Trainmaster5

3 hours ago, VIP said:

Thats nice. But when does RCC adhere exactly-verbatim to the rule book. On paper it states exactly but any contact with the train it’s classified as a 12-9 incident. Carry on tough guy.

12-9 radio code has always meant “ man under “ according to the Rule books predating 1980. If a person is pushed into the side of the train, moving or not, by rule, it cannot be a 12-9. Perhaps there is a written update to this definition somewhere? Carry on.

2 hours ago, Jsunflyguy said:

This is no different than any other train to Barclays, Forest Hills or MSG. 

You beat me to the punch . As Mtatransit pointed out the only special thing that might happen is if the Belmont Stakes was to be a Triple Crown event. My opinion. Carry on.

17 minutes ago, Mtatransit said:

The MTA doesn't really want to serve Belmont that is why.

 

They would much prefer if everyone uses Elmont so they don't have to add any additional service.

That is my suspicion why every single weekend Main Line local and express train stops at UBS arena post ESA, when the station doesn't even serve the community that well. It is so if there is a event, they don;t have to do any additional work, or at most add like one train to/from Jamaica

You could be right about your suspicion but operationally it seems to make more sense to use the Elmont option compared to the time wasting racetrack option. Hockey games and concerts are less intrusive than the roundabout option, IMO. My take. Carry on.

On 11/29/2022 at 7:41 PM, trainfan22 said:

Am I the only one who is confused about the M3 ban from ESA? IIRC if there was no delays in regards to this project, M1s would have been servicing ESA which I would imagine has the same propulsion system as the M3. One reason I heard they banned M3s from ESA is they don't trust the cars to be able to climb an incline with a rush hour load. Then how would the M1s go there then? The original rendering has the M1 displayed.....

 

 

Also going into Nostrand Ave Eastbound coming from Atlantic Terminal has an steep incline and M3s climb it just fine as far as I know.

 

 

I think you’re somewhat mistaken about the amount of incline that the train traverses from Atlantic Terminal into Nostrand Avenue eastbound. I remember an elementary school teacher telling us to stand at the overpass at Bedford Avenue and look toward Nostrand Avenue and the station. The fact is that the street, Atlantic Avenue, dips downward as it approaches the intersection with Nostrand . The illusion is that the incline is steeper than it appears because the overpass at Bedford is at almost the same level as the platforms at the station. It’s more noticeable if you’re driving or walking from Bedford to the East. Something we were taught 65+ years ago when Grandma and her schoolteacher next door neighbor would walk us to the post office on Atlantic Avenue 😀. We were being taught something new daily even in the summer time. Carry on.

1 hour ago, 40MntVrn said:

I'd like to know this as well.

To put it in simple terms the access to the Arena and the track itself is easier for the railroad from Elmont Station compared with the routing to/from the racetrack to the mainline. With the exception of feed delivery to the racetrack it’s easier and more efficient railroad wise to use the mainline vs tying it up for the occasional move. My take on the situation. Carry on.

1 hour ago, Junknyc90 said:

Hey everyone I have a decision to make, I been in MaBSTOA approximately 5 months. They just called me for TA Exam 2611 yesterday and I’m trying to decide which is best when it comes to a few things.

can someone explain or post a link that better explains the differences between MaBSTOA and TA

 

*will I have to start over my probation?

*what boroughs covers each division

*benefit of civil services(TA)

 

 

thanks in advance to anyone that gives me feedback

You probably will get better answers if you post this in the Transit Employment section. Either way good luck 👍🏾 

23 hours ago, Benny Kanner said:

The elevated lines were demolished because they were too loud, while nowadays there is technology to avoid such issues. The trains are quieter & there are ingenious costruction methods constantly evolving the ways things are built. I believe that all elevated lines including additional new ones should be built. Is that possible? 

The elevated lines were demolished because of structural issues and the promise of subway replacements. No one back then wanted elevated trains to be replaced by the same things. Even when they thought about rail lines along Utica Avenue in Brooklyn, IRT or IND, the idea was to build subway, not elevated. The City of New York definitely didn’t want to build any more elevated lines and neither did the residents. Even when the LIRR replaced its existing Atlantic Avenue tracks east of Pennsylvania Avenue in Brooklyn that trackage was buried underground. The mantra was elevated demolition. Offhand the only new elevated structure I recall is the JFK tracks to the airport. Trackage built over a Federal road, and not blocking homeowner’s views. The City never advocated for it. I think that a rail line along the median of a highway is the only acceptable path for any elevated construction these days. My opinion. You’re free to disagree. Carry on.

