Worst Commute of the Week

[Via Garibaldi 8]

2 hours ago, 78 via Stew Leonards said:

What they need to do with the BxM18 is speed it up in the nonstop section. Some of that takes way too long. Maybe use something other than 5th/Madison Avs north of 57th. Also maybe use the FDR Drive between 23rd St and City Hall

The issue isn't 5th or Madison. Madison now has two bus lanes for most of the congested portion and 5th will have two bus lanes as well from 61st to 34th. The congestion at night for the first two or three buses is Downtown in the pick-up portion, especially near the last few stops near Canal Street. Sometimes it takes those buses over an hour just to get through Manhattan. It's really worsened over the last few years, but the morning buses are generally ok.

[R68OnBroadway]

This is slightly more expected as it was near-late night, but still, it was ridiculous:

Back in May 2015 when I visited NYC, I had to get from a friend's house on the Upper East Side to where I was staying in Ridgewood. I left at about 10:30 with my father and took the second-to-last M15 SBS to Delancey Street. From there, I went to the subway station, and from her things went downhill quick.

We got to the station to find that due to construction,  service in Manhattan ended at 11 instead of 12. We sat on the platform for about 50 minutes waiting for the  to come, and after 30, a downtown one came, and by then the platform was spilling with Bushwick and Williamsburg hipsters, of which half were probably drunk and/or high. After we waited long enough, we gave and tried to get a cab only to get turned down by 2 cabs as we needed to get to Queens at night. 

[BM5 via Woodhaven]

With regards to the Sixth Avenue fiasco, here's my story:

I left my house at around 6:55 AM or so. I take the Q47, to the . So far, so good. However, once we get into Manhattan things started going downhill. 

After Lexington, the train ran slower, and was slightly held at 57 Street. Thought nothing, then we slowpoked to Rockefeller. 

We were held at 47-50 Streets, and then, we hear that there is train traffic ahead. They said this (both T/O and Conductor) at least 10 times, before saying that the train would run over the  after 42 Street. I looked at the service alerts, which mentioned a train with mechanical problems at Bday-Lafayette. We slowly go into 42nd, and we wait. Then we get to 34 Street, and wait again. There was an announcement that the train was going express to West 4th.

That never happened, because we didn't switch to the express track. Sure enough, we pull into 23 Street. There was an announcement that we were suppose to switch, but that never happened. We pull put of 23 Street, and then we sit for at least 15 minutes between 23rd and 14th. We pull into 14 Street, and sit there. Then we eventually leave to W 4 Street. And we stay there.

 

I see a on the opposite side all of a sudden go out of service (lights out). After a while, another train shows up on the express track, an  . Everyone from that flocks onto the I was on. I was debating whether to get on the other train. I immediately realized that there was a train at Bdwy-Laffayette ahead, so no way were we going to move. I hopped onto the empty . We made it to Bdwy Lafayette, and surely enough, there was an R160 on the local track, not in service. On the opposite track, a was in the station. We spent at least three minutes at the station because people would not let go of the doors. Mass confusion. 

 

As we proceed, packed and trains clustered the opposite express track, onto the Manhattan Bridge. In between those trains, there was a northbound . We get held up at DeKalb, but make it to Atlantic. I then got off, and went to the Manhattan-bound side, and surely enough, an was there. We stay there for a few minutes, and then we hear an announcement about a loss of power on Sixth Avenue. There was an announcement made that a Manhattan-bound train via Montague was being turned back to Brooklyn (IDK what train it was or for what reason). Eventually, I make it to Jay Street, at 9:20 AM. 

[Via Garibaldi 8]

3 minutes ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

With regards to the Sixth Avenue fiasco, here's my story:

I left my house at around 6:55 AM or so. I take the Q47, to the . So far, so good. However, once we get into Manhattan things started going downhill. 

After Lexington, the train ran slower, and was slightly held at 57 Street. Thought nothing, then we slowpoked to Rockefeller. 

