east village idiot

The MTA: Going Whatever Way It Damn Well Feels Like

July 7, 2008 – 9:54 am

The MTA has been pretty good about posting service changes in their stations lately. But just because they’re good at putting up the signs doesn’t mean they’re right.

First, as I took the N train back to Manhattan after brunch on Saturday afternoon, I saw these neatly-printed handouts at the token booth of the Pacific Street stop.

Great. This doesn’t affect my trip, of course, because I’m taking a Manhattan-bound N train back. That should go over the Manhattan Bridge and from there it’s a quick ride to Union Square.

Except it didn’t do that at all. With no announcement from the train crew whatsoever, the N went through the tunnel towards Lower Manhattan, and inched its way up to Canal Street. So, Manhattan-bound N trains were also running on the R. But it didn’t say that on the service change they spent loads of money printing out (it also never bothered to mention it on the posters in the stations, or on the MTA’s web page about weekend service changes).

There was another service change this weekend that was posted along the same line.

At the right, a service notice at 14th Street-Union Square announcing that the Q train was running on the local track from 57th Street to Canal Street. At left, a Q train pulling away from Union Square on the express track. At bottom right, someone’s editorial comment (surprisingly, not mine): WRONG INFORMATION, VERY IMPORTANT.

Any bozo with a pen could do a better job at keeping those confused holiday weekend tourists informed than the MTA was. Of course, any bozo with a pen could do a better job running the MTA.