Mr. S Charter Services Picks Up The Slack
When the MTA enacted major service cuts & eliminations recently, bus service was arguably the hardest hit. All 5 boroughs lost service with some having it worse than others. Private bus companies such as TransportAzumah have tried to pick up the slack by offering service in place of eliminated lines. However a judge put a stop to that quickly by filing a restraining order against the company.
This has not stopped a company called Mr. S Charter Services from doing something similar. The company has started to run buses via the X29 route which was eliminated. However according to a report by Matthew Schuerman of WNYC, they have done so with some questions about their company:
A number of private bus companies and van drivers are trying to pick up the slack left by this summer’s MTA’s service cuts. They’re thinking private enterprise could operate those routes more efficiently than the public sector — and even make a profit. In late June, one company, Mr. S Charter Services, started running along a former express bus route in Brooklyn.
The buses don’t look like typical MTA buses. When one pulls up to Coney Island Avenue and Avenue X after 7:30 one morning, its windshield is embalzoned with the words “God Bless America” and “Blessed Save with Grace.”
“He’s a lifesaver,” says one rider, Carole Ragab, about Mr. S (whose full name is Steve Lowery). “We wouldn’t have a bus to take.”
The interiors of Mr. S’s coaches are a bit more worn out than a typical MTA vehicle. But his buses stop at the same places where the old X29 express bus did until the MTA’s service cuts in late June. They start in Coney Island and ending up in Midtown Manhattan. Forty minutes into the ride, there are only a handful of seats empty. That’s when Mrs. S, the owner’s wife, boards the bus and collects $5 from everyone.
But there are hidden problems. Lowery was running charter buses throughout the Northeast before he took on this job. But in order to pick up and discharge passengers on routes within the five boroughs, he needs authorization from the city. A Transportation Department spokesman wouldn’t confirm that he has that authorization.
On interstate routes, federal inspectors have taken Mr. S’s buses out of service almost twice as frequently than the national average. That’s because inspectors found safety violations, including worn out tires, inadequate emergency exits and unqualified drivers.
The New York State Department of Transportation also found problems when Lowery was operating long-distance routes to upstate prisons.
Click here for the complete report.
It is nice to see a company picking up the slack for riders who depended on this particular route. However a thorough investigation into the company’s track record is in order & if it turns up unsatisfactory results, they should not be allowed to operate. While it is a good thing to pick up the slack, doing so with questionable equipment & safety records is not. I look forward to finding out more.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Suffolk Wants To Join Nassau MTA Tax Lawsuit
The jockeying for positioning in the battle against the MTA Mobility Tax aka MTA Payroll Tax continues. As of last count a number of counties & towns have either filed their own or announce their desire to join lawsuits against the tax in terms of its potential constitutional legality.
Suffolk County is the latest to join in the fray as Suffolk County Legislator Ed Romaine unveiled legislation in which they would join their next door neighbor Nassau’s lawsuit against the MTA Mobility Tax. A report on Hamptons.com has more:
Joined by several of his colleagues, Suffolk County Legislator Ed Romaine unveiled new legislation directing the county attorney to join Nassau County’s lawsuit against the MTA Payroll Tax.
In its lawsuit, Nassau County calls the payroll tax unconstitutional as it encroaches on the home rule powers of local governments and its implementation violated the state constitution.
Suffolk County is one of 12 counties that receive services from the MTA. In 2009, New York imposed a .33 percent payroll tax on all employers in those 12 counties to bail the MTA out of a $1.8 billion deficit.
As an employer in the MTA district, Suffolk County was forced to increase property taxes to pay its share of the MTA payroll tax. The cost to Suffolk taxpayers is more than $ 3 million per year.
A tax such as the payroll tax requires two-thirds vote in both houses of the state legislature. However, the assembly passed the legislation with just 60 percent, while the senate passed it by a mere one vote.
