Re: Dispiriting Suburbs?
On Oct 19, 2006, at 9:11 AM, Carl Remick wrote:
I think NYC sucks too. I used to be a daily commuter into
Manhattan from Long Island but now come in only occasionally for
onsite freelance work. I’ve been in the city this week, for
example, and, for the first time in many years, took the subway to
work (because of a broken toe) instead of walking from Penn Sta. to
Rockefeller Center. I was amazed to find the subway — despite its
vaunted comeback — stinks (literally) worse than ever. It looks
like every dime of capital investment the NYCTA has put into its
operation has been invested in the (fitfully reliable) electronic
fare collection system. The stations and rolling stock are as
crappy as ever.
Carl, I’ve been taking the subway almost every day for 27 years and
you’re wrong. Back in the 1980s, breakdowns were a constant feature
of subway life - trains went out of service all the time, or were
stuck behind trains that were going out of service. Track fires were
common, too, and stations almost always smelled of smoke. Few cars
were air conditioned. Now, breakdowns are very rare, you never smell
smoke from track fires, and almost all cars are air-conditioned (and
if there’s any place in the world that needs a/c, it’s the NYC
subway). Quite a few stations have been refurbished, and look better
than ever. Ridership is at record levels, but the system accommodates
it pretty easily. Yeah, some stations stink of piss, but it’s no
worse than before. It’s really a wonderful way to get around town.
The MetroCard system works fine. Some out-of-towners have a problem
getting the thing to swipe correctly, and take a few tries to get it
right, but that’s rare. And now I can get a month of unlimited travel
for $76 - which brings my average cost per ride to about $1.10.
Doug