, Bedford-Stuyvesant, ProspectHeights, and Boerum Hill in Brooklyn; Morris Heights, University Heights, Marble Hill,Spuyten-Duyvil, Riverdale, Melrose, Tremont, Fordham, Bedford Park, Williamsbridge,Woodlawn, and Wakefield in the Bronx. Many of these neighborhoods currently lack subwayaccess or sufficient bus service.
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2.
Fix Stations More Efficiently and Cost Effectively to Ensure Existing Stations Are in State of Good Repair
– Though expanding the city’s mass transportation network is important, itis critical for the existing infrastructure to be kept in a state of good repair. The MTA hasrepeatedly included comprehensive top-to-bottom station renovations in its capital plan,only to cut these renovations when the agency inevitably runs out of capital funding.Through responsible capital budgeting (see below) and expanding and accelerating theagency’s component program, in which the agency hires an outside contractor to fixspecific parts of a large group of stations, while downsizing the number of top-to-bottom renovations, the system could save $630 million over 7 years while providingriders with better stations where problems are fixed more quickly.
3.
Reinstitute F
Line Express Service
- A set of express tracks currently lies unused on the Fline, while the V line terminates at 2nd Avenue in Manhattan. As a result, V trains areunderutilized, while F trains are overcrowded. After completing repairs to the CulverViaduct, the MTA should restore express service on the F line and extend the V line outto Brooklyn, where it should make local stops along the F line. This will have thecombined benefits of shorter commute times and less crowded trains for Brooklyncommuters. The MTA should also work with community leaders in Kensington andWindsor Terrace to ensure that this new service does not cause significant trackvibration that unduly disturbs local residents and businesses.4.
Reopen the Staten Island North Shore Alignment
- Staten Island, which remains the city’sfastest growing borough with increasingly traffic-choked streets, remains unconnectedto the subway system and has only a single above ground rail line. Along the NorthShore, a 5.1 mile abandoned rail line linking directly to the St. George Ferry Terminalhas remained unused for over 50 years. Leveraging federal dollars, the MTA shouldeither reopen this rail line or use this infrastructure to provide other transit service toStaten Islanders in the growing neighborhoods of
New Brighton
,
West Brighton
,
Randall Manor
,
Port Richmond
,
Elm Park
and
Mariners Harbor
.5.
Pilot Light Rail or Street Car Service in Brooklyn and Western Queens WaterfrontNeighborhoods
- Many neighborhoods throughout the city—and particularly along thewaterfront—have existing, dormant trolley tracks running throughout their streets. TheCity’s Department of Transportation is exploring creating new streetcar service in
RedHook
and will consider opportunities for creating new light rail or streetcar service inother Brooklyn waterfront and western Queens communities.6.
Provide Subway Riders with Time Notifications -
– Transportation systems in cities aroundthe world, like London and Washington D.C., include countdown clocks in their stationsto give riders better information about their commute every day. Currently, only L Trainpassengers are notified about how long it will take the next subway to arrive at theirstation. Other lines have countdown clocks, but due to problems with the contractor andtechnology, they remain wrapped in plastic and cardboard. The MTA should quicklymove to get these existing countdown clocks up and running within a year and explorethe use of mesh network technology for other subway lines, which could provide cost-effective tracking technology.
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