2/3 to 4/5 (train troubles)

sterlingguy

For the last three days I have had the same strange thing happen on the 2/3 train: the announcer comes on and states that due a switch problem the 4/5 won't be running up the east side. But just as my 2/3 is leaving Nevins (where the switch to the 4/5 is easiest) the 4/5 will actually pull up. As we roll on to Hoyt St. the announcer will come back on and say that the 4/5 is, in fact, running up the east side (no apology for his previous incorrect announcement). Three days, same thing every time.

Wassup? Are there any 2/3 to 4/5 train riders out there who can shed light on this mystery? Does the MTA not want us to switch at Nevins?

alafairnadia

Subject: Re: 2/3 to 4/5 (train troubles)

SterlingGuy wrote: For the last three days I have had the same strange thing happen on the 2/3 train: the announcer comes on and states that due a switch problem the 4/5 won't be running up the east side. But just as my 2/3 is leaving Nevins (where the switch to the 4/5 is easiest) the 4/5 will actually pull up. As we roll on to Hoyt St. the announcer will come back on and say that the 4/5 is, in fact, running up the east side (no apology for his previous incorrect announcement). Three days, same thing every time.

Wassup? Are there any 2/3 to 4/5 train riders out there who can shed light on this mystery? Does the MTA not want us to switch at Nevins?

I have no clue what's up with them. The last few times I've ridden the 2 from Manhattan, including last night, there's this crazy announcement obviously meant for the 4/5 trains and it confuses the shit out of everyone. They'll announce that you need to be in the 6th car (the conductor's car) to get to the elevator at Atlantic Avenue. If you're not in the 6th car, switch at Nevins Street to the 2/3 across the platform. Uh. Eh?

jamesondean

That announcement is for wheelchair riders. If you don't catch the beginning of that announcement, it'll definitely make you say "wha?"

As for the 4/5 weirdness, it's getting old. I'm not sure what's going on with the announcement, but it's a serious hindrance on the weekends when there's no 4/5 service up the east side to/from BKLN. I have a race in Central Park at 7 am this Sunday and am not looking forward to that freaky commute again. I'm betting that walking through the park from the west side will be the best move. Sigh.

sterlingguy

Subject: wheelchair

That's for people in wheelchairs, I believe. It gives them a station or two to prepare for where they have to be. But taking the 2/3 or 4/5 back into Brooklyn at night can be an adventure, especially on the weekends, when the 2/3 will skip over to the 4 track and skip Eastern Parkway.

By the way, what is your avatar doing, smoking a bowl? That is awesome.

carnivore

JamesonVandy wrote: That announcement is for wheelchair riders. If you don't catch the beginning of that announcement, it'll definitely make you say "wha?"

As for the 4/5 weirdness, it's getting old. I'm not sure what's going on with the announcement, but it's a serious hindrance on the weekends when there's no 4/5 service up the east side to/from BKLN. I have a race in Central Park at 7 am this Sunday and am not looking forward to that freaky commute again. I'm betting that walking through the park from the west side will be the best move. Sigh.

I'd recommend taking the Q to Union Square and switching for the IRT there (for the next few weekends when the 4/5 isn't going to the East Side from Bklyn).

alafairnadia

JamesonVandy wrote: That announcement is for wheelchair riders. If you don't catch the beginning of that announcement, it'll definitely make you say "wha?"

yeah, I understand that it's for wheelchair riders on the 4/5. but I was on the 2. see? when you're on the 2 and being told to switch to the 2/3 it's just bizarre. everyone looks around to make sure they're actually on the 2 and not the 4/5 ...

alafairnadia

Subject: Re: wheelchair

SterlingGuy wrote: By the way, what is your avatar doing, smoking a bowl? That is awesome.

nope -- that's actually me drinking bubble tea.

jamesondean

[quote=Carnivore

I'd recommend taking the Q to Union Square and switching for the IRT there (for the next few weekends when the 4/5 isn't going to the East Side from Bklyn).

Good idea, thank you. I'll check to see if the IRT is working from that point; it's been sketchy below Grand Central. There's also the question of the Q on weekends. But heck, if I'm going to be up at 5am anyway, getting up at 4:30 and budgeting another half hour won't kill me.

For anyone interested in watching 25,000 people exhaust themselves, you can watch Manhattan Half-Marathoners cross the finish line starting a little after eight am. Mortals like me will take another hour or two.

bluedove

JamesonVandy wrote: That announcement is for wheelchair riders.

