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Well, looks who is Mr. Helpful all of a sudden: MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow is opposed to service cuts the MTA was planning to consider in its budget. The service cuts, which were reported yesterday in the NY Times, would have been extensive, piling on many minutes of waiting time for subways and buses as service. Critics - including our readers - freaked out, and especially considering plans to increase the subway and bus fare by 5%. Yesterday Kalikow said:
“What I’m doing, officially, is letting New York City Transit know that the M.T.A. board, which runs New York City Transit, does not want a fare increase or service cuts and they need to find other things to do, if necessary. Those two things are not things we’re going to be interested in....So, not only does he opppose the service cuts, he doesn't want a fare hike next year? Next thing you know, he'll be giving transit workers what they want in a contract!Service cuts are something we do not like. We abhor them. We think they’re wrong. You don’t get the increase in the ridership we’ve had in the last few years by cutting service. You do by increasing service.
Kalikow told the Daily News, "I'm not afraid to raise fares when necessary, but right now it's not necessary." So, don't do the "No fare hike" dance yet. What we're finding amusing is that now MTA officials who were working on the budget are annoyed at Kalikow telling everyone he will block service cuts, because now he's remaking himself from zero to hero. And we don't get how this budget got passed around without Kalikow knowing something. Anyway, Transit Workers Union president Roger Toussaint said, "We are glad it took Chairman Kalikow only a couple of hours to see the light this time... We stand with the riders when we say that not another dollar should be cut from the service or safety concerns of passengers until the MTA trims the fat from its own bloated administrative staff -- they need to cut the suits, not the service."
And the Straphangers Campaign's Gene Russianoff tells the NY Times he's glad Kalikow will stop the cuts, but he adds, "All the big issues are now squarely in the lap of the new governor: fare hike, service cuts, more state aid, M.T.A. efficiencies." So, keep that in mind when you're voting in November: Know what the candidates' platforms about MTA service will be.
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What ARE the candidates' stances on this? Have they come out and said as much what they think?
Kalikow's probably just in a good mood since he received his one-of-a-kind, restyled by Pininfarina, Ferrari 612 Scaglietti (K), last month.
www.worldcarfans.com/news.cfm/country/ecf/newsID/2060810.007/pininfarina/ferrari-612-scaglietti-k-by-pininfarina
I'm usually not a conspiracy theorist, but doesn't this kind of smell like a setup? You can imagine the MTA thinking, "the public's opinion of us is in the dumper, so let's stage something that makes us look like we're responsive and we care."
On second thought, forget it: that would require a level of thought and planning the MTA doesn't seem to be capable of.
Perhaps Kalikow could do something public spirited like auction off one or two of his Ferraris and donate the proceeds to the MTA.
the mta is like the cia they do whatever the fuck they want and are accountable to no one.
Firing a few transit workers who do nothing would be a greta start on saving the MTA money.
typical right wing venom. firing a few workers will do nothing, no matter how lazy and incompetant they are. the problem is MANAGEMENT, as always. they should all be run out of town on a rail and replaced with new blood and a system that provides complete transparency and oversight of the way the mta is run.
Okay, I interpret his comments as meaning there will be service cuts and fare increases next year.
Looks like someone is trying to hold on to his job beyond January.
This was a non-event. The plan had been in most papers in July, and the MTA said it was taking a wait-and-see approach. Doesn't seem like Kalikow added anything to the discussion.