0

Revisiting Sliding Doors On Subway Platforms

Posted by
on December 17th, 2012 at 3:12 am

The nightmare of many subway commuters is somehow ending up on the tracks while a train is approaching. This scenario has been in the spotlight quite often of late whether it was the Queens man who was pushed in front of the Q train or the man who was found dead inside of a subway tunnel after being hit by a L train.

Many ideas have been spread about how these events could be avoided. One of the popular ones called for the installation of sliding glass doors on subway platforms. The idea is not new as the MTA at one time considered installing them in both the Second Avenue Subway & 7 line extension projects. However much to my pleasure, the ideas were scrapped.

Margaret Hartmann of NY Mag recently penned a piece about how the agency could prevent subway deaths if they only had the cash to install these devices. Let’s take a quick look at her thoughts:

On Tuesday, a man was found dead in a subway tunnel after being hit by an L train, kicking off another week of subway horrors. Earlier this month, a Queens father was pushed in front of the Q train, a young man jumped onto the L train tracks and was seriously injured, and a drunk homeless man was saved at Bowling Green station after stumbling onto the rails. People wind up on the subway tracks all the time — 146 people were hit by trains in 2011 and 47 were killed — but the recent incidents left New Yorkers pondering their worst subway fear even more than usual.

Slate offered some survival tips: In the absence of a good Samaritan who’ll hoist you onto the platform, you could stand between the two sets of tracks, crouch in the space under the platform, or lie down between the rails. The MTA’s advice was much less satisfying. A spokesman told Capital New York that they don’t have any recommendations for riders who find themselves on the tracks, since each station is constructed differently. The official policy: “Customers should stand well back from the edge of the platform.” Transit officials in other cities have managed to come up with strategies to prevent subway deaths that go beyond “don’t fall in,” but there are few that the perpetually cash-strapped MTA can afford.

The most effective solution by far is the installation of platform screen doors, which are common in European and Asian cities and are used in New York on the AirTrain. Aside from preventing people from falling or jumping onto the tracks, having a barrier between the platform and the tracks keeps stations cleaner, reduces fires caused by garbage on the tracks, and allows for air-conditioned platforms.

Four years ago, the MTA considered putting platform doors in the new 7 train extension and Second Avenue Subway, but the idea was ultimately scrapped. When it was reported in 2011 that the MTA was seeking proposals for installing the sliding glass doors in existing subway stations, there was a quick backlash. According to Transportation Nation, State Senator Diane Savino said in a letter to the MTA chairman that while 90 people fell on the subway tracks in 2009, it wasn’t worth installing an expensive system to protect .00005 percent of subway riders. “To even contemplate this nonsense is self-evidently a waste of time, effort, energy and yes — money; money the MTA does not have,” she said. It’s been estimated that installing the doors throughout the system could cost between $1 billion and $2 billion and take 25 years. When Joe Lhota was asked about the barriers in April, he said, “They’re quite expensive and given the 496 stations, I think that’s the number, it’d be quite prohibitive.”

Click here for the complete article.

As I opined in February 2011, I am not a fan of the agency installing these doors. One death resulting from ending on the tracks is one too many but at the same time, the costs are just not justified when compared to the actual amount of people who end up on the tracks each year. Plus the potential for malfunction is extremely large considering this is the MTA we are talking about.

The reality of the matter is that the chances of these being installed are slim to none. Hopefully people & more importantly elected officials will not use the recent incidents to push for their installation as the money would best be suited for more worthy projects.

xoxo Transit Blogger

You might enjoy reading these related entries:
Subway
0

Service Diversions 12-14-12

Posted by
on December 14th, 2012 at 3:14 am

Get an early start to your weekend plans as I have just updated the Service Diversions for the upcoming weekend, next week & beyond in some cases.

As always if I see anything interesting or noteworthy, I will tweet about it so follow @TransitBlogger which you can easily do by clicking the button in the sidebar.

Have a wonderful weekend!

xoxo Transit Blogger

You might enjoy reading these related entries:
Service Diversions
0

A Sneak Peak At Upcoming MTA Fare Hikes

Posted by
on December 11th, 2012 at 3:01 pm

With 2013 only a few weeks away, the time draws closer for the inevitable MTA fare hikes. For those who stay in touch with transit news, this comes as no surprise as we have known that 2013 would see increases across the board.

While official numbers have yet to be put out by the agency for a vote, potential details have been leaked. Some of the potential highlights (or lowlights according to most) include the cost of a 30-day Metrocard going up to $112 ($8 increase) & the base fare going up to $2.50 ($.25 increase). Here is more via Ted Mann of the Wall Street Journal:

Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Joseph Lhota is pressing for a slate of fare increases that would bump the cost of an unlimited monthly MetroCard to $112, but preserve a small discount for riders who pay per-ride.

Mr. Lhota has been calling MTA board members since last week about the agency’s choices for raising fare and toll revenue.

The MTA’s budget requires $450 million from increased fares and tolls in 2013, though the agency now plans to raise $382 million, thanks to better-than-anticipated revenues that prompted it to push the fare boost back until March.

According to people who have spoken with Mr. Lhota, some of the details of the new fare plan are close to final:

• A monthly unlimited ride MetroCard would go up to $112 from $104.

• A weekly unlimited ride card would rise by a dollar—to $30 from $29.

• The base fare for a subway and bus ride would rise to $2.50 from $2.25.

• And the bonus awarded to riders when they put cash on a pay-per-ride card would shrink to 5% from 7% of the amount added.

