Kriston Lewis

The bulletin that was passed around stated that they could not run express in customer service between either 125-59 or Utica-Hoyt. Any other segment is fine.

3 hours ago, BreeddekalbL said:

I thought mets willets point was already ADA?

It is whenever the northbound side platform is open for customers - usually from 90 minutes prior to an event, to 90 minutes after it's conclusion. There is a ramp from that platform.

Otherwise, it is not.

38 minutes ago, 7-express said:

In the 90s and 00s when the Redbirds were on the 7, I remember them occasionally turning off the ceiling lights on the above ground segments.  Was there any particular reason this was done or was it more of a relic of the energy savings measures from the 70s/80s?

During summer months, it was policy to turn off interior car lights along outdoor segments during daylight hours. I’m certain it was for energy efficiency. I think this is still in place, but rarely seen in practice today. I recall a sign on the right of way on the Brighton Line that says “LIGHTS ON” near Newkirk Plaza. Some bus operators do the same as well.

6 hours ago, Wallyhorse said:

I wonder what happened that caused them not to wrap up work on the when they were supposed to.  

A test train struck newly installed equipment in the Steinway Tube.

8 hours ago, Chris89292 said:

Interesting GO for the  on November 18th, no  between 74th street Broadway and 34th street Hudson yards, haven’t seen this in years 

This is for ADA work at Queensboro Plaza. The  is also suspended between 57 St-7 Av and 39 Av-Beebe Av that same weekend. A split service will run between Stillwell Av and 96 St-2 Av every 15 minutes, and a shuttle train will run between 39 Av and Ditmars Blvd every 12 minutes. Shuttle buses will dump everyone at Queens Plaza for the  (days/evenings) and the  (diverted via Broadway to 34 St overnight). So much for that  to Forest Hills plan.

17 minutes ago, zacster said:

And what will they be doing between now and then with it?  It's already been tested, hasn't it?  Why wait another six months?

It’s the first new fleet in Staten Island in several decades. Until now, the cars have not run at all (or substantially) on SIRT trackage on their own power. Crews need to be trained, the shop employees need to learn the equipment and computers, see if the cab signaling works properly and work through a litany of other things before revenue service begins.

Davey literally said it during the presser: If you don’t find any problems during testing, you’re not paying attention. They absolutely need to take their time and get it right. 

A presser was held at Clifton Shops this afternoon showing off the R211S. During the Q&A, it was announced that the revenue test is scheduled to begin in March 2024.

Link to YouTube

This is actually the way it was done until the mid-2010s (though the express shuttle buses were non-stop between Utica-Jay). After the weekend base headway changes, they no longer had to suspend the  as often since there was less service running overall and less potential for congestion.

16 minutes ago, RandomRider0101 said:

Have all northbound trains stop at the 8 car marker, & all southbound trains stop at the 10 car marker. That way, the conductor will always be in the middle of the train (halfway point).

If there is another logistical complexity to this I'm unaware of, someone please let me know.

Franklin Av and 34 St have 8 car markers that align the last car with exits at the far south end of those platforms.

2 hours ago, foggymetro said:

It happened I guess. The 2nd train of R211As in service (4070-4079) finally ran in service on the Rockaway Park Shuttle. It was seen running today @6:58am. But it was signed up as a Shuttle to Far Rockaway but.. the shuttle doesn't go to Far Rockaway. Which just convinces me that this is just a rerouted A train of some sort.

That’s the 6:44 AM put in from Euclid Avenue to Mott Avenue, it is not a Rockaway Park Shuttle run.

It was the first run of the day for the pilot set, though I guess the second set is on that schedule today.

2 hours ago, Calvin said:

I don't think so, it's still sitting at Pitkin Yard. If the comments are turned off and is said to be back today, something is wrong. Like anchovies on a pizza pie. 

Pause the video at 1:05, the PACIS sign has an April date on it. The train isn't running, when it returns to revenue service I'm sure all of us will know about it.