In addition, Article X of the state constitution prohibits the legislature from “accepting, authorizing, or imposing liability on the state for the debts” of public benefit corporations and Article VII, Section 6 states, “No appropriations shall be made except by separate bills each for as single object or purpose.” The same bill that authorized the payroll tax also authorized new drivers’ licenses and vehicle registration fees.
Taxes and fees generated by Suffolk residents to operate the MTA are now well in excess of half a billion dollars – or $349 for every man, woman, and child from Lloyd Harbor to Montauk.
“Public authorities are designed to be autonomous agencies, free from subsidization by the state,” said Legislator Romaine. “However, taxpayers spend billions propping up the MTA. This must end.”
Click here for the complete report.
This news is not surprising as my previous entry talked about Suffolk wanting to join the lawsuit. This report just makes it more official. This is shaping up to be a huge battle for the remainder of the year & probably foreseeable future. It is clear that this battle will be a hot button issue during the upcoming election cycle. So the entries about it are just starting….
xoxo Transit Blogger
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TWU Continues With The Childish Attacks
Regular readers know that I am not anti-union like some others seem to be in the transit world. I support unions engaging in legitimate tactics to protect their members while also doing their part if & when things hit the fan. Throughout the latest war between the MTA & TWU over layoffs, I strongly supported the two sides skipping the fighting through the media & focusing on legitimate negotiations.
It is safe to say that both sides have not put their best foot forward in terms of focusing on negotiations. One of my biggest issues stemmed from TWU Local 100 President John Sameulsen’s obsession with the underpaid salary of MTA Board Chairman & CEO Jay H. Walder. As I noted in May, John is engaging in a battle of populism that he & his members just can’t win.
Unfortunately he seems hell bent on making this about Jay’s salary as his latest stunt revolves around the handout of fake vacation postcards from France with a picture of the CEO. Let’s first look at the report about this from Pete Donohue of the New York Daily News:
The transit workers union is escalating its war on MTA Chairman Jay Walder’s wealth Thursday by handing out fake vacation postcards from the south of France.
“Having a great time here in my summer getaway in St. Antonin Noble Val,” reads the ersatz note to the city’s commuters from Walder, who is relaxing at his villa in the Pyrenees.
The postcard’s front depicts Walder frolicking in a suit on the beach at Cannes.
“Heard the weather’s real hot and humid back in New York and that you’re packed in like sardines on the trains and buses because of all the service cuts,” it says.
“I’ll be back in plenty of time to push through the fare hikes.”
The Transport Workers Union Local 100 says it will hand out 10,000 of the counterfeit cards to embarrass Walder and whip up riders against the MTA cuts.
“Jay Walder is completely out of touch with average, everyday working New Yorkers who don’t have country houses – or the unmitigated gall to take a three-week vacation in the south of France in the midst of drastic cuts,” said Local 100 President John Samuelsen.
Click here for the complete report.
Now let’s take a look at a report about this by Michael Ventura of DNAInfo:
MTA Chairman Jay Walder is living it up in France, or so says fake postcards distributed to straphangers by transit workers.
The front of the card shows a mock-up of Walder on the French Rivera. The back contains a phony message for subway riders from his summer getaway.
“Heard the weather’s real hot and humid back in New York and that you’re packed like sardines on the trains and buses because of all the service cuts,” the postcard reads. “I know there’ll be a big spike in crime too because I fired all those Station Agents.
“Oh well, c’est la vie.”
The Transport Workers Union Local 100 told the Daily News it plans to distribute 10,000 cards to riders.
Click here for the complete report.
According to John, Jay is completely out of touch with average New York riders due to his salary & perks that come with being the MTA Board Chairman & CEO. I hate to break it to John but, his actions over the last months arguably show he is as clueless as he thinks Jay is.
Average riders do not give a damn about fake postcards, what his salary is, where he vacations, lives, etc… I am strongly confident that if you ask them what they remember or feel about all MTA employees, they would focus on the rude attitude of some workers, those who fall asleep, etc… & not what Jay has. I bet most riders could not even name who the CEO is!