One board member said Mr. Lhota had seemed to agree with one move to protect low-income riders: lowering the cost at which the bonus kicks in to as little as $5.

Still undecided, one person familiar with the discussions said, is the question of how much to raise tolls on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge between Brooklyn and Staten Island. Holding down the increase on that crossing would require the MTA to make up the revenue elsewhere, possibly by raising tolls slightly more than anticipated on other bridges in the regional system.

Train fares on Metro-North and the Long Island Rail Road would also rise, by 8.2% to 9.3%, according to proposals first reviewed in October.

The proposal being solidified in private conversations by Mr. Lhota and board members is similar to the first option in a menu of choices initially shown to the MTA board in October. The board will vote on a final proposal Dec. 19.

Click here for the complete report.

The latest numbers from the fare hike come as no surprise to me considering what I had been reading & hearing over the last couple of months. I knew that the hikes were unavoidable & I feel most knowledgeable people knew the same. The only question would be how much more would we be paying?

I understand that times are tough economically but when it comes to bus & subway service, the costs are pretty decent considering the 24×7 access we have. Could the service use a lot of improvement? Yes, is the obvious answer on that. However many other parts of the country & world for that matter would love to have the same access we do.

My true beef with any sort of fare hikes focuses on the commuter railroads which have proven time & time again to be overpriced. For the amount & quality of service we get, the last thing we should be doing is paying more! The current prices are beyond ridiculous much less the near 10% increase that looms large in 2013.

We will know what the official increase numbers will be leading up to December 19th when the board puts them up for a vote. Stay tuned for more as it becomes available.

xoxo Transit Blogger

You might enjoy reading these related entries:
Fare Hike
0

Service Diversions 12-10-12

Posted by
on December 10th, 2012 at 6:31 am

I have just updated the Service Diversions by removing all the work that wrapped up by 5AM this morning.

As always if I see anything interesting or noteworthy, I will tweet about it so follow @TransitBlogger which you can easily do by clicking the button in the sidebar.

Have a wonderful week!

xoxo Transit Blogger

You might enjoy reading these related entries:
Service Diversions
0

LIRR To Run Full Rush Hour Service

Posted by
on December 10th, 2012 at 4:04 am

In a major sign that transportation issues from Hurricane Sandy are starting to look brighter, the MTA Long Island Rail Road will be running its normal AM & PM rush hour service throughout the system. Here is more via the official press release I received over the weekend:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that the MTA Long Island Rail Road will operate full morning and evening rush hour service beginning Monday, December 10, as a result of Amtrak restoring the signal system capacity in one of its two flood-damaged East River tunnels. This will mark the first full service rush hour for the LIRR since Sandy hit six weeks ago.

In replacing the severely damaged signal system in one of the tunnels, combined with an increase in speed on a loop track connecting the East River tunnels with the Sunnyside storage yard, Amtrak restored sufficient train capacity to allow for the increased levels of service during the LIRR’s rush hour. Amtrak is continuing their work to replace the damaged signal system in the other remaining tunnel to restore full train capacity to their East River tunnels. LIRR signal workers are assisting Amtrak in that effort by rewiring one of Amtrak’s five new signal cases for the tunnels. The second tunnel signal system is expected to be restored to full capacity in time for the Christmas holiday.

The LIRR’s off-peak service continues to operate on a regular schedule throughout the LIRR system. – even while one of Amtrak’s damaged tunnels is still at reduced capacity.

“Restoring full LIRR rush hour train service will provide relief to those customers that endured crowded conditions during peak periods due to the loss of tunnel capacity from the flooding effects of Superstorm Sandy,” Governor Cuomo said. “I would like to acknowledge the efforts of the Long Island Rail Road and Amtrak in restoring this crucial LIRR service.”

“I appreciate Amtrak’s efforts to expedite the tunnel work to restore full train capacity in the East River tunnels by the Christmas holidays. And, I would like to thank the men and woman of the LIRR who toiled round the clock to help bring back service,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Joseph Lhota.

“We have been working closely with Amtrak to complete the work and find creative solutions to restore full LIRR service as soon as possible. I appreciate the patience of our customers during this vital restoration work after the devastation of Superstorm Sandy,” said LIRR President Helena Williams.

In bringing back one of the two damaged tunnels to full service, Amtrak replaced all the signal system cases, including the parts and all the intricate wiring within the cases that were destroyed by the flood waters. Installing the new signal cases in the tunnel also required new signal control wires to be fitted in the tunnels. Amtrak’s cutover to the new signal system this past weekend, combined with the speed adjustment to the track connecting the East River tunnels with their Sunnyside storage yard allows all LIRR rush hour train service to be restored. (Reduced capacity remains in the one of Amtrak’s East River tunnels which decreases the LIRR’s operating flexibility during rush hours, in the event of a disruption.)

Amtrak is continuing their work to make permanent repairs to the signal system in the one remaining flood-damaged tunnel. Amtrak will be installing three new signal cases for the new permanent signal system. One of the signal cases was wired by LIRR signal personnel at the LIRR’s Garden City facility. This new signal equipment is expected to be installed and tested on the weekend of December 15-16, so that full train capacity in the East River tunnels can be restored by the Christmas holiday.

This is fantastic news for the hundreds of thousands who ride the LIRR daily. Now only if Gov. Cuomo could do something about it being overpriced! Oh well, one step at a time!

xoxo Transit Blogger

You might enjoy reading these related entries:
LIRR, Service Alerts