The N Shows A Slight Improvement
Coney Island-Stillwell Ave. bound N entering 39th Ave. station; Resized photo courtesy of Eye On Transit.
According to 3,416 riders, the 
is average. The line finished with an overall C grade in the 2008 Rider Report Cards. This is an improvement from the C- it earned in the 2007 edition. Lets see how the riders felt by going to straight to the breakdown:
N Train Riders Top 10 Priorities; 2007 priority rank in ( ):
01. Reasonable wait times for trains ( 1 )
02. Minimal delays during trips ( 2 )
03. Adequate room on board at rush hour ( 3 )
04. Cleanliness of stations ( 4 )
05. Station announcements that are easy to hear ( 5 )
06. Sense of security in stations ( 7 )
07. Train announcements that are easy to hear ( 6 )
08. Sense of security in trains ( 9 )
09. Cleanliness of subway cars ( 10 )
10. Station announcements that are informative ( 8 )
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Complete N train riders priorities 2007 priority rank in ( ):
01. Reasonable wait times for trains ( 1 )
02. Minimal delays during trips ( 2 )
03. Adequate room on board at rush hour ( 3 )
04. Cleanliness of stations ( 4 )
05. Station announcements that are easy to hear ( 5 )
06. Sense of security in stations ( 7 )
07. Train announcements that are easy to hear ( 6 )
08. Sense of security in trains ( 9 )
09. Cleanliness of subway cars ( 10 )
10. Station announcements that are informative ( 8 )
11. Working elevators and escalators in stations ( 14 )
12. Courtesy and helpfulness of station personnel ( 12 )
13. Comfortable temperature in subway cars ( 11 )
14. Train announcements that are informative ( 13 )
15. Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines ( 16 )
16. Lack of graffiti in stations ( 17 )
17. Ease of use of subway turnstiles ( 19 )
18. Signs in stations that help riders find their way ( 18 )
19. Signs in subway cars that help riders find their way ( 20 )
20. Lack of scratchitti in subway cars ( 15 )
21. Lack of graffiti in subway cars ( 21 )
Click here for the breakdown of votes in this section.
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Now here is the graded breakdown for all 21 categories; 2007 grade in ( ):
01. Minimal delays during trips C- (D+)
02. Reasonable wait times for trains C- (D+)
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- (D+)
10. Cleanliness of subway cars C (C)
11. Station announcements that are easy to hear D+ (D+)
12. Station announcements that are informative C- (D+)
13. Train announcements that are easy to hear C (C-)
14. Train announcements that are informative C (C-)
15. Lack of graffiti in stations C (C)
16. Lack of graffiti in subway cars B- (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 B- (C+)
21. Availability of MetroCard Vending Machines B- (B-)
Click here for the breakdown of votes in this section.
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From where I sit, the grades seem pretty accurate along with the top priorities. The top 10 priorities remained the same for 2008 albeit in a slightly different order. The top 3 priorities could be flip flopped in any order as each would be justified in the #1 slot. If I had to choose, I would probably say priority #3 should be #1. However that is more of a nitpick than an outright criticism.
If any specific grade caught me off guard, it was for the train announcements being easy to hear. With an upgraded fleet, I expected the to score high in this category. I wonder if people really had a hard time hearing the announcements (doubtful) or they were too wrapped up in their own word (probable). I will take that grade with a grain of salt.
Overall the results speak for themselves. The responders were down by almost 3000 from 2007 which comes as no surprise to me. For months, I have questioned the overall marketing of these Rider Report Cards. If they do happen to come back for a 3rd go-around, I suggest a different approach to getting maximum response.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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