These childish attacks are doing nothing for his members or the riding public he claims to care & fight for so much. I truly wonder how members feel about this childish stunt & if they are happy to see their leaders spending or more accurately wasting money on such a gimmick. These are the kind of games that are not needed at anytime much less during such a major financial crisis.
I am sincerely imploring John to stop wasting time with these childish attacks & get back to negotiating & fighting against the people who seem to dump on riders the most, our elected officials. Not to say I endorse doing this but if anyone deserves fake postcards, it is the clowns in office who continue to treat transit as a bastard stepchild. Get your priorities & reality in order John & lead the way you should.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Fulton Transit Center Milestone Reached
I have been so wrapped up with business that I did not finish catching up on transit news. This entry will focus on the MTA reaching an important milestone with its Fulton Transit Center project. The milestone reached happens to be the completion of the foundation. Here are the details courtesy of the press release I received:
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced today underpinning for the Corbin Building and the foundation for the Fulton Street Transit Center are complete. This marks a major milestone in the $1.4 billion project that will connect five subway stations and ten subway lines, improving access for over 300,000 daily customers that pass through this major transit hub in lower Manhattan. The overall project, funded primarily with federal funds, remains on schedule and will be completed in 2014.
“We have reached a significant milestone by completing the foundation of what will become a landmark transportation facility,” said MTA Capital Construction President Michael Horodniceanu. “Anyone who has had to navigate the myriad of ramps, stairs, and confusing signs at Fulton Street understands the importance of providing our customers with a more seamless experience at this major downtown hub. The Transit Center will improve travel for hundreds of thousands of daily commuters and lower Manhattan residents and visitors while providing a modern and convenient retail location.”
The project will provide improved street level access and visibility, will create an underground link to the renovated historic Corbin Building, and will be home to over 25,000 square feet of retail space. Other amenities at the new Fulton Street Transit Center, located on Broadway between Fulton and John Street, will include:
• The A/C Broadway/Nassau Street Station will have improved mezzanine and platform access resulting in better circulation and reduced overcrowding.
• A new underground concourse built beneath Dey Street will connect the R line at Cortlandt Street and the 4/5 lines on Broadway with additional connections to the new PATH Hub, World Financial Center and ferry service.
Contractor Skanska Civil USA Northeast Incorporated completed the foundation and the underpinning of the Corbin Building on schedule. Other components of the Transit Center have already been completed and opened for customer use, including the rehabilitated 2/3 Fulton Street Station and new 4/5 Fulton Street Station southern entrances.
I am excited to see this milestone reached & can’t wait for its expected completion in 2014. The Fulton Street complex is arguably the most confusing station in the system & seeing that remedied along with adding new features & functionality is a major win for the hundreds of thousands who use the station daily.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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MTA Scraps Subway Car Sinking Plan
Subway cars like these will still run instead of being sunk for reef use due to the MTA’s financial crisis. Resized photo courtesy of Eye On Transit.
Over the last few years, MTA NYC Transit has found a useful way to retire subway cars whose run in passenger service was up. Instead of the cars just rotting away & serving no purpose, the agency would have them sunk into the ocean to become reefs.
However during these tough financial times, even the best of intentions face the powerful budget axe. The agency has scrapped their latest plan to sink 290 subway cars. Eyewitness News has more in this extremely brief report:
The MTA has put the brakes on a plan to go out with the old and in with the new when it comes to hundreds of subway cars.
The cash-strapped agency has decided to keep 290 old subway cars in service instead of sinking them into the sea as planned.
The cars date back as far as the 1960s and are mostly used on the A and C lines.
The move will save the MTA $1.3 million in shipping and cleaning costs associated with sinking them to become artificial reefs.
While unfortunate, I applaud the agency for saving money wherever it can. While $1.3M is a mini drop in the bucket, every dollar counts in the bigger picture. Hopefully they can continue to find ways to save money while not hurting the riders or its operations.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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