The 7’s Story Remains The Same
Flushing-Main Street bound 7 train @ Queensboro Plaza. Resized photo courtesy of Eye On Transit.
I’m sure when the MTA sought the feelings of riders for the 2008 Rider Report Cards, they were expecting an improvement from last year. They added extra service & implemented a line manager program that they felt would give the line a much needed boost. Unfortunately to their probable dismay, the line once again earned an overall grade of C-. Lets get to the breakdown shall we…
I will start by posting the portion of the press release sent out via e-mail earlier:
This year, 4,113 7 Flushing Line riders graded the service they receive – 3,913 by mail and another 200 via the Internet – compared to the 15,800 responses received in 2007. Riders gave “Cleanliness of stations,” “Cleanliness of subway cars” and “Lack of scratchitti in subway cars” a “C” grade, up from “C-minus” in 2007. “Station announcements that are easy to hear” and “Station announcements that are informative” received “C-minus” grades, up from “D-plus” grades in 2007. However, riders gave “Minimal delays during trips” a “D-plus,” down from “C-minus” in 2007. Also, “Reasonable wait times for trains” dropped to a “C-minus” from “C” last year, while “Adequate room on board at rush hour” was graded “D”, the same as it was in 2007. Overall, riders who took part in this year’s survey gave the 7 a “C-minus,” the same grade the line received in 2007.
“While the overall grade did not improve, riders clearly appreciated the extra effort the 7 Line team put into cleaning,” said Roberts. “There is a lot of work still to be done, but I know that incoming General Manager John Hoban and his team will use their resources wisely as they look to improve in areas where they are currently deficient.”
Riders on the 7 Line were also asked to prioritize the improvements they would like to see. As they did in 2007, riders listed the same three preferences but in a slightly different order. This year, those priorities are “Minimal delays during trips,” “Adequate room on board at rush hour” and “Reasonable wait times for trains,” a swap in the order of the top two priorities from 2007.
Here are the top 10 priorities according to riders; Their 2007 priority rank will be in ( ):
-
01. Minimal delays during trips (2)
02. Adequate room on board at rush hour (1)
03. Reasonable wait times for trains (3)
04. Train announcements that are easy to hear (4)
05. Working elevators and escalators in stations (7)
06. Station announcements that are easy to hear (5)
07. Sense of security on trains (9)
08. Cleanliness of stations (6)
09. Comfortable temperature in subway cars (10)
10. Sense of security in stations (11)
Now here is the graded breakdown for all 21 categories; Their 2007 grade will be in ( ):
01. Minimal delays during trips D+ (C-)
02. Reasonable wait times for trains C- (C)
03. Adequate room on board at rush hour D (D)
04. Sense of security in stations C+ (C)
05. Sense of security on trains C (C)
06. Working elevators and escalators in stations C- (C-)
07. Signs in stations that help riders find their way C+ (C+)
08. Signs in subway cars that help riders find their way C (C)
09. Cleanliness of stations C (C-)
10. Cleanliness of subway cars C (C-)
11. Station announcements that are easy to hear C- (D+)
12. Station announcements that are informative C- (D+)
13. Train announcements that are easy to hear D+ (D+)
14. Train announcements that are informative D+ (D+)
15. Lack of graffiti in stations C+ (C+)
16. Lack of graffiti in subway cars C+ (C+)
17. Lack of scratchitti in subway cars C (C-)
18. Courtesy and helpfulness of station personnel C (C)
19. Comfortable temperature in subway cars C (C)
20. Ease of use of subway turnstiles C+ (C+)
21. Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines B- (B-)
Unlike with the 
, the overall grade for the 
matches what the data grades out at. The MTA, more specifically New York City Transit must be very disappointed with the results for the . They added extra service & implemented the line manager program yet the riders feel everything remained status quo.
