To that end, the MTA has issued a press release previewing November. Although the posters will go up in stations as scheduled on Thursday, this month’s service advisories are now online. Straphangers can find one less thing to complain about concerning the MTA.

With that said, on to the service advisories. Don’t forget to check out our map from Subway Weekender that shows just how the subway changes impact travel. Download this week’s map right here or by clicking on the image below. Remember: These weekend service changes come to me from the MTA and are subject to change without notice. Check signs in your local station and listen for on-board announcements for up-to-the minute changes. The specific alerts follow.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, uptown 1/2 trains skip 50th, 59th, 66th, 79th and 86th Streets due to flood mitigation work at 72nd Street, station rehabs at 96th Street and 59th Street-Columbus Circle and tunnel lighting rehabilitation.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, downtown 4 trains run local from 125th Street to Brooklyn Bridge due to Broadway-Lafayette Street to Bleecker Street transfer construction.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, uptown 4 trains run express from Brooklyn Bridge to 14th Street, then local to 125th Street due to Broadway-Lafayette Street to Bleecker Street transfer construction.

From 6:30 a.m. to midnight Saturday, November 7 and Sunday, November 8, there are no 5 trains between Bowling Green and Grand Central-42nd Street due to Broadway-Lafayette Street to Bleecker Street transfer construction. Customers should take the 4 instead.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, uptown 6 trains run express from Brooklyn Bridge to 14th Street due to Broadway-Lafayette Street to Bleecker Street transfer construction.

From 4 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 10 p.m. Sunday, November 8, Manhattan-bound 7 trains skip 69th, 52nd, 46th, 40th, and 33rd Streets due to track panel installation.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, downtown A trains run local from 168th Street to Jay Street due to the Jay Street station rehabilitation and the construction of an underground connector to Lawrence Street.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, uptown A trains run local from Jay Street to 125th Street, then express to 168th Street due to the Jay Street station rehabilitation and the construction of an underground connector to Lawrence Street.

From 11:30 p.m. Friday, November 6 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, free shuttle buses replace A trains between Jay Street and Utica Avenue due to the Jay Street station rehabilitation and the construction of an underground connector to Lawrence Street.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, A trains run local between Utica Avenue and Euclid Avenue due to the Jay Street station rehabilitation and the construction of an underground connector to Lawrence Street.

At all times until January 18, 2010, Far Rockaway-bound A platforms at Beach 67th, Beach 44th, and Beach 25th Streets are closed for rehabilitation.

At all times until December 21, 2009, Manhattan-bound AS platforms at Beach 90th and Beach 105th Streets are closed for rehabilitation. Free shuttle buses replace S trains between Rockaway Park and Beach 60th Street.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, there is no C train service due to the Jay Street station rehabilitation and the construction of an underground connector to Lawrence Street. The A train and free shuttle buses provide alternate service.

From 5 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, Bronx-bound D trains run local from 125th Street to 145th Street due to a track chip out.

From 11:30 p.m. Friday, November 6 to 12 noon Saturday, November 7, free shuttle buses replace D trains between Norwood 205th Street and Bedford Park Blvd. due to conduit and fiber optic cable installation between Bedford Park Boulevard and Norwood 205th Street.

From 5 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 10 p.m. Sunday, November 8, Manhattan-bound D trains run on the N line from Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue to 36th Street due to track panel installation north of 62nd Street.

From 12:01 a.m. to 12 noon Sunday, November 8, Manhattan-bound E trains run express from Roosevelt Avenue to Queens Plaza due to electrical work along the track.

At all times until Saturday, November 7, 2009, Queens-bound E/G/R trains skip Northern Boulevard due to closure of the northern-side street stairway.

From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, November 7 to 12 noon Sunday, November 8, Manhattan-bound F trains run on the E line from Roosevelt Avenue to 5th Avenue-53rd Street; trains resume on the F route at 47th-50th Sts. due to station and rail maintenance.

From 8:30 p.m. Friday, November 6 to 5 a.m. Monday, November 9, there are no G trains between Forest Hills-71st Avenue and Court Square due to replacement of a broken pipe in the track bed. Customers should take the E or R instead.

From 1:15 a.m. to 5 a.m. Saturday, November 7, J trains run in two sections due to track cleaning:

• Between Jamaica Center and Essex Street and
• Between Essex Street and Chambers Street

From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, November 7 and Sunday, November 8, Manhattan-bound N trains skip 30th Avenue, Broadway, 36th Avenue and 39th Avenue (in Queens) due to rail replacement.

