September 23, 2004
Mayor Bloomberg Stuck In The Subway
Gothamist must hand it to Mayor Bloomberg: Being the mayor means you have to find being stuck for 30-45 minutes in the subway enjoyable. He must be really learning something from his acting work on Law & Order. Traveling from City Hall, the Mayor was stuck in an uptown 4/5 or 6 train under Union Square on Tuesday, as he was on his way to an event in midtown. He told reporters that he found the experience rather pleasant: he got to read all his papers (realizing that he should have had more), wished another commuter happy birthday, and chatted with a former city employee. Gothamist would like to think we'd be that calm and cool when stuck in a subway, but we don't have constituents to woo...or do we? We tend to wish there was cellphone service in the subway at those moments.
The Mayor said he was stuck for 45 minutes, but NY City Transit told the NY Times it was actually 34 minutes: "It was not 45 minutes. He may have been on the subway for 45 minutes, but no, the incident did not last 45 minutes." Hee. And earlier in the day, the Mayor was also forced to run up and down the stairs at 59th Street and Lexington, because there was conflicting information about whether the express trains were running: "I suppose in the grand scheme of things, a phenomenally minor problem. An extra set of stairs is probably good for my heart." A phenomenally less minor problem could be the MTA's desire to do away with Metrocard discounts and raise fares again; the Mayor might support it, but would rather the MTA adjust their own internal budgets first.
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I'm all for mass transit, but maybe Bloomberg should ride a bike. He wouldn't be the first Mayor of a major city to do so.
Perhaps then he'd understand how dangerous it can be to ride a bike in this City. Who knows, maybe he'd even start arresting reckless car drivers instead of peaceful bicyclists.
I'm surprised they didn't whisk him out of there. There was an "ongoing police investigation" at 28th Street, and they weren't letting any trains in or out of it. Stuck on 125th, trying to get to Yankee stadium, without a constituency to impress, I found the experience rather unpleasant.
Thank GOD there's no cellphone service in the subway at times like that. The only thing worse than being stuck underground for an extended period is having all your fellow passengers chattering away at once. That'd be a nightmare.
i like that he rides the subway. what better way to understand the trials and tribulations of your average new yorker?
i like that he rides the subway. what better way to understand the trials and tribulations of your average new yorker?
i like that he rides the subway. what better way to understand the trials and tribulations of your average new yorker?
I also am impressed that he uses the subway. Thought it was a gimmick at first though. Our London Major - "Red Ken" - apparently rides our subway too, but last year his taxi bill was revealed and it was horrendous! Planethalder.
I like it too that he rides the subway. I hope I meet him sometime and have a chat. That would be so kool!