10 hours ago, sam awan said:

I crossed  over from mta bus operator to OA bus operator 01/16/2022, my original hired date was in mta bus was 12/102018 so when i signed the papers to crossed over. I was told

That i will lose my seniority an will keep my years , well when i got to OA ,after few months later i had i problem ,they didn't honor my vacation nor my sick days.

I got in accident last week an my depot sent to to zerega  , when i got to zerega they asked me why are you here , i told them that i got in an accident, so that class didn't had my name on the list

The class  was pne for probationary operators well superior was called an he said you are not on probation, so they sent my back to my depot .

I went to GS office an asked him that why they have me has a probationary in their system. 

I know all of you who are reading this probably wondering that why don't you get help from union in ur depot lol, its because of union that i am here seeking help .

I found some helpful information 

That it was a UTS TIME KEEPING screwed me up which they will to 

Help me honor my vacation, i dont know about sick days ,i had 55 sick days in mta bus at college point depot. by the way best depot great people. 

Today i received a call from my union office at depot, that i will 2 week more vacation from last year, vacation for 2023 i will get 4 weeks an most important thing is that they want me to sign probationary papers. 

Please help me on this issue. 

Ps I'm not signing the probationary papers,  because i told my union representative that they are not doing their job an they are pissed off at me.

May be going to EEO a failing complaint ,  an BSC a than union at 195 Montague st downtown Brooklyn. 

   I think you’re better off posting this in the Transit Employment section of the forum. You would probably get a response from employees there. Good luck with your problem.

4 hours ago, zacster said:

No, I did not overlook the obvious.  I explicitly stated that QBL is different for the reasons you state above.  Did you read my post or just react to it?  "Also, unlike the other two lines, QBL is running in a mixed mode with trains only going into CBTC on that line but running in block mode elsewhere.  And on top of that it is the first line with interlined trains."

And actually the MTA IS saying more service is possible.  Just read the CBTC page on MTA.Info.  But then you need the money to do it.

 

I actually read the posts that I respond to. Re-read my post and you can see what I said about more service. In theory  means exactly that. Not one word guarantees that more service will run. Press releases from the agency mean Jack to someone my age who has actually worked for them for 30 years and been a rider for 70+ years. Go back and look at the dates most of the subway threads were created. Maybe you can see what most of them have in common. They reference more than a decade of proposals and compare them to today. We all know that the “ extra service “ argument was overridden by the loading guidelines caveat in the past and I don’t see that changing in the future. If you get a chance go back and read the PR releases since the agency was founded and compare them to today’s system. Perhaps then you’ll understand my point. I am well aware of what is happening on QBL. RTOman keeps us well informed and has done so since the beginning. No argument with you but some of us have a different perspective based on experience. Carry on.

I recently posted on the R211 thread about certain terminology and things and how my contemporaries and I were taught and I got a message that I was confusing some folks. I’m going to try to explain this in simple terms. What I called the “ Bible “ is the division timetable. I’ve been lucky enough to have a rabbi who taught me and others what that means in RTO. I’ve seen many people posting about being delayed at Nostrand Avenue or President Street for minutes almost daily. The reason why it happens is because that’s what the timetable calls for. My instructor went to Operations and Planning after the Trainmaster title was phased out. He wrote schedules, especially for the  line. He showed us how every pm rush was handled on the N/B Lex from Borough Hall to Grand Central. Between 4:45 and 5:25 pm x amount of trains were scheduled to head through the corridor. Back then it included  trains from Flatbush to Woodlawn and  trains to 241 st or Dyre. Trains every 90 seconds or 120 seconds. I left Utica at 5pm to WPR and my follower left 2 minutes later to Dyre. Between Kingston and Nostrand a  would cross ahead of me and we would form a caravan up to Grand Central. We were staged and slotted that way by the tower operator at the junction or later on Utica tower took that job. What I’m trying to point out is that the trains were not delayed even though some riders thought they were. S/B at Franklin Avenue was a similar situation. The ATD on duty would tell the tower operator at the junction what trains he had, local or express, their destinations, and either Utica or Flatbush would tell the tower operator what order they wanted the trains to be sent to the terminal. The new ATS system was being used when I retired so it didn’t really matter to me although I did point out many things that didn’t actually make sense to me. Things that a local supervisor could do to override the mistakes that the ATS computer made. I had a job that started at Dyre for years before and after ATS took over and at least twice a week the computer would line me up with an improper lineup when I got south of Franklin at the junction. When you see a train slow down or completely stop there’s usually a good reason for it.

