A weekly roundup of good deeds, missteps, heroic feats and epic failures in tri-state transportation news.
Winners
125th Street bus riders — The commute is going to be a little bit easier next year for more than 30,000 people who ride buses on 125th Street each day now that Select Bus Service is coming to the corridor in April 2014. State Senator Adriano Espaillat, NYC Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito and Council Member-Elect Mark Levine were instrumental in bringing the once-dead project back to life.
Stamford cyclists — Cycling is becoming more and more mainstream in Stamford, as evidenced by candidates’ responses in last week’s mayoral debate, and Friday’s Bike Stamford ride that attracted dozens of participants (including both major party mayoral candidates).
Amtrak — A record 31.6 million passengers rode Amtrak in Fiscal Year 2013, which ended on September 30.
Losers
The Plaza hotel — The Plaza hotel in Manhattan is filing suit against Citibank and the City of New York in an attempt to have an “eyesore” Citi Bike station removed from Grand Army Plaza and 59th Street.
New Jersey motorists using Route 3 — Construction on the Route 3 bridge over the Passaic River, “which has created a nightmarish commute for drivers,” won’t be completed until after the Super Bowl.
The NYPD — Two off-duty officers have been charged in the last two weeks with traffic violations related to reckless and dangerous driving behavior. Meanwhile, the Department testified against a bill aimed at improving traffic safety across the City.
We who take the M60 bus to get to TIC were upset to hear that the MTA is considering eliminating the 120th St. & Broadway stop, apparently because of public outcry about the elimination of the LaSalle/Amsterdam which this stop replaced. I work at the “God Box,” i.e., The Interchurch Center at 61 Claremont Avenue. The building was dedicated on May 29, 1960 as part of a movement for greater unity among churches in the US. Currently, TIC is home to over 70 organizations, representing community development, educational initiatives and inter-cultural and religious exchange, still reflecting the spirit in which it was originally built. Those who work here come from all parts of the tri-state area and most use public transportation to get to work. As a part of the federally-funded public transportation system, the MTA’s mission is to serve the public. If the public needs stops at LaSalle/Amsterdam and 120th/Broadway, why can’t the M60 stop at both? None of the lines currently servicing this area meet the needs of all of the various educational, non-profit organizations, and residents in this part of the upper West Side, e.g., Columbia University, Barnard College, Union Theological Seminary, Manhattan School of Music, Riverside Church.
For those who work late at TIC, the stop provides extra security and shelter because it is opposite Columbia Univ. and adjacent to Barnard; it is convenient for the many TIC workers who travel to and from LaGuardia Airport, and the MTA does not seem to have made he various institutes of learning in the area a part of the initial discussions regarding the changes to the M60 bus.
Thank you for re-considering the elimination of the 120th & Broadway stop.