298 New Subway Cars Yanked Out of Service

Byford says blame Bombardier. Who? [View this email in your browser]( Almost 300 Subway Cars With Faulty Doors Had to Be Pulled by MTA Officials. Can You Blame Them? Plus: Cuomo wants to build 8 new tracks at Penn Station. Almost all New Yorkers ticketed for jaywalking last year were black or Hispanic. And humble Soprano's star Steve Schirripa still rides the subway...with his flip phone. By [James Ramsay](mailto:james@wnyc.org?subject=We%20the%20Commuters) MTATRAIN/[Creative Commons]( If the public learned anything in the past few years, it's that train problems are the governor's fault. Between the Summer of Hell, the Lpocalypse-that-wasn't, and Cynthia Nixon's gubernatorial campaign, we learned to blame Gov. Andrew Cuomo, because New York City's trains are run by #CuomosMTA. But when 298 new subway cars were abruptly yanked out of service this week because of a malfunction that could've allowed the doors to open while the train was moving (though [not wide enough]( for a person to fall through), the message to the public was, don't blame Gov. Cuomo or the MTA. "Let’s be crystal clear. The villain of the piece here is not the MTA. The villain of the piece is Bombardier," NYC Transit Chief Andy Byford said recently, referring to the Canadian manufacturer that made these train cars as part of a $600 million deal. "Bombardier let the MTA down, Bombardier let New Yorkers down, that's why we held them to account and that's why I have been meeting with them on a regular basis," Byford said. But to clarify: He said this last month, after [a report]( by Comptroller Scott Stringer detailed problems with these new R179 cars, which are supposed to be running on the A, C, J, and Z lines. Given that these were cars the MTA had previously been warned about, are we supposed to blame Bombardier? (For what it's worth, Bombardier is in turn blaming its subcontractor, Kangni, which apparently supplied doors that were "not properly calibrated.") "Bombardier sold us lemons," Stringer said this week, after the 298 cars were removed from service. "Straphangers need the MTA to manage these contracts from the beginning — before the trains go off the rails." Every R179 car taken out of commission will now be inspected by Bombardier, Kangni, an independent third party called LTK Engineering Services, and the MTA’s own team. Bombardier says full inspections could be done in a matter of days, though Byford [said this afternoon]( that he doesn't want to rush it. Byford [added]( that he can't remember any flawless fleet rollout in his career, so he doesn't feel this is so unusual. But the MTA will at least get another shot at a better rollout — in addition to the [1,000+ new Kawasaki subway R211 cars]( coming to the lettered lines, the agency plans to buy 1,900 additional cars as part of its recent $51.5 billion capital plan. It's unclear which manufacturer will supply them. — [Reporting by Stephen Nessen]( A Deadly Day for New York City Pedestrians Sydney Pereira/Gothamist On Tuesday morning of this week, just before 7 a.m., a Department of Sanitation truck driver hit a 10-year-old boy and his mother, who were walking to school near Lefrak City in Queens. The boy, Shree Panthee, was killed. His mother was hospitalized, and suffered serious leg injuries. A few hours later, a cement truck driver [fatally hit a 68-year-old woman]( crossing a street half a block from her house in Borough Park, Brooklyn. And around 6 p.m., a 51-year-old man was hit by a white coach bus while crossing 5th Avenue and 59th Street in Manhattan. He was taken to NY Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Hospital in critical condition. That's about when Queens residents were beginning [a vigil for Shree Panthee]( who was, at that point, the fourth New York pedestrian to be killed or seriously injured by a driver in a 12-hour span. While the spike in cyclist deaths last year — [29 in total]( — highlighted a crisis of reckless driving, pedestrian deaths are also a stubborn tragedy that the mayor's "Vision Zero" initiative has yet to end. Last year, 122 pedestrians were killed on city streets, up from 105 in 2018. The NYPD said it would increase [increase enforcement of truck drivers]( after trucks killed [four pedestrians in a 48-hour period]( back in December. This Week's News From Gothamist and WNYC Gov. Cuomo's Office Gov. Cuomo has introduced a new plan to add eight tracks to Penn Station. The upgrade, which could [increase the station's daily ridership capacity by 175,000 people]( (Penn currently sees about 650,000 daily commuters), was part of his State of the State address yesterday. Though transit advocates who've been critical of Cuomo say it's a move in the right direction, it still lacks certain efficiencies — and does nothing about the need for a new tunnel under the Hudson River. The governor also wants to ban repeat sex offenders from riding the subway. It's [unclear how this would be enforced]( prompting concerns about racial profiling and over-surveillance. NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said on [The Brian Lehrer Show]( yesterday that cops know who most of these repeat offenders are, and this would authorize them to preemptively kick banned riders off the trains. A watchdog group is suing the MTA to get information about a video monitor installed in Times Square to deter fare evasion. The group, which is concerned about unlawful surveillance, says the MTA has been stonewalling its efforts to verify [whether the cameras have a facial recognition component]( (the agency says they don't). Some Jackson Heights residents are protesting a bus service overhall that would eliminate three routes. In a stated effort to speed up buses and improve overall service, the MTA is giving Queens' bus network its first revision in decades. But [three popular east-west routes are being cut]( angering those who use them. The MTA says there will be no "elimination" or "replacement" of routes, but