Right, but that still doesn't explain why they would announce that you should switch to the 2/3 when you are ON the 2/3...unless I guess maybe they're saying you should get off the train and wait for the next one in order to move cars rather than moving between cars within the train (which I can't imagine doing in a wheelchair anyway--it's hard enough with a fully mobile set of hands and feet!)

sterlingguy

Now I get it -- and I thought the 4 train was bizarro. The mysteries only multiply on the "Twilight Zone" 2 train! And regarding the "bubble tea":

Right... tea... I love to "drink" my "bubble tea," especially on Washington.

alafairnadia

SterlingGuy wrote: And regarding the "bubble tea":

Right... tea... I love to "drink" my "bubble tea," especially on Washington.

There were like 10 guys hanging out on a stoop between Washington and Underhill on Prospect, closer to Washington, engaged in just that activity on Tuesday night. I didn't know bubble tea was so popular with the kids these days.

sterlingguy

Subject: The Mystery Continues...

So the mystery of the "2/3 - 4/5 switcheroo" continues... maybe I'll check straphangers and see if there is something up... and from now on, I will not trust the announcer and will get off at Nevins to grab my beloved 4/5.

anonymous

a little trick that for some reason is never published. When the 4/5 does not run on weekends, there is a J shuttle from prospect park on the Q line which runs on the Q to dekalb, stops at lawrence, Court and then follows the J line to Essex. You can switch at chambers to the 4/5/6.

carnivore

guest wrote: a little trick that for some reason is never published. When the 4/5 does not run on weekends, there is a J shuttle from prospect park on the Q line which runs on the Q to dekalb, stops at lawrence, Court and then follows the J line to Essex. You can switch at chambers to the 4/5/6.

The J isn't bad, but the Q to Union Square makes fewer stops (Atlantic, DeKalb, Canal, Union Sq). On the weekend, you're probably best off taking whichever comes first.

bluedove

guest wrote: a little trick that for some reason is never published. When the 4/5 does not run on weekends, there is a J shuttle from prospect park on the Q line which runs on the Q to dekalb, stops at lawrence, Court and then follows the J line to Essex. You can switch at chambers to the 4/5/6.

WHY do they never publish this? I had to go to Brooklyn Heights last weekend, and ended up walking from DeKalb because of some yellow-line nonsense. Then the J came to Court St. on my way back and since I've seen it stop at Prospect Park, I took it, but with one foot out the door at every station until I heard "Next stop..." because I didn't trust where it was going. Would it be so hard to publicize? :x

alafairnadia

Carnivore wrote: [quote=guest]a little trick that for some reason is never published. When the 4/5 does not run on weekends, there is a J shuttle from prospect park on the Q line which runs on the Q to dekalb, stops at lawrence, Court and then follows the J line to Essex. You can switch at chambers to the 4/5/6.

The J isn't bad, but the Q to Union Square makes fewer stops (Atlantic, DeKalb, Canal, Union Sq). On the weekend, you're probably best off taking whichever comes first.

it's a great way to get to the LES on the weekend, though, even if the J is the freakiest train ever. or maybe I mean the G. :?

carnivore

The G doesn't go to Manhattan.

Or did you mean that the G is the freakiest train ever? It's definitely one of the crappiest...

candicissima

alafairnadia wrote: it's a great way to get to the LES on the weekend, though, even if the J is the freakiest train ever. or maybe I mean the G. :?

That was always my best route. Anything beats having to switch trains at 5am when you're already tired...I actually got annoyed when the 4 started running normally again for those two days.

alafairnadia

Carnivore wrote: The G doesn't go to Manhattan.

Or did you mean that the G is the freakiest train ever? It's definitely one of the crappiest...

freakiest train ever. I've never actually been on the G. it seems vaguely useless. though I think I may take a G adventure on Saturday for a party in Williamsburg.

bluedove

alafairnadia wrote: [quote=Carnivore]The G doesn't go to Manhattan.

Or did you mean that the G is the freakiest train ever? It's definitely one of the crappiest...

freakiest train ever. I've never actually been on the G. it seems vaguely useless. though I think I may take a G adventure on Saturday for a party in Williamsburg.