We were held at 47-50 Streets, and then, we hear that there is train traffic ahead. They said this (both T/O and Conductor) at least 10 times, before saying that the train would run over the  after 42 Street. I looked at the service alerts, which mentioned a train with mechanical problems at Bday-Lafayette. We slowly go into 42nd, and we wait. Then we get to 34 Street, and wait again. There was an announcement that the train was going express to West 4th.

That never happened, because we didn't switch to the express track. Sure enough, we pull into 23 Street. There was an announcement that we were suppose to switch, but that never happened. We pull put of 23 Street, and then we sit for at least 15 minutes between 23rd and 14th. We pull into 14 Street, and sit there. Then we eventually leave to W 4 Street. And we stay there.

 

I see a on the opposite side all of a sudden go out of service (lights out). After a while, another train shows up on the express track, an . Everyone from that flocks onto the I was on. I was debating whether to get on the other train. I immediately realized that there was a train at Bdwy-Laffayette ahead, so no way were we going to move. I hopped onto the empty (F). We made it to Bdwy Lafayette, and surely enough, there was an R160 on the local track, not in service. On the opposite track, a was in the station. We spent at least three minutes at the station because people would not let go of the doors. Mass confusion. 

 

As we proceed, packed and trains cluster the express tracks, and onto the Manhattan Bridge. In between those trains, there was a northbound (F). We get held up at DeKalb, but make it to Atlantic. I then got off, and went to the Manhattan-bound side, and surely enough, an was there. We stay there for a few minutes, and then we hear an announcement about a loss of power on Sixth Avenue. There was an announcement made that a Manhattan-bound train via Montague was being turned back to Brooklyn (IDK what train it was or for what reason). Eventually, I make it to Jay Street, at 9:20 AM. 

So your commute was basically almost 2 1/2 hours?!??? That makes my commute of 90 minutes look very good in the express bus when there is traffic.

[BM5 via Woodhaven]

18 minutes ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

So your commute was basically almost 2 1/2 hours?!??? That makes my commute of 90 minutes look very good in the express bus when there is traffic.

Essentially, yes. Too bad all these events transpired while I was already on the train. I would have opted for the B57 instead (despite that the Q47 to the  is faster than the walk to the B57). 

[checkmatechamp13]

3 hours ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

Essentially, yes. Too bad all these events transpired while I was already on the train. I would have opted for the B57 instead (despite that the Q47 to the  is faster than the walk to the B57). 

To me, if a train is moving too slow, I usually try to get off at the first opportunity for a free transfer (or if I already have an unlimited, then the first opportunity in general). I remember once, I was on the  train (I didn't realize there were signal problems, so I did my normal local-express transfer at 96th), and we ended up crawling all the way down on the local track. At Times Square, I decided that even though we were back on the express track, I was just going to take the  to Atlantic and catch the IRT to Franklin, as opposed to dealing with the crowding and slow ride through Lower Manhattan. I ended up getting there about 20 minutes late (but since I texted the girl about the delay, she stayed a little longer at work and got there just a few minutes before I did).

I was debating getting off at 59th for the  but I figured just 2 more stops (since the train was crawling, but at least moving) to Times Square, and I'd have more options.

[CenSin]

And the worst commute of the week had to land on a Monday again. BMT services were extremely screwed this morning. I had planned to get to work 30~40 minutes early only to end up being 10 minutes early instead.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

1 hour ago, CenSin said:

And the worst commute of the week had to land on a Monday again. BMT services were extremely screwed this morning. I had planned to get to work 30~40 minutes early only to end up being 10 minutes early instead.

Aren't you lucky. I took a Super Express BxM1 this morning and traffic was horrendous. I am usually 30 minutes early which gives me enough time to relax at one of my café's, have an espresso and then relax some more in my office.  Well no such luck this morning. I arrived 10 minutes late. 

[Around the Horn]

Yeah I don't know what was going on this morning, but I saw extreme crowding at Bay Ridge Avenue (picture the platform being full of 5-7 rows of standees from end to end) and on  trains... I just managed to squeeze on an R160  and bailed at 59 Street ASAP. 

I also saw several  trains in Bay Ridge in both directions. I even managed to see a R160 Siemens ... Then when I was in midtown and got off the  at Herald Square, one of the new  trains came in on the local track.