Toby

Fri, 11 Nov 2005 19:55:43 -0500

Now I am sort of glad I am sick this weekend and staying home. You should remember, a lot of the subway infrastructure is old, some of it a century old, and has suffered oodles of differed maintenance since then. Plus, the system runs 24/7, unlike most systems, so the TA can't do maintenance when the line is shut down for the night as is done elsewhere. Also, it is much better doing it now than having this closer to the holidays when more people are riding weekends.

David K.

Fri, 11 Nov 2005 14:53:47 -0500

The service changes on the Q line have been particularly hellish, since traveling from Manhattan to Brooklyn PRACTICALLY ANY DAY AFTER MIDNIGHT will have you running up and down stairs at Atlantic Ave./Pacific St., either to catch a shuttle bus or a train on another platform. Overall, I would say this adds an average 20 more minutes to my evening commute. Therefore the iPod must be fully charged before facing the vagaries of subway travel. The absolute worst wait occurred a ew Fridays ago at the Union Square station for a Brooklyn-bound Q at around 1:00 am. A rapidly growing crowd on the platform waited for precisely 45 minutes before we were told there was not Q service to Brooklyn. At that point, dozens raced up the stairs to the 4 or 5 platform. I made it home (Sheepshead Bay Rd. stop) at around 4:00, though it felt more like days had passed.

Gothamist: Get Ready to Wait

Toby

David K.