8 Train Stations Giving J&J Shots And Free Tickets

Grand Central and Coney Island among the hubs [View this email in your browser]( New Yorkers And Tourists Are Flocking To Subway Vaccine Hubs Plus: Citi Bike is expanding to Hoboken. New Jersey lawmakers are threatening a reverse tax in retaliation to congestion pricing. And Open Boulevards are coming. By James Ramsay [people in line to get vaccinated at Grand Central] Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock Remember the days of refreshing TurboVax for hours before finding a vaccine appointment two boroughs away? It's not that hard anymore. On Wednesday morning, the MTA — in collaboration with several medical providers — launched a pilot program that's offering any vaccine-eligible person a single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine shot, along with either a free 7-day unlimited MetroCard or a free Long Island Rail Road or Metro-North ticket. By 7 a.m. — an hour before the Grand Central pop-up clinic opened — dozens of people had already lined up. Two hours later, nearly 100 people had been vaccinated, according to staff working the registration desk. "I have a [vaccine] appointment coming up, but I won’t be able to make it," said Dekyi Tameng, 23, a student at Baruch College who lives in Queens told Gothamist. "I have an exam that day. So, I thought this was a great opportunity to get it." Grand Central is one of [eight walk-up vaccination sites now operating in subway, Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road stations]( and scheduled to run through Sunday. [a map of vaccine sites] Gov. Cuomo's Office The commuter vaccination hubs are open to out-of-towners as well as New York residents, though interested takers must show some form of identification with their name and age, which is entered into the Citywide Immunization Registry. Montse Mateos, 21, got vaccinated Wednesday while on vacation in New York with her brother. They’re from Puebla, Mexico, where their age group is not yet eligible. The pair saw an ad for the subway vaccine sites while catching the train at Penn Station. "It’s incredible. Here in the USA, the government begs people to get the vaccine and also gives you free tickets," said Mateos. "In Mexico, everybody is fighting for the vaccines. Like, 'Please give me one.' The contrast is really remarkable." According to Dr. Ramon Tallaj, who leads SOMOS Community Care, the group providing shots at Grand Central, many of those who showed up Wednesday morning were young adults — a demographic that Gov. Andrew Cuomo says the state is now working hard to reach. "Young people who need to go to work, they say to me, 'I just came half an hour early to get the vaccine,'" Tallaj said. MTA officials said they had enough doses to vaccinate 250 to 300 people daily at each subway and train site, and that the program could continue beyond Sunday, depending on demand. — [Reporting by Caroline Lewis]( Open Boulevards, A 'Supercharged' Version Of Open Streets, Coming To 10 Roadways In New York City [Arthur Avenue places tables in the street] David "Dee" Delgado/Gothamist Over the next few weeks, [ten locations across the five boroughs will be transformed into Open Boulevards]( bringing outdoor dining, picnic tables, community activities, art, and performances to car-free streets. The program, which was designed in partnership with the Department of Transportation and NYC & Company, the city's official tourism organization, is meant to create destinations for both locals and visitors from out of town. "This is the kind of thing people are going to love, because all the life and vitality of New York City, all the diversity, all the energy will be on display," Mayor Bill de Blasio said yesterday. "This is going to be the summer of New York City, and Open Boulevards are going to be a great example of a reason people will flock here." Responding to concerns that blocking off traffic on major commercial roads such as Ditmars Boulevard would create a mess off traffic on residential side streets, Jee Mee Kim, the Chief Strategy Officer for the Department of Transportation, said the Open Boulevards locations were selected based on pre-existing Open Streets. But she acknowledged the "underlying tension" about how streets are prioritized. "The reason why all the Open Boulevards and Open Streets are temporary is that we're trying them out," said Kim. "Hopefully it will be a roaring success, and folks will get used to driving around these streets. And I think in the end we're going to see a net benefit for the community and the businesses." Different stretches of the Open Boulevards program will be in operation during select hours, primarily on Saturdays and Sundays. [Here's the DOT's complete list of all the locations and their hours](. Here's What Else Is Happening The Department of Transportation is lowering speed limits on 11 roadways. A total of 45 miles worth of roadways will see speed limits drop by 5 mph, and drivers will have a 60-day grace period before tickets start going out. The decision comes amid a spike in traffic deaths: 43 pedestrians have been killed by drivers in the city so far this year, compared to 26 people during that same period last year. ([Gothamist]( New York City public employees who have fears about riding the subway for their return to the office can get a commuting buddy. Though Mayor Bill de Blasio has insisted that the subways are "overwhelmingly safe," City Hall has quietly rolled out a program connecting scared municipal workers with other employees for their rides to and from work. Last week, the city also agreed to add auxiliary police officers to the 20 busiest subway stations. ([Gothamist]( The MTA's 70 volunteer chaplains have played an outsized role during the pandemic, which has killed more than 160 employees. The chaplains, some of whom are also transit workers and others who are outside clergy, have made calls to sick workers and their families, spoken with workers who are afraid of losing their jobs, and helped arrange funerals. And though the MTA has chaplains for all faiths, many workers have sought counseling from chaplains about issues unrelated to anything religious. ([The New York Times]( New Jersey lawmakers are threatening to retaliate against New York's congestion pricing plan by taxing out-of-state drivers who enter the Garden State. "If New York is going to attack our wallets, if they are going to attack our own families, we will give them a taste of their own medicine," said Democratic Rep. Josh Gotteheimer, who said he's urging the Biden administration to reject New York's congestion pricing plan, which is currently under federal review. ([The Wall Street Journal]( A subway conductor who'd just finished a shift was chased and spat on by a box cutter-wielding rider. At 1:30 a.m. on Monday, conductor Kevin Rivera said an unhinged passenger on the 7 train started threatening him, saying that train was "his car." Rivera got off at the next stop and quickly locked himself in the station attendant's booth, but not before the man, who'd chased him off the train, spat on his head. The NYPD reportedly told Rivera that they wouldn't arrest the guy because spitting doesn't qualify as assault. ([NY Daily News]( Mayor Bill de Blasio said this week that he plans to add 30 miles of bike lanes and 28 miles of bus lanes before he leaves office. Jamaica Avenue and Archer Avenue in Queens and 5th Avenue in Manhattan will be getting dedicated busways. "Bike boulevards" are being planned for South Slope, Sunnyside, and Mott Haven, among other locations. ([AM New York]( The Department of Transportation is getting control over Revel and Lime electric mopeds. The City Council voted yesterday to allow the DOT to permit and regulate the moped-share services. The change will effectively allow the city to set and enforce rules for moped safety, rider behavior, and parking. ([New York Post]( Citi Bike is expanding into Hoboken and adding bikes in Jersey City. Hudson County will now have a total of 82 docking stations and 820 bikes, including some e-bikes. Public housing residents and food stamp recipients will be eligible for reduced-price memberships. ([Streetsblog]( A Confounding Choice, But We Respect It [a screenshot of a tweet of a person skate-skiing with a suitcase]( Weekend Service Changes: Night of May 14th – Early Morning on May 17th Note: The entire subway system will be closed each night this weekend from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m., before [24-hour service resumes on Monday](. [Check here]( for the MTA's live service updates. [Check here]( for complete details about the Long Island Rail Road. For NJ Transit, [check here]( for the latest service advisories. [a photo of James Ramsay sitting on a vespa] James Ramsay — you guessed it — commuted across two boroughs to get vaxxed. (Was worth it, to be clear) (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. 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