Honestly, I wouldn't. The G suuuuuuuuucks. It comes like 20 minutes apart at best, and at night...forget it. To get to Williamsburg you are pretty much stuck with whatever you consider the lesser of two evils: car service, or Q to the L at Union Square. We usually split the difference and take the subway there and the car home when we're tired/drunk/loose-walleted.

alafairnadia

bluedove wrote: Honestly, I wouldn't. The G suuuuuuuuucks. It comes like 20 minutes apart at best, and at night...forget it. To get to Williamsburg you are pretty much stuck with whatever you consider the lesser of two evils: car service, or Q to the L at Union Square. We usually split the difference and take the subway there and the car home when we're tired/drunk/loose-walleted.

that's what I've always done. I will probably end up taking your advice, or being incredibly lazy and taking a car both ways, because, well, I'm incredibly lazy sometimes.

anonymous

why don't you take the classon ave bus to williamsburg? Doesn't take as long as the train, runs up classon and then to lorimer, then goes up nassau and stops in greenpoint. its pretty reliable, i have never taken the train the PH to Williamsburg after i started taking the bus.

alafairnadia

guestagain wrote: why don't you take the classon ave bus to williamsburg? Doesn't take as long as the train, runs up classon and then to lorimer, then goes up nassau and stops in greenpoint. its pretty reliable, i have never taken the train the PH to Williamsburg after i started taking the bus.

partly because I'm Williamsburg-retarded and would have no idea where to go from that point. but I'll check it out. thanks.

candicissima

Yeah, Guest. I was about to post that. Or my new fave Williamsburg route: the 41/45 to Smith Street and jumping on the B61, that magical bus that goes from Red Hook to Long Island City via the main drags of Williamsburg/Greenpoint.

alafairnadia

Candicissima wrote: Yeah, Guest. I was about to post that. Or my new fave Williamsburg route: the 41/45 to Smith Street and jumping on the B61, that magical bus that goes from Red Hook to Long Island City via the main drags of Williamsburg/Greenpoint.

hrm. does this take forever and ever and ever?

bluedove

guestagain wrote: why don't you take the classon ave bus to williamsburg? Doesn't take as long as the train, runs up classon and then to lorimer, then goes up nassau and stops in greenpoint. its pretty reliable, i have never taken the train the PH to Williamsburg after i started taking the bus.

I actually used to take this bus all the time to get to my friend's house in sort of southern Williamsburg, but if you don't know where you're going it's pretty stressful--the first few times I was always constantly wondering if I'd missed my stop or what, since I didn't know the names of the surrounding streets. And if you have good train karma, you can make it to Bedford stop via the train in less than half an hour. It's just annoying to go into Manhattan to get somewhere in the same borough you started from.

alafairnadia

bluedove wrote: [quote=guestagain]why don't you take the classon ave bus to williamsburg? Doesn't take as long as the train, runs up classon and then to lorimer, then goes up nassau and stops in greenpoint. its pretty reliable, i have never taken the train the PH to Williamsburg after i started taking the bus.

I actually used to take this bus all the time to get to my friend's house in sort of southern Williamsburg, but if you don't know where you're going it's pretty stressful--the first few times I was always constantly wondering if I'd missed my stop or what, since I didn't know the names of the surrounding streets. And if you have good train karma, you can make it to Bedford stop via the train in less than half an hour. It's just annoying to go into Manhattan to get somewhere in the same borough you started from.

good to know. I may skip the entire experience and, as said, just take a cab. I like to pretend I'm rich when I go to Williamsburg, anyway.

lucas

That J-train-on-the-Q/B-tracks thing always spooks me out. I'm sitting there on a quiet Saturday morning, loving that I'm not going to work and that the platform isn't crowded and that it's summer and that I ain't got shit to do... and up pulls this god-damned diarrhea-toned tunnel snake. It's like a ghost train; unexpected, unexplained. And of course it always dumps me in the bowels of some crap-ass station 30 minutes from where I want to be.

(Long live Mr. Green.)(Thanks EmilyM!)

bluedove

Lucas wrote: That J-train-on-the-Q/B-tracks thing always spooks me out. I'm sitting there on a quiet Saturday morning, loving that I'm not going to work and that the platform isn't crowded and that it's summer and that I ain't got shit to do... and up pulls this god-damned diarrhea-toned tunnel snake. It's like a ghost train; unexpected, unexplained. And of course it always dumps me in the bowels of some crap-ass station 30 minutes from where I want to be.

(Long live Mr. Green.)(Thanks EmilyM!)

Hahahaha...my thoughts exactly! (Our favorite potty euphemism: "I have to go take a ride on the J/M/Z")

sterlingguy

Subject: G Love

Maybe cuz I love the underdog, but I need stand up and declare my devotion to the G train. I play in a basketball game on Saturdays in Williamsburg and I realized taking the 2/3 to Atlantic and then hopping over to the G at Fulton is the fastest way to get there -- sometimes getting me from the Eastern Parkway 2/3 stop to the Metropolitan G station in less than 30 minutes! Weird but true. And I have family in Queens, so unless they are going to build some kind of antigravity escalator that will take you there in less than an hour, the G is the only train I can love: Je t'aime!