On 5/5/2023 at 10:20 PM, AlgorithmOfTruth said:

I'm not sure if @Bill from Maspeth, @Trainmaster5, @RTOMan, or @mediccjh are online but I have a question regarding stop markers throughout the subway system. Isn't the "S" stop marker used to indicate the stopping position for all trains, regardless of the number of cars? If that's true, why do you see stations where the S plate is preceeded by 4-/6-/8-car stop markers? If I have the definition of the S plate wrong, this is 100% on me. If it's not, is there an explanation for this?

About 15 years ago, the R40s and R42s were assigned to the . There are no conductor controls in the A ends of those cars, compared to the R32s, so instead of adding new conductors boards and CCTV monitors, the TA decided to have all trains stop at the 10-car position. All the 10 car markers along Fulton Street and Eighth and Sixth Avenues were covered up with S stickers and the other car markers were spray painted black. After a couple of months of people holding doors, running after trains on platforms (and possibly some injuries), R32s returned to the  and the stickers and spray painted markers were mostly removed, but are still up in some places.

9 hours ago, VIP said:

Thats because crews pointed it out to the TA’s president and he saw it for himself and was appalled. So now trains will have to be cleaned regularly to maintain the integrity of “pleasant and appealing” reliable service…

There are some R68s out of Concourse that are way overdue for a visit to the car wash.

On 3/12/2023 at 4:46 PM, Lawrence St said:

Quite frankly him coming back would be highly beneficial, as Cuomo is no longer in office and won't cause any problems for him.

And considering the mess that LIRR is in right now, they need him.

In a world of pipe dreams, I’d love if Byford returned to the Transit Authority to finish the work he started and Davey gets bumped to the LIRR.

2 minutes ago, R32 3838 said:

just saw the video, it looks like regular thugs vs that one railfan.

Someone at 207th Street told me that a railfan who was known "in the community as a troublemaker" started the fight.

19 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

So is it out or did it get pulled out of service?

It's in service. I think maybe they said that to get the troublemakers off the train. Shortly after the NYPD sorted things out, the train re-entered service. The return trip was more peaceful and had more regular commuters. One of them called the train "european." A few people were confused by the flip up seats. 

27 minutes ago, Kamen Rider said:

I mean you want to see this community REALLY be toxic, put yourself in my shoes as LGBTQ+ and trying to stay a member.

One of the reasons why I do these events alone now. Though I wouldn't say no to the idea of a queer railfan group.

I’ll say this, during the height of the pandemic, I never stepped foot on the subway. I took the local or express bus everywhere whenever possible since it was safer at the time. I’m back on the subway now, but there are definitely people who will prefer a longer bus trip if it was perceived to be safer (and also free).

On 2/11/2023 at 7:05 PM, zacster said:

From neighbors, other riders.  The cars are unreliable, announcements can't be heard.  They are jerky. People do notice these things.  The R160s were modern and reliable, these just aren't.  The N, Q and W went from the newest cars in the system to the oldest.  You don't think people would notice?

You can add some crews to that. Before I moved, someone posted on the Ditmas Park Facebook group that a conductor told riders they were delayed because the R46s only have four doors per side and that all the new trains were sent to Queens. He also said they should to complain to the TA about the R160 reassignments.

2 minutes ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

Yes on Coney Island Avenue... Not the same as on Cortelyou Rd. There will be no more BM service running on Cortelyou. 

Yes, I know there’s no service on the road. I meant anyone who already walks to the Stratford Road stop can walk another block to the new stop at the corner on Coney Island Avenue.

1 minute ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

Yes, but not on Cortelyou Rd...

It’s definitely there. It’ll share the stop with the B68.

1 hour ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

None of the BM lines would use Cortelyou Rd. The BM4 would run via Avenue L to Coney Island Av.  

The BM4 would make a stop at Cortelyou Road and Coney Island Avenue, not far from the current stop.

28 minutes ago, BrooklynBus said:

The B49 should go straight up Ocean. Thought they wanted to simplify the routes so they make the B49 more indirect for this transferring to the B35 toward Sunset Park.

They totally ignored southwest Brooklyn. 

Agreed, it should have went straight to the park. And southwestern Brooklyn got shafted here.