Lets first look at the overall priorities which featured the same top 3 from last year albeit with the top 2 switching places. Either way it is not a good sign when you implemented what you felt were positive responses to the riders desires yet the top priorities remained the same. The real alarming part of all of this is the drop in grades for the top 2 priorities. The top priority as you can see was a “minimal delay in trips” & the grade went from a C- last year to a D+ this year. The second highest priority “Adequate room on board at rush hour” remained at a D. The third highest priority “Reasonable wait time for trains” went from a C in 2007 to a C- this year. This is a very disturbing trend for a line that actually received some changes.
As far as the rest of the top 10 goes, the news continues to be negative. It is not a good sign when elevator & escalator status jumps up 2 spots in the priority list. This is a sign of more malfunctioning of equipment that riders depend on daily.
Security inside the train cars is also another area which riders feel needs a huge improvement as it also rose 2 spots from last year. Security on station platforms jumping into the top 10 is not a good sign either. As I mentioned in my analysis of the L’s results, maybe more cops need to venture onto the line to keep an eye on things. At least the cleaning efforts have improved as that priority fell 2 places. However they can’t be satisfied with that & I hope they keep improving in the cleanliness department.
In terms of overall grades for each category, the poor performance of the top 3 priorities overshadows everything else. Of the 21 categories, only 6 showed an improvement & none were that spectacular. This is unacceptable considering the attention payed to the & after last year’s initial results for the respective lines. With the dire financial status of the MTA, who knows how they can really turn this around but riders clearly feel it must be.
xoxo Transit Blogger
You might enjoy reading these related entries:- B’s Results Showcase More Bogus Improvement
- The 1 Is Still Not #1
- The G Dashes To The Same Beat
- The N Shows A Slight Improvement
- The F Sings The C- Blues
The L Shows A Slight Improvement
Canarise-Rockaway Park bound L train leaving the Myrtle-Wyckoff Avenues station. Resized photo courtesy of Eye On Transit.
Well ladies & gentlemen, the first set of results are in from the 2008 Rider Report Card series. The first set of results are for the & lines. In this entry I will focus exclusively on the L which showed only a slight improvement from last year in terms of an overall grade. Last year the line finished with an overall grade of a C. This year, riders gave it a C+. You know the drill so lets get to the details!
I will start with part of the press release that the MTA just sent out via e-mail:
L Canarsie Line riders’ “C-Plus” grade for overall service was an improvement when compared with the “C” grade they gave the line in 2007. This year, 2,216 riders graded service, 2,118 by mail and 98 via the Internet; that’s compared with the 4,033 responses received in 2007. Riders graded “Minimal delays during trips” a “C” this year compared to “C-minus” in 2007. “Reasonable wait times for trains” improved from a “C” in 2007 to “C-plus” in 2008. “Cleanliness of stations” went from a “C-minus” to a “C-plus” in 2008, while “Cleanliness of subway cars” scored a “B-minus,” which was up from the “C-plus” grade it received in 2007. Canarsie line riders graded “Station announcements that are easy to hear” “C-plus” this time around, up from “C”, and “Station announcements that are informative” jumped from a “C-minus” last year to “C-plus” in 2008. However, “Adequate room on board at rush hour” remained unchanged with a “D” grade.
“I am pleased that Canarsie Line riders have noticed the effort put in by Line General Manager Greg Lombardi and his team to improve the service they receive,” said NYC Transit President Howard H. Roberts, Jr.
Riders were also asked to prioritize what improvements they’d like to see made to service. As was the case last year, the top three improvements in order are “Adequate room on board during rush hour,” Minimal delays during trips” and “Reasonable wait times for trains.”
