Gothamist:

megnut

Wed, 16 Jul 2003 14:37:08 -0500

I know this is frustrating, especially with the economy the way it is and all, but I have a hard time getting upset about it because the MTA is so damn good. After suffering for 4+ years riding San Francisco's MUNI (where there are no token booths at all and no attendants, so late at night homeless people jam up the turnstiles and block your way unless you pay them your fare, and there's no one even around to stop it) for $1 a ride, $2 for the MTA seems like a deal. I mean, last Saturday for $2 I went all the way from the West Village to Rockaway Park and spent a lovely day at the beach. You can't beat that price! And the frequency! Within five minutes five or six 1/9 or 2/3 trains pass through 14th St. station in the morning, in just one direction! So while it is crazy, and they shouldn't be lying, and someone should be looking out for consumers, I think we still have the best public transportation system on the planet. Even if it does cost $2/ride.

jake

Wed, 16 Jul 2003 14:23:09 -0500

i think we should start a petition- like the one that got blair hornstein kicked out of harvard!

Aaron

Wed, 16 Jul 2003 12:44:30 -0500

I'm sorry, but anyone want to help organize a "Clean Out the MTA" campaign? It's time some heads rolled, even if what they did was "legal." Vive l'underground revolution!

Jen

Wed, 16 Jul 2003 12:02:24 -0500

Whoa whoa whoa - the MTA, getting overhauled? Maybe I'm extremely cynical, but doesn't it seem like government agencies have to be mired in bureaucracy? I don't like everything Bloomberg's doing, but his deconstructionist style would work. Too bad he's too battered in the poles to take it on. NY is a totally different animal, but the other subway system I'm pretty familiar with, the MTR in Hong Kong, is run by a private agency and works well. Privatizing that MTA would be a crazy undertaking...maybe we need a private sector head to lead it, a la Joel Klein and the Department of Education.

Glenn

Wed, 16 Jul 2003 11:46:44 -0500

I'll trade an appeal of this verdict for a legally binding pledge by the MTA to actually improve services when its "alleged" financial woes reverse--because you can bet the fares aren't going to drop when the MTA is again swimming in cash, handing out kickbacks and taking part in its typical shady dealings.

jake

Wed, 16 Jul 2003 10:51:53 -0500

this is the biggest fucking farce in the world. if any private company pulled this bullshit on its shareholders, there would have been a shareholder revolt, and the entire management team would have been sacked. then, the management would probably also get harassed by the feds for fraud. what happens here? they lie to us, rip us off, and then skate through it all without a scratch. remember- these people work for us- why isn't there a movement asking the people in charge at the MTA to step down?