Two other things I would point out to you rail fans who are interested in getting a job in RTO. When I was a new C/R school car taught all new students how to read the iron (switches) every day. Terminal Dispatchers taught us how to schedule trains when things got screwed up. It’s not that easy to run a “flex” on a line like the  which has numerous terminals and train crews based in different locations and boroughs. Hopefully I haven’t made things more confusing than before. Carry on. We’ve got some current employees on the boards who can correct me if I’m wrong.

10 hours ago, Vulturious said:

True, but it is the most accurate when it comes to the routing it's taking.

I’m glad you pointed that out. What other service is traveling along 6th Avenue to Queens Plaza ? That’s why it’s worded like that. 

4 hours ago, zacster said:

Once all these issues are completely ironed out the performance will be much better.  The and are both very reliable now.  Also, unlike the other two lines, QBL is running in a mixed mode with trains only going into CBTC on that line but running in block mode elsewhere.  And on top of that it is the first line with interlined trains.  When they do 6th and 8th Ave the E and F at least will be fully CBTC (with an exception for Jay to Church I believe.)

Did you overlook the obvious  and  situations concerning the reliability of those lines ? Those two lines were chosen as test beds for the CBTC technology because they were isolated from the rest of the system. It was a test of the new signal, period. A very knowledgeable person recently posted in a thread about CBTC something that we were taught long before CBTC was a thought. As long as a train is moving riders are satisfied. CBTC, with less signals than the older wayside system, gives the impression of speed but the running time between terminals remains basically unchanged. I know that many of my former colleagues stopped posting on the forums because they were reading things that were not true or being inaccurate. I’ve personally given up on postings about the junction between lines on the IRT in Brooklyn. My coworkers realize that the average rider or rail fan has absolutely no idea what the timetable, aka “ the Bible “, means or calls for and those that do have stopped being active . They also see the widespread misconception that CBTC means more service running. In theory that’s possible but the  never promised that. We were told that in our refresher courses even before the  CBTC test launched. We all hope that the rollout is successful in both divisions because the signal system is the most important component of RTO, not NTT, and is obsolete. BTW a train is only late after five minutes of the scheduled arrival time. My opinion. YMMV. Carry on 

1 hour ago, RandomRider0101 said:

Correct, The last MTA document stated November. If it gets pushed back again (don't wanna jinx it), we'll find out soon enough.

According to that same document, the first 10-car R211T should be arriving anytime between now & next week; basically any day now.

What did the last document say about the SAS ?  I've been reading the PR from the agency since it's founding and I take it all with a grain of salt. Color me cynical but experience is a good teacher.  My take.  Carry on 

4 hours ago, MHV9218 said:

You're definitely right that it's gotten out of hand down there, and it's really going to reduce ridership until the NYPD and TA can get things cleaned up underground. But I don't know if I would agree that it's worse "than ever." There were more than 15,000 transit felonies in 1981, about 14,000 in 1990. 2022 had 1,500 transit felonies as of October, meaning we can probably expect around 2,000 over the year. Unless there was a major shift in how certain felonies are classified that I'm not aware of – which is possible, I'm not a crime expert – I think we can safely say it's a lot safer than it used to be. 

I should have specified that I was focusing on accidents in particular. The criminal element is something else altogether. One thing my generation was TAUGHT was that you kept your back against a wall or a column.  Now with the explosion of EDPs throughout the city one must be extra vigilant wherever you are.  Just trying to clarify my point.  Carry on. 

12 minutes ago, texassubwayfan555 said:

Someone once said that Redbirds used to drag people to death all the time.

That someone either exaggerated or flat out lied. There’s more criminal activity on the system now resulting in injuries or death than ever. I’m not even including the suicidal ones that usually happen over the holidays between Thanksgiving and New Years. My experience with the system over 60 years as a rider of the system even before the Redbirds came on the scene. The difference is that the NTT usually prevents the T/O and the C/R from getting the indication to proceed. When those cars arrived on the  line the school kids would use their feet to delay a train at St. Lawrence for 3-5 minutes daily around 3 pm. Even with the older SMEE cars dragging was a rare occurrence. Like I said “ my experience and recollection “. Carry on.

1 hour ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

Well the police got on the car in front of me on the train somewhere between Prospect and Atlantic, and there's was no announcement made on the train...LOL.

 

Although the equipment nowadays is different I remember riding trains as a passenger and as an employee late nights and midnights. An NYPD officer would enter the  at 241st St and ride down to Times Square and disembark. Another officer would enter the train there and ride the train S/B to New Lots or later to Flatbush. There was never an announcement about police patrols onboard . What exactly is the purpose of this practice? Personally,  I think it it's a PR stunt. Why alert the potential perps ? What am I missing here ? Someone please enlighten me. Carry on.

