some good news --



Taking off again: New York air travel ascends to near pre-pandemic levels over midwinter break

By Kevin Duggan
Posted on March 6, 2022


Air travel in the New York City area took off around the February midwinter break, coming closest to 2019 levels since the pandemic began.

Passenger volumes were up to 98.3% of pre-pandemic levels for Feb. 18-24 compared to the same time three years ago at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s three largest airports.

Officials with the Transportation Security Administration counted more than 1.15 million travelers during that time period, compared to 1.17 million in the same timeframe in 2019.

LaGuardia Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport even served more travelers than pre-COVID, at 107.7% and 104.5% of 2019 levels respectively, while John F. Kennedy International Airport — the busiest of the three travel hubs – was still down at 89.3%.


more:
https://www.amny.com/news/new-york-a...ndemic-levels/


https://www.amny.com/wp-content/uplo...L-1200x800.jpg
Delta airplanes line up at JFK Airport on Dec. 26.
REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

infamous -- big yay for this lol!


That’s using your head! MTA takes out ‘head knocker’ beams from Penn Station

By Kevin Duggan
Posted on March 8, 2022

more:
https://www.amny.com/transit/mta-tak...-penn-station/

https://www.amny.com/wp-content/uplo...4-1200x800.jpg
Construction workers lift a piece of the 10-ton steel beams known as head knockers as MTA chief Janno Lieber (second from right) and Lieutenant Governor Brian Benjamin (right) watch from the side.
Photo by Kevin Duggan

what kind of start is that new omny capped fare off to?


Tappin’ away the fares: MTA says 76,000 riders hit ‘lucky 13’ fare cap with OMNY

By Kevin Duggan
Posted on March 16, 2022


In the first two weeks of the MTA’s so-called fare capping for OMNY, giving subway and bus passengers unlimited rides within a week after 12 taps, 76,000 people have unlocked the free trips, the agency’s chief said Wednesday.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled, that’s why we created the ‘lucky 13’ program to give our riders a break through OMNY,” MTA Chairperson and CEO Janno Lieber said at Grand Central Terminal on March 16.

That amounts to about 228,000 free rides that straphangers unlocked in the first 14 days after the Metropolitan Transportation Authority rolled out its fare promotion on Feb. 28.


more:
https://www.amny.com/transit/mta-log...y-13-fare-cap/


https://www.amny.com/wp-content/uplo...2-1024x681.jpg
A rider uses an OMNY payment system.
Photo by Mark Hallum

Seems like a very low percentage of riders. 13x a week is a lot.

omny is really still just rolling out and by far most riders still use metrocards, but otherwise i agree it seems too hard to hit the free rides within a week. :shrug:

congestion pricing in 2023:


News - We The Commuters
MTA expects congestion pricing to start at the end of 2023

by Jen Chung
Published March 17, 2022
117 Comments


....

Besides helping fund a large portion of the MTA's 2020-2024 capital program, the agency estimates that congestion pricing — also known as the "Central Business Tolling District" — would help avoid 17 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and save $100 million healthcare costs from reduced emissions.

Revenue from congestion pricing will go towards paying for the cost of the infrastructure and construction, and then the monies will go to New York City Transit, Long Island Rail Road, and Metro-North, for things like new signals and train cars, as well as accessibility.


more:
https://gothamist.com/news/mta-expec...he-end-of-2023

luckily, if you can call it that, delays affected a politician's commute, so maybe they can shake a stick about it upstate:


‘Hellish commute’: Power loss, signal troubles snarl F and G subways in Brooklyn

By Kevin Duggan
Posted on March 21, 2022

Brooklyn subway riders were left stranded during the Monday morning rush hour after the MTA suspended F and G trains due to signal troubles, blaming utility company Con Edison for a loss of power.

The outages began after a power dip at the Church Avenue station and signaling tower at 8:14 a.m. in Kensington, suspending both trains for more than an hour.


more:
https://www.amny.com/transit/subway-...rains-signals/

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards supports plan to use ferries to get people to LaGuardia Airport

By Kevin Rincon
CBS New York
March 21, 2022

"NEW YORK -- There could soon be a new way of getting to LaGuardia Airport.

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards is floating the idea of adding boat service, CBS2's Kevin Rincon reported Monday.

The trek to LaGuardia isn't easy, but Richards has a new suggestion.

"It's a ferry, ferry good plan," Richards said.

He's looking to utilize the waterways. He's backing a Port Authority proposal to have a ferry line extended from Manhattan to Queens..."

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news...ardia-airport/

^ That's fine. But even if it does happen it won't be able to replace a rail line. Whether that be the AirTrain or a dedicated subway line.

Most of the ferries are huge money pits. They burn piles of cash that should be invested elsewhere.

Subways are a huge money pit also but we subsidize them because there is value in providing mobility and offering transportation that is not dependent on automobiles. There were nearly 1.7B subway rides on New York's subways in 2019 (https://new.mta.info/agency/new-york...ridership-2019). 50% of MTA's operating budget is subsidized, even with 1.7 billion rides.

"As Perrotta and others pointed out, single-ride fares have historically never covered the entire cost of a trip for most transit agencies. (In New York City, fare revenue is 50 percent of the MTA’s operating budget)."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...proper-pricing

If ferries served more destinations, including LaGuardia, the subsidy per ride would decrease.

Per rider the ferry subsidy is more than 10 times the subway subsidy. Try again.

There was also 1.7 billion subway trips in 2019. If increased ferry service was available to more people, the subsidiary per ride would come down.

This has been the city's argument for years but it has not occurred and isn't likely to. Just another big pit to throw cash into without getting anything.

That's possibly true but not necessarily true. If there are changes that result in more ridership per trip, per vehicle distance traveled, or per operating hour, then it's likely the per rider subsidy would drop. But if the increase in service is roughly the same level as the increase in ridership then the per ride subsidy would likely stay the same. For instance, if the service doubled and the ridership doubled as a result, the subsidy would likely stay roughly the same, while if the service doubled and the ridership tripled, then per rider subsidy would go down. But if the service doubled and the ridership only rose by say 2/3, the subsidy per ride is likely to actually increase.

But even if the per rider subsidy did go down, that doesn't mean it would drop to anywhere near the per rider subsidy of other modes like bus or subway and if it didn't there needs to be other ways to justify the investment.

the interborough could be a mix of subway & commuter:


https://www.amny.com/transit/interbo...-subway-train/

Good news and just what i was hoping for. Essentially a B Division subway car spec built slightly more robust to facilitate mixed rail operations. Hopefully the FRA will accept a minor change primary in front end crash worthiness OR grant a waiver altogether.

about that lost 76th street subway station in ozone park:


SEARCHING FOR THE LOST 76TH STREET SUBWAY STATION, THE “ROSWELL” OF THE NYC SUBWAY [PHOTOS]


There may be no other subway station more contentious among subway buffs than the 76th Street subway station in Queens, an IND station on the A line near Ozone Park, Queens that the The New York Times calls the “Roswell” of the New York City subway system. Its existence is hotly debated but urban explorer Dark Cyanide told us he’s gotten closer than most and shared the photos of his exploration.


more:
https://untappedcities.com/2015/08/3...subway-photos/

Everything I've ever read about 76th St points to its existence. I think what is likely is that its not so much a station like we visualize when we think of ghost stations, but rather just a concrete box like other IND provisions and likely filled with dirt and sand like the reports of thr cinderblock wall suggest. The Pitkin Yard lead says it's there as does the line panel with the elusive black tape, so no doubt its there. Hopefully one day we see the INDSS planned extension and it gets put to use.