The Subway - sucking worse than ever?

I live/d off of the G line and took the L on my morning commute every day and I just don't think anything could ever top that. I can't even count the number of times I was 20-30 minutes late to work because the L train just didn't come, or it came so late that it was so packed that you waited through 5, 6 or even 7 trains to come by before squeezing on. Plus, the G train is a joke late night or on weekends. Last saturday at around 2pm (middle of the day!) i wanted 36 minutes for a G train and there were people standing there when I got to the platform (presuming I didn't just miss it.) Its regular to expect a 30-45 minute wait after 11pm (after living off the G for 2+ years I feel like I can cast these stones...)

I would pay extra to get better service, but I'm peeved that I'm paying extra for more construction reroutes, more weekend shuttle buses, more "discontinued service" and less trains. I can't imagine what would happen if a train like the 1/2/3 just terminated service at a station for no reason with no bus or alternative (which has happened to be on the G 4 times, stranding me in the middle of nowhere with no idea how to get home...)

That increase recently already put me over the edge. I don't care if the trains are packed, but when they seem to be scheduled by a 6 year old, I'm out. If I just miss an R train over here, I have to wait a minimum of 10 minutes for the next one. In the meanwhile, three or four almost empty D and N trains speed by on the express track.

And this is between 9-9:30am!!!! Not late at night.

It just seems counter-intuitive to not run enough trains where there is demand. Obviously, there are less R trains in Brooklyn because they have to leave space for the W in Manhattan. But I'm not the only one who sees the obvious gaps in service that are easily remedied with EXISTING lines. Run the V and W into Brooklyn some of the time or run the M and G more often. And nevermind how they could be running the G further along the F.

Anyway, until they can get their shit together, I'm happy riding a bike the 17 miles round trip every day. The saddest part is, it only takes me 10 minutes longer door to door. The few rainy days, I just use the Transit Checks my office gives me.

the pay-per-distance system sucks. it's confusing and inefficient in the station, since you may well have to go add money at the end of the ride. you think the turnstiles get jammed with people now?

why shouldn't people who get on first be more likely to get seats? they're riding farther. subway seat politics are tense enough without inviting people to claim entitlement based on cost.

anyway, the people who are really likely to get seats are those getting on at very popular stops, where there's lots of turnover. when i commute from franklin to GCT on the 4-5, leaving franklin at 6:15am leaving GCT at 6pm, i get a seat at franklin (2nd stop) about half the time and at GCT 3/4 or more of the time.

alafairnadia wrote: the entire time I've lived in nyc, except for a 1 month stint off the C train in harlem and a 2 month stint off the F in the LES, I've lived off the 1/2/3/9 line (when the 9 still existed). this is seriously one of the best lines ever. it may stop more often than others coming from brooklyn into manhattan but damn, it makes time. the fact that the B or Q are spaced 10 mins apart (so in any 10 minute period during rush hour you see one B and one Q train) is obnoxious. in any 5 minute period on the 2/3 line you generally see one of each. and if you switch to the 4/5 at nevins, like I do, you get a train within a minute or so. it's fabulous. way better service than the letter trains.

You aint kidding! I lived at Eastern Parkway/Washington a few years ago, and when I moved over to the R line it was the most painful thing. Yes, the 2/3 do come at good intervals. HOWEVER I must say that the 1 train suffers from the same problem as the R at rush hour. Have you ever waited for the 1 train at 50th street around 6pm? :shock:

sweet tea wrote: the pay-per-distance system sucks. it's confusing and inefficient in the station, since you may well have to go add money at the end of the ride. you think the turnstiles get jammed with people now?

heh. yes. this past july, that was me at the angel tube station with a maxed out oyster card trying to get out. pay-for-distance is so annoying it makes me want to shoot people.

alafairnadia wrote: [quote=sweet tea]the pay-per-distance system sucks. it's confusing and inefficient in the station, since you may well have to go add money at the end of the ride. you think the turnstiles get jammed with people now?

heh. yes. this past july, that was me at the angel tube station with a maxed out oyster card trying to get out. pay-for-distance is so annoying it makes me want to shoot people.

One of the beautiful things about the NYC system (and Mexico City) is the flat fare.
DC has the variable pay-by-distance and rush/non-rush system, and I can't stand it. Stopping for a card reader twice, and always wind up with odd money left on the card that I lose between visits. You can't just buy a $10 card and know you've got X number of trips -- it could be 7 rides, or 2 1/2 ...

WhyFi wrote: This doesn't have to do with the MTA, really, but I just thought that I'd share my experience with a somewhat... enjoyable - nay, entertaining subway nutter yesterday. From Union Square to 7th Ave (and presumably beyond) a man, sitting down, addressing no one specifically, acted as tour guide ("We're now passing under..." "This bridge, constructed in..." "and was renamed Empire Blvd in...") All interesting stuff, but probably a pain if he does this regularly and you run in to him regularly.

That is so much more fun than my ride yesterday. A bum passed out and fell on me. :x I just love the subway.

the answer is undoubtedly "yes."

how about the weekend reroute of the 4/5 and 2/3 in lower manhattan and brooklyn? it's as if the mta has decided to switch things up in the most impossible to understand manner they could think of.

last night, i was on 9th avenue and 14th street. i entered the 2/3 station at 14th street, and waited for 20 minutes before a 2 train came on the local track. after chambers street, the next stop was bowling green, where i was instructed to get off, and transfer to the uptown platform to wait for the 4 train to make local stops in brooklyn. i transfered to the platform, waited 20 minutes for a 5 train to show up (which was running uptown on the westside last night) and then waited another 20 minutes for the 4 train to take me to brooklyn. and the 4 train proceeded to stop in the tunnel between bowling green and borough hall twice, for five minutes each time.

god bless those of you who work on weekends and have to depend on this monstrosity. and god bless those of you who depend on the G and other unreliable lines.

i think all the 2s are new and all the 3s are old.

To the Q train harmonica "player" - stop. Just fucking stop. You don't know how to play and it's annoying.

rtraindweller wrote: While I would be willing to pay slightly more, even with the recent increase in month passes, there's no way in hell I'd pay $121. Simply because well, I can't afford to. That topped on to the $78 i pay each month for a NJ Transit bus pass (yep, I work in NJ, fun!) would put me over the edge and have me eating ramen everyday.

I pay $109/mo (now, was $99) for a NJ bus pass and $81/mo (now, was $76) for the MTA one. Which doesn't make a lot of sense because the MTA one is WAY better than the NJT stuff. But at the same time, that doesn't mean I want to pay more for the MTA one. Not to get all socialist here, but I think that NYC should be in the business of encouraging people to use mass transit via low fares and good service. I love mass transit, but at some point I'm going to say screw it and get a car if I end having to pay an excess in terms of time and money to use it.