40 minutes ago, LGA Link N Train said:

Transit Emoloyee’s are required to have a minimum of an 8 hour rest period between tours for safety reasons.

Meanwhile if it takes you 2 hours to get home and 2 hours to get back to work half of your rest period is gone. Let that sink in.

22 hours ago, RandomRider0101 said:

Yea, the concept was tested before; it just wasn't made the standard for whatever reason back then.

We had the Triplexes on the Brighton line, especially during the weekdays, until we started getting the R32 equipment on the line. BMT Standards on the local back then in my youth. I was told in school car way back early 80’s that single car consists were preferable. If you have a bad car on a Triplex or a NTT it means either 3,4, or 5 cars must be substituted but single car replacement is much easier to do. My teaching back then. Carry on.

I’m more interested in the R68/68A equipment at the moment. What are the latest plans for these cars ? I read a report on the  and the Grand Central Madison delays and the cost overruns incurred by the agency and thought about the situation in the subway system. New equipment is on the way but I don’t think that it’s a guarantee that the option orders will even be fully funded. Unless the  picks up the full tab for the option. The money people at the FTA seem ready to kick the agency to the curb while congressional investigations open. Does anyone think that the agency is going to tell the Feds that they are dumping equipment while asking for financial help for new car purchases ?  The decades long financial mismanagement is going to bite the  in the keister. Meanwhile the BMT isn’t fully CBTC compliant and probably won’t be, if ever. What about the SIR ? Too many questions about this situation. One thing I can say is that many people seem to be gobbling up the PR from the agency without looking at the history. 20+ years ago some people in the know told my coworkers that the  was going to blind the public with BS. Looks like they were right, IMO. Carry on.

On 10/9/2022 at 3:24 AM, Kamen Rider said:

To add what RTO man said.

 

do not guess. If you are not 110% sure, ask. There is no such thing as a stupid question. Even if it seems obvious, be sure about what you’re doing.

 

as I mentioned, in another thread on this site, I was partnered with another XX, who was out less than I had been. He made a critical mistake and now his job is on the line.

because he wasn’t sure and he did not take all the steps.

 

Personal example, when I am given a skip order on the radio, I repeat it back to the person on the other end to ensure I have it exactly right.

My partner did radio in for an answer to his question, but he didn’t double check and his route knowledge was poor, another thing everyone should really have down pat, which caused him to run a red signal.

 

seriously, know where you are going.

 

also, try to help each other out as best you can.

I was in the middle of my door operations the other day, tower calls our train and my partner did not answer them. They are calling multiple times and he does nothing, waiting for me to talk to them even though I’m in the middle of closing down. 
 

work with each other. There is a reason we call each other “partner”. It’s because we are. We’re a team, CR and TO. We need to be on the same page. 

That’s why I had the same C/R for 14 years and the previous one for 6 years. We were a team, a crew. Carry on. 

2 hours ago, subwaycommuter1983 said:

The MTA leadership does not know how to manage money. They run the subway, buses, LIRR, MNRR and the tolls from many of the bridges and tunnels in NYC. Therefore, they make millions of dollars in revenue in addition to the billions of dollars they got from the federal government. 

Yet, they are not being transparent with riders in regards to how they are spending the money, they are falling behind in all the projects including CBTC, purchasing new subway cars, SAS, etc and they have the nerve to complain that they are "broke" and looking for dumb excuses to raise the fares.

I have pointed out that they are piss poor money managers. The LIRR was a bankrupt commuter railroad after the Pennsylvania cut them loose. The state had to fund it so the Long Island residents who commuted weren’t stranded. The city took over the Rockaway Beach branch of the railroad so those people weren’t stranded. That’s why they connected that part to the subway system . The  is solely a manager for the component parts including the TBTA. When the state and the city started cutting back on their contributions the fares were increased to cover some of the costs of the operations, not all, and that’s why the bond holders, not the governments, control the MTA economic situation. The Federal government has a national pool which contributes to country wide transportation projects, not just the  but commuter systems across the country. This includes Amtrak. If the Congress changes the majority party then the folks with their hands out like the  can be cut off completely. It’s not mandated that this is a Federal responsibility. The Metropolitan area has never fully paid for it’s transit system since the Pennsylvania, NY Central, and the New Haven left the market. The ridership doesn’t pay the full costs even today so every procurement or service increase or new construction costs will be decided by the bond holders in the long run. I’ve walked around Livonia yard back in the mid eighties and  saw that  some cars were purchased by the Port Authority . Ditch the  and any replacement agency will still be subject to the same conditions. I have intentionally mixed capital costs and operating expenses together because it seems, to me at least, that some people have no idea how this whole system is funded. My opinion. Carry on.

