The family of a 26-year-old Chinese restaurant deliveryman killed by a MTA bus has spoken out about the tragedy. On Friday afternoon, Qi Ming Weng had apparently fallen off his electric bicycle riding on Second Avenue near 96th Street when a MTA express bus rolled over him, crushing his skull. The Post reports that Weng's relatives are blaming it on the Second Avenue subway construction that is taking up lanes. more ›

In a recent survey of the 225 buildings on 2nd Avenue between 125th Street and 63rd Street, a whopping 51 were found to be too fragile to withstand the 2nd Avenue Subway construction. MTA Capital Construction chief Michael Horodniceanu said most of the weak buildings were in the northern part of the subway route, and rather than force landlords to bring the buildings up to code, the MTA has just said, "fuck it" and is making the repairs themselves. We would gripe about fare hikes going to reckless MTA spending, but frankly, we're OK with anything that gets the 2nd Avenue Subway up and running (relatively) sooner rather than later. more ›

A frustrated Gothamist commenter wants to know why the new M line isn't stopping at 2nd Avenue, particularly because "that station is always packed and now there's going to be even LESS service. Brutal." So we asked NYC Transit about the quirk, and a spokesman tells us, "If you look at the new map, you'll see the Chrystie St cut the M is taking to meet up with the 6th Ave corridor at Broadway/Lafayette. There's no other way for it to diverge from the Broadway Line (J,M,Z) corridor to merge with the 6th Ave (B,D,F—and now M) Line corridor. That, in a roundabout way, is why the M can't stop @ 2nd Ave." And that's one to grow on. Still sucks for the East Village, but at least it's not inexplicably brutal. more ›

Last we heard, the Ratdemic had hit Brighton Beach... and now word is that an army of rodents is terrorizing the Upper East Side. In fact, the Wall Street Journal says they've infested every nook of the neighborhood, from stores to car engines. Some locals are blaming the 2nd Avenue subway project (previously blamed for sickness), and say once the sun sets the rats come out in waves. more ›

Since it was proposed in 1929, the long-awaited Second Avenue subway line has been knocked off track by two financial crashes and one world war. Now, the massive transit project is facing another formidable adversary: residents of an Upper East Side co-op who have filed suit over the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's controversial plan to construct above-ground ventilation structures, which some say will blight the neighborhood and lower property values. more ›

You've probably walked by the Marble Cemetery on 2nd Avenue before, but have you ever dared peek inside? The Scout recently took a closer look at the pretty commonly known, yet nearly hidden space (between 2nd and 3rd Streets), coming back with some amazing photos of what can be found once you get past the gate and down the narrow alleyway. more ›

If this was the week you were thinking about finally signing up for that Driver's Ed class in midtown, think again. The UN General Assembly will be causing a clogged-up rut all around the center of the city, starting tomorrow and lasting all the way through Thursday. The worst of it will be on 42nd Street and 57th Streets, closed from 5th Avenue all the way over to 1st and 2nd Aves, respectively. Second Avenue between 42nd and 57th will be shut down for traffic that aren't emergency vehicles as well. And if you think taking the FDR will help you avoid the mess, think again. It'll be closed in both directions intermittently from 63rd Street to the South Ferry. more ›

Thanks to Modern Mechanix we can now see what New York was supposed to look like by the year 2000, as seen from 1927. In that article "streets on five levels have been prophesied," but by 1931, two-level streets (pictured) seemed more realistic.

A definite step towards the relief of traffic congestion on much traveled city thoroughfares by the construction of streets under streets is soon to be taken by the city of New York. When this stupendous project has been brought to completion the metropolis will have an underground lane for fast through traffic, a tunnel for local and express trains, all built underneath the surface street, which will be left for local traffic. more ›