rather a new and improved map for getting people from point A to point B. Very sensitive OMNY scanners have charged people's phones while they're swiping a normal MetroCard. If you have the OMNY tap payment system on your phone, make sure the settings are such that you don't get automatically charged when you're not tapping through. [This has reportedly happened to about 30 people]( (out of the 5 million taps recorded since OMNY launched last May). Mayor de Blasio continues to vehemently oppose the type of e-bikes predominantly used by immigrant delivery workers. "The e-bikes that are illegal, are illegal," [he explained at a press conference]( even though those illegal e-bikes are statistically no more dangerous than the legal e-bikes. Meanwhile, Gov. Cuomo said in his State of the State address that, on a statewide level, he hopes to legalize all e-bikes — though he recently vetoed a bill to do so. What Else We're Reading Of the 316 people ticketed for jaywalking between January 1st and September 30th of last year, 90 percent were black or Hispanic. Also, more than half the tickets were given out in the Bronx, and more than half the tickets went to people under 25. Mayor de Blasio has denied that ticketing pedestrians is part of any larger policy. ([Streetsblog]( A pair of Manhattan officials want the temporary holiday street closures around Rockefeller Center to be made permanent. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and City Councilmember Keith Powers are asking the NYPD and the city to explore keeping the side streets around Rockefeller Center pedestrian-only. The mayor says he's open to more pedestrian plazas, but doesn't think the time is right to do it in this location. NYC Transit Chief Any Byford has opposed the vehicle ban, saying it messes up bus service. ([The Wall Street Journal]( About 3 million Americans make a living by manufacturing or selling cars. Aaron Gordon, who writes the great Signal Problems newsletter ([subscribe to it!]( until very recently covered the car world for Jalopnik, and shared some insights this week that are especially useful for middle-class, urban-dwelling transit fans given to railing against Car Culture. One relevant takeaway: SUVs are extremely irrational cars to buy, yet they sell like hotcakes, because "Car Buying Is Not Rational." ([Signal Problems]( New Jersey drivers need to stop texting and driving. New data from the State Police Fatal Accident Unit shows that in 2018, distracted driving caused more deadly crashes than speeding or drunk driving for the fifth year in a row. While "distracted driving" is an umbrella term for things like rubbernecking and futzing with the radio, the main problem is texting while driving. ([NJTV News]( About Steve 'Bobby Baccala' Schirripa's Phone Subway Creatures/[Twitter]( When Subway Creatures posted this photo of Soprano's star Steve Schirripa on the 6 train this week, three things stood out: the Yankees sweatshirt (👍); [the manspread]( (👎); and the flip phone, which you know he's using right now, because the ad behind his head is new. Why is a celebrated actor — who's definitely not a mobster in real life — using a burner? I did some searching and found out this was recently addressed. "I'm a flip phone guy," [he told Pat Kiernan on NY1]( last spring, when asked if he prefers yellow cabs or ride-hailing apps. "I'll take an Uber, but I have to call my wife or my daughter and say, 'It's 11 o'clock, I'm at so-and-so, call me an Uber.'" One upside of holding onto the flip phone: He won't get accidentally charged by an OMNY reader. Weekend Service Changes: Night of January 10th – Early Morning on January 13th This is a partial list of major service disruptions scheduled for the weekend. For a complete list of the MTA's Weekender updates, [check here](. trains will replace trains in Brooklyn. Pelham Bay Park-bound trains will skip Brook Av, Cypress Av, E 143 St, E 149 St and Longwood Av in the Bronx. train service between Queensboro Plaza and 34 St-Hudson Yards will be replaced by and trains and free shuttle buses. At night, downtown trains will skip Spring St, 23 St and 50 St in Manhattan, as will downtown trains on Saturday and Sunday. At night, World Trade Center-bound trains will skip 67 Av, 63 Dr, Woodhaven Blvd, Grand Av and Elmhurst Av in Queens, and downtown trains will skip Spring St and 23 St all weekend. Jamaica-bound trains will run via the line from Jay St-MetroTech, Brooklyn, to W 4 St, Manhattan, and train service between Church Av and Stillwell Av in Brooklyn will be replaced by free shuttle buses. Saturday and Sunday, Bay Ridge-bound trains will skip 67 Av, 63 Dr, Woodhaven Blvd, Grand Av and Elmhurst Av in Queens. Saturday and Sunday, train service between Broadway Junction, Brooklyn and Jamaica Center, Queens will be replaced by trains and free shuttle buses. [Check here]( for complete details about the Long Island Rail Road. For NJ Transit, [check here]( for the latest service advisories. Upcoming Meetings and Events Friday, January 10th Transportation and Seniors in NYC: A Lower East Side Local Voices Event Seward Park Library — 2:00 p.m. [More info, RSVP]( Tuesday, January 21st Joint Metro-North & LIRR Committee Meeting — 8:30 a.m. NYC Transit / MTA Bus Committee Meeting — 10:00 a.m. Thursday, January 23rd MTA Board Meeting — 10:00 a.m. Registration for two-minute public speaking slots opens 15 minutes before the start time for official MTA committee meetings. To speak before an MTA board meeting, you must register 30 minutes early. All meetings are held in the MTA's Board Room at 2 Broadway, on the 20th Floor. James Ramsay had a feeling Schirripa was [a train guy](. (Photo by Amy Pearl) Support WNYC + Gothamist Make a donation to support local, independent journalism. Your contributions are our largest source of funding and pays for essential transportation coverage and more. [Donate]( Copyright © 2020 New York Public Radio, All rights reserved. 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