Let me ask the last few posters if they know what the  really is ? I realize that these posts are in the subway forums but maybe we should take a step back and look at the structure of the agency and it’s reason for existing in the first place. LIRR and MNRR are also the core groups. NYCT and SIRT are later additions to the party as was the departed LIB. I think that many posters don’t realize that GC Madison aka ESA and the LIRR third track project are also funded by the agency. R211, M9 rail cars, proposed new subway cars, the NYC local and express bus system are also recipients of the money pot of  limited extra Federal funding . I agree that  is a piss poor money manager but subway car procurement is not the only thing that’s on the plate. Full CBTC rollout and the SAS are still on the agenda. Meanwhile all I have seen is subway cars mentioned. Open your eyes sometime. There are even forums on this site that can enlighten us if we open our eyes. My rant. Carry on.

29 minutes ago, darkstar8983 said:

I think the issue of the  at concourse is the inspection shop size. It barely covers the  (and did cover the  from 2001-2004, but that's when the trains both use the current  train R68s because of the shorter routes both running only north of 34 St).

 

The  train is assigned to Livonia but almost the whole fleet must be stored at 148 St because Livonia has thee maintenance shop, but only 13 tracks, most of which are assigned to hold the  and  trains between rush hours.

Let me ask a general question if I may ? It’s not directed to any one poster so please don’t be afraid to respond to it. You, correctly, point to the limitations of the existing subway yard capacity. I’ve seen the situation ignored or glossed over for more than a decade. I think Kareem Abdul Jabbar is correct about the educational system. Reading comprehension is fundamental. Perhaps the poster who criticized the Mosholu / Concourse dynamics should have figured out why some  trains are laid up in the Concourse yard. There are other sites that go into detail about the subway system in some detail. Same thing with the idea of fleet expansion. There’s not enough room in many places which is why trains are laid up on mainline tracks like Queens Blvd. Unless they run the extra new equipment 24/7 with little or no riders where are they going to store the cars ? Think about the extra mileage, maintenance, and employee salary this would entail. Is anyone advocating a return to the graffiti days ? I personally , have laid up IRT cars on the VC line from the bridge up to 231 st, on the  line at Gun Hill lower on the 3rd Avenue station platforms,  line from Pelham Parkway to Bronx Park East, and the  line from Pelham Parkway to south of Morris Park before the Unionport yard was built.  Before the NTT arrived.I’m guessing that the situation is similar in the B division. I think that fleet expansion isn’t well thought out by many people on the forums. I would love to see what Car Equipment has projected for the future. I’d also love to see what some posters have in mind for the future of the R68 class equipment. Just curious. My opinion. Carry on.

2 hours ago, CenSin said:

Looking at the RFW videos, it seems to me that there is quite more leeway for a southward extension than a northward extension. Immediately north of 145 Street is an S-curve. It could be severe enough for the northbound track that gap fillers would be required. Looking at the platform from the south, the junction doesn’t seem too close to the station.

You're looking at the picture correctly. Directly north of the visible section of the N/B platform (is/was) a diamond crossover switch that led directly to the Lenox Yard and barn. The barn was demolished so trains entered the yard and turned westward to enter the layup tracks. When the 148th St station was opened in 1968 track 1 became the S/B track, tracks 2 and 3 are now covered by the platform and track 4 is the N/B platform in the station. If the N/B platform at 145th St were extended southward it would be close to the 142ndSt junction and the connection with the s/b  tracks and the abandoned tower at the split. I'm sure there'd have to be some signal work at that location to avoid locking out trains in the under-river tunnel. Gotta remember that when this section was built they were only running 5 car trains. That's why the s/b platform at 145th Street was never extended to the south. My recollections. BTW that abandoned tower used to be visible to the M/M heading northbound on the  or  or folks camped out at the railfan window. It was just a small triangular cutout in the wall where the n/b  crossed the s/b  tracks. IIRC the setup never changed because of the signal blocks layout in that area. Hope I haven't confused anyone. Carry on.

1 minute ago, Kamen Rider said:

Check off another first for me…

 

my partner hit a signal. 

2 minutes ago, Kamen Rider said:

Check off another first for me…

 

my partner hit a signal. 

Consider that part of the learning experience. As long as you followed school car instructions you’ll be fine.