Here are the top 10 priorities according to riders; Their 2007 priority rank will be in ( ):
-
01. Adequate room on board at rush hour (1)
02. Minimal delays during trips (2)
03. Reasonable wait times for trains (3)
04. Sense of security in stations (5)
05. Sense of security on trains (6)
06. Cleanliness of stations (4)
07. Comfortable temperature in subway cars (14)
08. Courtesy and helpfulness of station personnel (9)
09. Station announcements that are easy to hear (7)
10. Train announcements that are easy to hear (10)
Now here is the graded breakdown for all 21 categories; Their 2007 grade will be in ( ):
-
01. Minimal delays during trips C (C-)
02. Reasonable wait times for trains C+ (C)
03. Adequate room on board at rush hour D (D)
04. Sense of security in stations C+ (C+)
05. Sense of security on trains C+ (C+)
06. Working elevators and escalators in stations C (C-)
07. Signs in stations that help riders find their way B- (C+)
08. Signs in subway cars that help riders find their way B- (B-)
09. Cleanliness of stations C+ (C-)
10. Cleanliness of subway cars B- (C+)
11. Station announcements that are easy to hear C+ (C)
12. Station announcements that are informative C+ (C-)
13. Train announcements that are easy to hear C+ (C)
14. Train announcements that are informative C+ (C)
15. Lack of graffiti in stations B- (C+)
16. Lack of graffiti in subway cars B (B-)
17. Lack of scratchitti in subway cars B- (C+)
18. Courtesy and helpfulness of station personnel C+ (C)
19. Comfortable temperature in subway cars B- (B-)
20. Ease of use of subway turnstiles B- (B-)
21. Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines B- (B-)
I have to question how the line showed an improvement on the grade when you really look at the actual sentiment being shared in the grading. Lets first look at the priority grading. Compared to last year, the top 3 priorities are exactly the same including the actual order of them. Those 3 priorities are arguably the most important in terms of determining how service is on the line. When these priorities continue to be just that, I do not see how this warrants the line being improved overall which is what the grade indicates even if it is in the slightest manner.
When you further look at it, the sense of security in the train & on the platform waiting rose one spot each. While this was not a huge jump, it is cause for some concern if you ask me. Maybe more officers need to be deployed throughout the line to see what can be done to provide a safer environment.
New York City Transit can take some solace in knowing their cleanup efforts are making somewhat of a difference on the line since the priority dropped a few places. However can we assume that the huge jump from 14 to 7 is an alarming sign in terms of temperature comfort inside the cars itself. The fleet is running newer model cars & one would think that this would not be an issue. I wish riders were able to spell out why they feel uncomfortable temperature wise inside the car. Is it a seasonal or year round issue? If I were the agency, I would find a way to get answers to this question.
In terms of overall grades, the top 2 priorities showed only a slight improvement while the 3rd remained the same from last year. Overall 14 of the 21 categories showed improvement. Even with saying this I still question how the grade rose. I will always feel the top 3 priorities listed are the most important.
The results are clearly skewed for the line when certain categories like MetroCard machine availability & ease of use of subway turnstiles continue to give out free grade boosts. Also could somewhere share how car temperature was the 7th highest priority for riders while it graded out a B-? This makes absolutely no sense & begs to question how serious some took these report cards when filling them out.
So I will leave you with this question, did the line manager program & extra service really help the L so far?
xoxo Transit Blogger
You might enjoy reading these related entries:- The N Shows A Slight Improvement
- M Shows Slight Improvement Supposedly!
- B’s Results Showcase More Bogus Improvement
- The 5 Produces More Of The Same
- 4 Train: You’re Average!
MTA Looks To Close More Token Booths
If the MTA has its way, straphangers will see the closing of more token booths. Along with this would bring an end to the controversial “Station Agent” program. If you recall this program which was implemented 3 years ago saw the agency move approximately 600 agents from inside the booth to outside of it to help customers. These changes are part of the plan the MTA hopes to implement next month that is aimed to help close the huge deficit they face. New York Daily News reporter Pete Donohue has more in this report:
The MTA’s doomsday budget includes closing many subway token booths and eliminating the program that shifted some agents into stations to help riders, the Daily News has learned.