From 6:30 a.m. to 12 noon, Sunday, November 8, Manhattan-bound R trains run express from Roosevelt Avenue to Queens Plaza due to electrical work along the track.

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Now that Bloomberg has secured his third term, though, he is humming a slightly different tune. The Mayor says he won’t increase city contributions to the MTA and seemed to dodge questions about his mass transit plan. How utterly disappointing and yet oh-so-predictable. Michael Grynbaum of The Times has more:

On Thursday, however, in his first public appearance with Jay H. Walder, the authority’s new chairman, Mr. Bloomberg’s fiery words had been replaced by something less aggressive: a plea for patience. Asked about a much-discussed proposal to make crosstown buses available to riders at no cost — a pledge repeated in bold print on thousands of his campaign mailers and pamphlets — the mayor appeared to retreat from his plan. “We have not talked about that one yet,” he began, noting that new technology, like computerized fare cards that could speed up boarding times, “might be able to accomplish part of that.”

“I thought it was a good idea, although, the real issue there, there’s two things we’re trying to do: one is to make it easier for people to go back and forth, but two is also to stop the delays from getting on and off the buses,” the mayor said. “That’s another one of these things down the road. I think there’s a whole bunch of things that we laid out that we can explore together.”

The mayor then quickly moved on to the next question.

An aide to the mayor said later that it would be impossible for Mr. Bloomberg to announce progress on every initiative so soon after the election. “We still believe in the proposal,” the aide said. “Are we guaranteeing everything is going to happen? No, we don’t control the M.T.A.”

Indeed, Mr. Bloomberg controls only 4 of 14 votes on the authority’s board. And he said on Thursday that he did not plan to increase the city’s contribution to the authority’s operating budget.

As Grynbaum notes, the City and the MTA announce not a partnership but the opportunity to explore a potential partnership. The Mayor and Walder announced a plan to study 311 integration with the MTA. The press release hedged its bets, though, in stating that the two parties “agreed to work together to see if the 311 could be the right fit for the MTA’s customer service needs.”

“We pledged to build a stronger relationship between the City and the MTA, so we can build the modern and efficient mass transit system New York City deserves,” Bloomberg said. “Today, we take the first step by agreeing to work toward utilizing the power of 311 to make life a little easier for the 8.5 million people who take mass transit every day in the city. If we can have one number to call to receive subway and bus information, report problems or get directions, it would bring the same great service that New Yorkers have gotten from City government since 2003 to the MTA.”

Agreeing to explore whether or not two sides can work together is a far cry from delivering actual results. As Bloomberg heads into a third term with a whole slew of campaign promises in hand, he should deliver. He owes it to us, and he owes it to the MTA.

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Meanwhile, closer to home, MTA CEO and Chairman Jay Walder has not ruled out a 2010 fare hike if Gov. David Paterson’s threats to slash over $100 million in state contributions to the MTA come to pass. Paterson recently announced that every state agency would see reduced contributions from the state as New York looks to shore up a massive budget hole. To balance the MTA’s ledger, then, Walder may have to examine the fares. “We don’t know yet what the circumstances will be and I don’t want to be in the range of conjecturing what’s going to happen,” he said to The Post. “Clearly, there is a discussion taking place in Albany about what they need to do in terms of the deficit-reduction plan that will take place. And we will deal with all the circumstances as they come up.”

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

As has become an annual tradition, the Straphangers doled out awards for the slowest bus and the least reliable bus. This year, the group added an award for the bus with the longest scheduled run time end-to-end. This award could be bolstered with a distance comparison amongst bus lines, but it certainly underscores the absurdities of taking buses in New York City along certain routes.

The slowest bus this year is again a crosstown bus in Manhattan. The M42 was clocked at average speeds of 3.7 mph at noon on a weekday as it ventured across the busy thoroughfare. “The M42,” the Straphangers press release said, “would lose a race with a five-year-old riding a motorized tricycle with a speed of 5 mph, as advertised by X-Treme Scooters.”

This year, the group also highlighted slow buses in the Outer Boroughs. Averaging just 5.1 miles per hour, the B63 was Brooklyn’s slowest. The Bronx’s Bx19 averaged 4.9 mph while Queens’ Q56 reached 6.3 mph, still slowing than my average running pace over five miles. Staten Island’s S42, the slowest of that borough’s buses, was downright speedy at 10.6 miles per hour.

