Tag Archives: mass transit

NEW YORK CITY: Mayor Bill De Blasio To Pitch Tax On Wealthy For Repairs To Crumbling Subway System

The New York Daily News reports: Mayor de Blasio will propose a tax on the rich to fund fixes to the problem-plagued subway system. The tax on wealthy New Yorkers, which requires approval in Albany, would generate nearly $800 million a year for the MTA — including cash for subway fixes and upgrades like new signals, subway cars, and track …

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Elon Musk Claims He Has “Verbal Govt Approval” To Build Hyperloop System From New York To Washington

CNBC reports: The beleaguered transit system in the Northeast may receive a boost from one of the most ambitious entrepreneurs in the world. Elon Musk tweeted Thursday that The Boring Company received “verbal” government approval to begin building an underground Hyperloop, saying it would take 29 minutes to go from New York to Washington, D.C. Musk did not say whether …

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NEW YORK CITY: Subway Train Derails In Harlem, 34 Reported Injuries, Hundreds Evacuate Through Tunnel

The New York Times reports: Two cars of a crowded subway train veered off the tracks Tuesday morning and crashed into a wall in northern Manhattan, injuring dozens of people and causing panic as riders evacuated and made their way through an underground tunnel to the nearest station. Joseph J. Lhota, the newly named leader of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, …

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NEW YORK CITY: Multiple Injuries At Penn Station After Police Action Triggers Mass Stampede [VIDEO]

The New York Daily News reports: Pandemonium erupted at Penn Station Friday after Amtrak police used a stun gun on an unruly man — sending scared riders scrambling for safety. The transit hub was unusually crowded at rush hour thanks to an NJ Transit train that stalled in a tunnel earlier, causing massive delays to kick off the holiday weekend. …

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ARGENTINA: Buenos Aires Becomes World’s First City To Name Subway Station After An LGBT Activist

The Bubble reports: Today marked the opening of the newly inaugurated Carlos Jaúregui subway station. Located on the corner of Avenida Santa Fe and Pueyrredón, the stop was previously referred to as the “Santa Fe” stop on the H line. Following a measure approved unanimously last year by the Buenos Aires City Legislature, the station was opened under its new …

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DC’s Metro To Cut Back Service Hours

The Hill reports: Late-night service on Washington’s Metrorail system will be reduced for at least two years starting next July. Metro’s Board of Directors approved the service cuts on Thursday, after members had wrestled over the hot-button issue for months. Under the proposal, Metro will close at 1 a.m. on weekends and 11:30 p.m. on weeknights. On Sundays, the subway …

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LOS ANGELES: Authorities Tighten Subway Security After Terror Alert From Foreign Government [VIDEO]

The Los Angeles Times reports: Los Angeles subway commuters were met by heavily armed deputies and bag searches Tuesday as authorities responded to a report of a possible terrorist attack on the Metro Red Line’s Universal City station. Increased security was visible across the Los Angeles County transit system as the FBI, LAPD and Sheriff’s Department dealt with what they …

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NEW YORK CITY: Proposed East River Tramway Gets New Support From Pols With Coming L Train Closure

Two years ago I reported that a business group had proposed a privately-operated $100M gondola system (much like existing the Roosevelt Island Tramway) which would connect Brooklyn and lower Manhattan. The proposal soon vanished into “neat idea but not gonna happen” history but now it has new life with the coming years-long closure of the L train forced by damage …

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PHILADELPHIA: Transit Strike Settled, Service Returning

In the nick of time. Philadelphia’s ABC affiliate reports: SEPTA and TWU Local 234 have announced a tentative agreement that ends the strike that has crippled transportation in greater Philadelphia for nearly a week. The announcement came at 5:30 a.m. Monday at the union’s headquarters in the Spring Garden section of Philadelphia. The deal involves a new five-year contract. Officials …

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BREAKING: Philadelphia Judge Rejects Injunction To End Transit Strike, Second Hearing Set For Monday

Philadelphia’s ABC affiliate reports: SEPTA’s request for a judge to file an injunction to end the strike by Transport Workers Union Local 234 was declined on Friday evening, but there will be another hearing on the issue Monday. In that hearing, SEPTA will argue for an injunction to force workers back on the job in time for Election Day. SEPTA …

