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On Tuesday, an A train derailment in Harlem left more than 30 passengers injured and gummed up service across the New York City subway system. The accident was the latest in a string of issues that have left straphangers reeling and desperate for a fix for the system.
On Wednesday night at 6pm, a group of protesters will head to Governor Andrew Cuomo's office at 633 Third Ave to hold an emergency rally. The event is organized by a trio of transit advocacy organizations: Riders Alliance, New York Communities for Change and the NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign.
Passengers across every line have seen the poorest level of service in years. Overcrowding and an arcane signaling system have been two primary causes of the issues, but fixing the problems will be neither easy or cheap. In May, Cuomo and the MTA Board released a six-point plan to address the service problems—as well as an updated capital plan that throws more money at the system—but there is no robust, long-term solution in place to keep the subway from falling into disrepair.
If June serves as any indicator, this summer is not going to be fun for subway riders. Between a sweltering F train getting stuck between stations for 45 minutes and Tuesday's derailment, Cuomo is poised to catch a lot of flack from subway riders—Wednesday night's protest is just one example.
Whatever you do, don't go screaming at Mayor Bill de Blasio. He has no control over the MTA, but he did manage to roll out a new line of 149-seat ferry boats this spring, so that's fun.