The Schleppie, an award for the bus with the least reliable service, went to a Brooklyn-based route. The B44 “arrived bunched together or came with big gaps in service” 21.7 percent of the time, according to official Transit statistics. The M15 took home the title for Manhattan.

Finally, the group handed out the Trekkie to the M4. This bus runs from Penn Station to Fort Tryon, a route of approximately 11 miles, and is schedule to take an hour and 50 minutes. As the Straphangers note, Amtrak from Penn Station arrives in Philadelphia, 99 miles away, in at most an hour and 27 minutes.

The real meat of the report, though, comes at the end when the Straphangers talk about speeding up buses. “The only way to stem the tide of falling bus speeds is by giving buses more priority on the street than the rest of traffic,” Paul Steely White, executive director of Transportation Alternatives said.

In effect, the MTA and NYCDOT need to implement a few key upgrades to improve bus service. A pre-board fare payment system or a contactless mode of payment would greatly enhance bus loading efficiency. A system of physically separated bus lanes with priority signaling would do wonders for New York’s buses. Finally, enforcement of bus lanes should be a priority as well.

These options are not revolutionary. They are in place in numerous countries and cities around the globe, and Walder should pursue them as low-cost, high-result techniques for improving bus service. The MTA, too, knows this and in a statement responding to the survey, discussed new approaches to buses:

Buses were introduced to New York City more than 100 years ago and despite being, by far, the most efficient vehicles on rubber tires as far as the numbers of people they carry, they are still forced to vie for the same street space as a single-occupant automobile. However, with recent innovations such as Select Bus Service (SBS) and signal light prioritization, as well as plans to further improve service recently outlined by MTA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jay H. Walder, it is important for the city’s 2.3 million bus customers to know that we are working to achieve improvements in bus speeds and reliability.

Future plans call for the eventual expansion of SBS routes, new methods of fare payment, stricter bus lane enforcement, the use of cameras to nab offenders and the development of a reliable system offering next bus information to waiting bus customers. Since the start-up of SBS, travel times across the Bronx route have been reduced by 20%, ridership has increased, and an overwhelming majority of customers have indicated that they are satisfied or very satisfied with the service.

Better bus service for all. It’s a simple mantra easy to implement and with obvious immediate benefits. Let’s see it happen.

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Predergast will bring to Transit 30 years of experience in the industry. He worked at both the Chicago Transit Authority and the Federal Transit Administration before landing in New York in 1982. For 18 years, he rose thorough the managerial ranks at NYC Transit. He served as Senior Vice President of Subways from 1990-2000 and as President of the Long Island Rail Road from 1994-2000. Before joining TransLink in 2008, he worked as a consultant on numerous transportation infrastructure projects.

“It is a tremendous honor to return home to lead the outstanding men and women who run one of the world’s great transit systems,” Prendergast said in a statement today. “I look forward to working with Jay Walder to implement the customer service improvements that New Yorkers deserve. Running New York City Transit is one of the great challenges and honors in the profession, and I will bring all of my energy and passion to the job.”

In July 2008, Predergast left the private sector to move to Canada, and today, his departure, less than 18 months after landing in Vancouver, came as a shock. He put it, though, in terms New Yorkers can understand today. “Leaving TransLink is difficult because this is a great organization with great people and potential,” he said. “But at the end of the day, for me, being asked to run New York’s transit authority is like being asked to play in Yankee Stadium: You just don’t say no.”

Prendergast will inherit a position faced with numerous difficulties. The subway infrastructure is sagging under its age, and the MTA is about to begin a component-based repair program that should streamline State of Good Repair efforts. Meanwhile, Jay Walder has been very vocal in his desire to see technological innovation and 21st Century upgrades arrive in New York City. Still, many believe Prendergast to be a top candidate for the job. “I believe he is universally recognized as one of the leading lights in transit management,” an anonymous source told the Daily News.

Walder, in a statement, echoed that praise. “Tom is a leader who brings an extraordinary variety of experiences from around the world to a system that he already knows extremely well,” he said. “Tom’s work running one of the most technologically sophisticated systems in Vancouver will be invaluable as we take the MTA to the next level in performance and customer service.”

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Wet Paint signs portend an impending opening. (Photo by Matthew Denker)

Last night, on my way back to Brooklyn via an N local train, we slowly rolled past Cortlandt St., and I noted how the station no longer resembled a construction site. At least on the northbound platform, everything is nearly in place. The turnstiles and fences have been installed; the MetroCard Vending Machines are in place; the token booth is back.