Some armchair thoughts:

• B5/6 Limited expanded to Sundays: Took them long enough. Not sure why the 5 and 6 have different spans, that's going to get confusing.
• B15/43 in Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights: The justification of moving the northbound B15 to Kingston Avenue is to provide a better connection to the  at Kingston-Throop Avenues. But the existing route on Troy Avenue puts you about one block away from the Stuyvesant Avenue entrance of the accessible Utica Avenue station, where you have both local and express service. Moving the B43 southbound below Fulton Street takes it away from the Brooklyn Children's Museum.
• Overnight B25 truncation: I see that idea being shelved quickly, otherwise, I am happy that it's mostly left alone. Lots of older folks rely on the line since the Fulton Street Line isn't very accessible.
• B26 changes: I wanted the B26 to be re-routed to directly serve the Nostrand Avenue  station for years. Happy about that. The idea to turn it into a daytime limited on Fulton Street is also kind of interesting, the bus priority has be there for that idea to actually work out.
• B44/B49/B68: Ocean Avenue is very sleepy after a certain hour. I have serious doubts that those overnight buses will carry anyone. I don't like the idea of using the B68's resources for this. I also don't get the move of southbound service to Nostrand Avenue, having the B44 Local, B44 SBS, B49 and the subway is overkill. I have come to terms with the move of the B44 Local to Rogers Avenue.
• B55: Church Avenue finally gets its SBS to the Airport. That's also going to be a nightmare without bus priority.
• New B81: I have a strange suspicion that they created this line based on my MetroCard data, lol. I am happy about the return of local service on Coretlyou Road (and a connection between my old and new home), but I don't want it at the expense of the B103.
• Neutering of the B103: I hate it. The B103 was great, it was a point-to-point limited stop line that connected far-flung areas. If there was an example for an SBS conversion (with some tweaks), this was it. Also, why no overnight service?
• B71: This was a wasted opportunity to restore east-west service through Prospect Heights, Park Slope and Gowanus. There are no options between Ninth Street and Atlantic Avenue. What a shame.
• Express buses on Beverley Road: Beverley Road homeowners are going to fight to the death on this one. They raise hell whenever a truck manages to get onto the street, I can't imagine the reaction to a bunch of MCIs.
• Other express notes: I'm surprised that they didn't try to re-route the former Command expresses off the FDR to Sixth Avenue and Broadway. I am happy about the BM4 being re-routed to Coney Island Avenue which will maintain some Cortelyou Road service and restore part of the X29.

Anyone know what’s going on with the Macy’s direct entrance/exit at Hoyt Street-Fulton Mall on the  and ? There are two brand new green entrance globes on the Fulton Street facade of the Macy’s building with a boarded up opening in the wall.

7 hours ago, GojiMet86 said:

There's also a whole new Metro-North station on the Harlem Line.

This is a fantasy map.

1 hour ago, Future ENY OP said:

My guess is to what he is saying is create the BM6 route to service the Kensington customers.. In addition to that have the and provide coverage for Kensington.

Not quite. The BM6 (or 7) would serve Flatbush and Kensington alone. The 3 and 4 would go directly to Manhattan after Avenue J. A short turn service basically.

7 minutes ago, Future ENY OP said:

This... I agree. I'd go a little further and extend it to Quentin Road/Ocean Ave. (Possibly)

For the most part Avenue J and Ocean is perfect start for the BM6. 

So for the and after Avenue K and Ocean, they can go express straight to Manhattan. 

right after Avenue L, head straight to Manhattan. right after Flatbush/Foster- head into the city.

 

So here's what I was thinking, the  and  would make that left on Avenue J, stop in the current B6 stop and then operate non-stop to Manhattan via Avenue J, Coney Island Avenue and then the current Park Circle route. That makes sense to me as a good midway point for ridership and also as a transfer point. The new service would have enough length to have it's own ridership. That and you don't have buses running down streets that don't have them already (though I would love if they can get a waiver to use Ocean Parkway).

The  could make the left onto Foster Avenue and zip across to Coney Island Avenue. Off peak, everything stays as is. Ridership is lighter and you'd cannibalize the service at that point.