Dozens of booths would be shuttered if the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board approves the plan next month and implements it next year, a source familiar with the document said.
Also on the chopping block is the three-year-old Station Customer Assistant program that moved approximately 600 clerks out of their booths to help riders with MetroCard vending machines and directions, the source said.
Click here for the complete report.
Well the holidays might get very interesting for many of us. Take these potential changes & mix it in with the lowball offer for a raise & add in a very fiery Roger Toussaint & you might get a promise that gets broken. Time will only tell where this will lead & you better believe I will be all over it!
xoxo Transit Blogger
You might enjoy reading these related entries:- MTA Station Agent Update
- Station Agent Layoffs To Happen On Friday
- TWU Still Wants To Bring Back Token Booths
- MTA Goes Ahead With 250 Job Cuts
- Clerks Call In 400+ Emergencies A Day
MTA Looks To Lowball Transit Workers
Flash back to a week ago when I wrote about how TWU Local 100 President Roger Toussaint promised no repeat of the 2005 Transit Strike. The 3 day strike which crippled the tri-state region especially NYC is an event no one wants to relive. Even though the promise was publicly made, I wonder if Roger would go back on his word after the recent developments in talks to get a new contract. In what is obviously seen as a cost cutting measure, the MTA as part of their preliminary budget proposed a ridiculous 1.5% raise for workers. New York Daily News reporter Pete Donohue has more in this report:
The cash-strapped MTA plans to help balance its books by skimping on raises for its workers next year, financial plans show.
Agency bean counters predict the MTA can save $40 million by limiting 2009 raises for the Transit Workers Union to less than 1.5%.
“Their position is ridiculous, and it won’t happen,” TWU Local 100 President Roger Toussaint told the Daily News.
The MTA and the TWU have been in contract talks as the January expiration date for the current contract nears.
That pact was reached after the union staged a three-day walkout in December 2005.
Another strike “is not in the cards,” Toussaint said.
But, he insisted, neither is a 1.5% raise.
Bus and subway workers have been taking note of the string of multi-year contracts City Hall has reached with unions for police officers, firefighters, correction officers, sanitation workers and clerical staff. Each received annual raises of about 4%.
The MTA included a planned 1.5% raise in its preliminary 2009 budget that officials are now updating to include double-digit fare hikes and service cuts, citing a ballooning deficit.
Click here for the complete report.
I am sorry but such an offer is an insult to the many hard workers who help keep our region moving. As you might have noticed, I did not blog about the recent Eyewitness News news investigation involving transit workers. The reason I did not do so is because I saw right through their ulterior motives. Why were they sitting on that report & waited until just recently while the MTA & TWU Local 100 are negotiating, to reveal it? It was a clear attempt at trying to paint workers in a bad light. It is bad enough previous reports have riders thinking the majority of workers engage in such actions when that couldn’t be further from the truth!
Now back to this insulting offer. While I understand the MTA’s financial outlook is bleak, this does not give them carte blanche to undercut the very workers who help keep this city moving. The workers are just as important as any doctor, officer, teacher, etc…. yet they don’t deserve raises on par with their counterparts? I am sorry but that position is completely unacceptable & I am glad Roger said he wouldn’t be at the table discussing a new deal with “this type of garbage”. I couldn’t have said it better myself!
xoxo Transit Blogger
You might enjoy reading these related entries:- Roger Toussaint Promises No Repeat Of 2005 Transit Strike
- Many TWU Members Ineligible To Vote
- MTA & TWU Will Go To Arbitration
- Roger Toussaint Will Not Seek Re-Election
- Transit Workers Poised For Healthy Raises
Service Diversions 11-14
I have just updated the service diversions page with the latest scheduled diversions for this weekend & next week (and beyond in some cases). Don’t forget to check in for any changes to the page. I also suggest printing out a copy of the page to use while riding the system. Have a safe & wonderful weekend!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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