According to MTA documents, the northbound platform itself will reopen in December, but the Dey St. connector won’t open until 2012. This morning, Matthew Denker sent me the above photo, and although wooden fencing still blocks the new staircase, the construction sheds no longer cover the station entrance. Transit is clearly gearing up for a reopening.

Shuttered since 2005 and a short walk from both the Rector St. and City Hall stops along the BMT Broadway line, the four-year absence of this station hasn’t been as bad for the area as it could have been. Lower Manhattan workers and residents and Century 21 shoppers, though, will be happy to see it reopen. I wonder, ifthe Dey St. passageway and the out-of-system connection to the Fulton St. subways will be featured on the sign in two or three years. Slowly, slowly, the pieces of the Fulton St. Hub are opening up.

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Although New York City Transit has come under fire in recent weeks for the increased number of weekend service changes and generally less-than-satisfactory on-time performance, Roberts, who spoke with me last winter, has been a solid Transit president. With a focus on improving customer experience, he rolled out the rider report cards in 2007 and implemented the successful line manager program.

“Earlier today I accepted the resignation of New York City Transit President Howard Roberts,” Walder said in a statement this afternoon. “Howard deserves credit for his hard work leading NYC Transit over the last two and one half years, and I am grateful for his service to the MTA. He will remain in his position through the end of November. I intend to name a replacement in short order.”

Meanwhile, Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign praised Roberts’ service. “Howard Roberts Jr. has been a good head of New York City’s transit system,” Russianoff said in statement. “Although saddled with budget cuts and disruptions caused by needed repair work, he put managers in charge of each line and pushed to provide faster bus service. The subways and buses can drive New Yorkers nuts, but Howard Roberts worked hard for a saner system.”

Where Walder goes from here will be telling. With a background steeped in transit, he will mostly likely turn to another transit veteran to fill the role. Roberts will serve out the month, and on December 1, it’s day one all over again for Transit.

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

I never believed the plan to be all that original, and I’ve already explored Bloomberg’s less-than-impressive transit record. With four more years on tap, though, Bloomberg can now go about delivering on his promises.

Of course, there’s one little problem: Bloomberg’s plan won’t come cheap. At a time when the city has no money and after eight years of Bloomberg’s cutting city contributions to the MTA, Mayor Mike will have to figure out a way to pay for his transit reform plan. Yesterday morning, Larry Penner of The Queens Courier wrote at length on this very issue. He explores which projects are worth funding and which aren’t. It’s a rather wordy take on Bloomberg, but the overall point is a good one. Someone will have to figure out a way to pay for these upgrades.

Some of the upgrades can be covered in non-MTA monies. The Department of Transportation can reassign roads and convert the necessary space into dedicated bus lanes. DOT can fund the signal upgrades and the construction of physical barriers to separate lanes. The MTA will have to supply the physical equipment and man power to run more buses, but that’s cheap compared to, say, the Second Ave. Subway.

But other plans require a commitment from the MTA. Increased ParaTransit service, for example, would represent a huge cost to the cash-strapped agency. F express service, a potential reality in 2014, would require more rolling stock and more train drivers and conductors.

Other options simply require more money. The Mayor wants the MTA to “fix stations more efficiently and cost effectively to ensure existing stations are in a state of good repair.” The agency plans to do exactly that with its new component replacement plan. However, for these repairs and renovations to go forward at a quick pace, the agency simply needs more money. It needs more investment in construction designed to maintain its current infrastructure.

That is where Bloomberg steps in. He should decide to up the city’s contributions to the MTA. That, however, would require a city nearly in the red to find more money. The mayor isn’t really in a position to raise taxes, and New Yorkers may revolt is taxes go up so soon during a third term.

The answer, as it often does, comes back to bridge tolls or congestion pricing. Bloomberg could try again to lead a charge for user fees for these bridges. It seems likely that we will have bridge tolls within a few years anyway, and his lasting legacy could be one of sound transit investment. It might be a dream, but after running a campaign based in part around reform at the MTA, the least Bloomberg could is deliver.

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Shenfeld says that he gets down to the city approximately once a week and that the MTA sends him carefully labeled shipments once a month. He has wall panels featuring sail boats that will return to Columbus Circle and has worked on a variety of stations up and down the West Side IRT line. His work can be seen at the under-construction 96th St. stop on the 1/2/3 in that station’s new tiling work. As Shenfled said, “They wanted to make the subway stations art gallers” 100 years ago, and today, someone has to keep the art in top shape. [Syracuse.com]

©2009 Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog. All Rights Reserved.