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PHILADELPHIA: Transit Officials Ready Injunction To Force Workers To Suspend Strike On Election Day

The Associated Press reports: SEPTA has asked the union to temporarily suspend its walkout on Election Day if the strike is still underway. Union president Willie Brown has said the union will not honor that request. On Thursday, SEPTA officials said they have prepared paperwork requesting an injunction from Philadelphia Common Pleas court that would temporarily force workers back on …

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PHILADELPHIA: Democrats Grow Anxious As Transit Strike Talks Break Down, Commuters Face Gridlock

PlanPhilly reports: With Election Day less than a week away and Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 234 still on strike, Democrats hoping for big voter turnout in Philadelphia are growing increasingly nervous. “I’m worried,” a senior campaign staffer for Katie McGinty told PlanPhilly. McGinty currently holds a 5 point lead over incumbent Republican Sen. Pat Toomey, according to RealClearPolitics’ average …

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NYC Unveils Routes For Brooklyn-Queens Streetcars

The New York Times reports: As Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration moves forward on plans for a new streetcar line from Queens to Brooklyn, city officials on Tuesday unveiled the different routes they are considering for the project. The $2.5 billion waterfront streetcar would run on streets in some of New York City’s most popular and crowded neighborhoods along the …

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PHILADELPHIA: Transit Strike Imperils Voter Turnout

The New York Times reports: Transit workers here went on strike early Tuesday, halting bus, trolley and subway service, and forcing hundreds of thousands of people onto packed commuter trains and roads to get to work or school. The strike by about 4,700 workers of Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority shut down transit lines that normally provide nearly a million rides …

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NYC’s MTA Lays Out Coming L Train Pain [VIDEO]

New York City’s MTA has issued a fascinating and informative video which lays out the coming years-long closure of the L train, the busiest downtown link between Brooklyn and Manhattan. From the New York Times: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is asking riders of the L subway how they would like their nightmare: nasty, brutish and shortish, or somewhat less painful …

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DC Metro To Close For 24 Hours

Hundreds of thousands of federal workers will have to find another way to work tomorrow. The feds say this has nothing to do with terrorism. NBC News reports: The entire D.C. Metrorail system will be shut down Wednesday for an emergency investigation, two sources tell News4. Metro officials are expected to announce at 4 p.m. Tuesday that they need to …

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360° Tour Of NYC’s New Transit Hub [VIDEO]

Via Bloomberg: Downtown Manhattan got a new architectural landmark on Thursday. Was it worth it? Well, that’s a more complicated story. Architect Santiago Calatrava’s World Trade Center Transportation Hub opened with an afternoon ceremony to a trickle of commuters and a flood of controversy. (“Functionally vapid,” a “boondoggle” that “wows rather than elevates” have been some of the harsher critiques.) …

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De Blasio Pitches Streetcar Line For NYC Waterfront

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio today introduced a proposal for a $2.5B streetcar line that would run along 16 miles of the East River waterfront in Brooklyn and Queens. Via the New York Times: By winding along the East River, the streetcars would vastly expand transportation access to a bustling stretch of the city that has undergone rapid …

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Blizzard Wallops Gotham: Broadway Dark, Mass Transit Suspended, Record Snowfall Possible

New York City is being clobbered by the blizzard today, surprising the forecasters. The National Weather Service has increased its snowfall estimate to 24-30 inches for Manhattan, more than double the total forecast yesterday. All bridges and tunnels have been closed and the MTA has suspended above-ground service. Winds are gusting at 40-50mph in the other boroughs. Broadway will be …

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NEW YORK CITY: Manhattan-Brooklyn L Train Service Faces Years-Long Shutdown For Sandy Repairs

A few days ago we learned that the MTA is planning the complete closure of 30 subway stations for renovations that will (allegedly) take up to a full year. Today we get more much dire news about the L train, known to many here as the “hipster express” as its first Brooklyn stop is in Williamsburg. Via Gothamist: Like the …

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