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| Bay Ridge MTA roundtable discussion / Restoring: B37, X28 Weekend;& a new route along 65 St (264799) | |||
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Bay Ridge MTA roundtable discussion / Restoring: B37, X28 Weekend;& a new route along 65 St |
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Posted by Gold_12TH on Fri Aug 3 02:42:44 2012 Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis hosted an MTA round table meeting at her office on July 27 to discuss the future of public transportation in Southwest Brooklyn. Board member Allen Cappelli was in attendance and contended that new MTA Chair Joseph Lhota, as a Brooklyn resident, understands the needs of the neighborhood. “Lots of cuts that haven’t been addressed yet need to be addressed,” he said, adding that board members are currently talking about adding new bus routes, increasing the amount of trains and updating subway sound systems in Southwest Brooklyn. Restoring B37 service, X28 service in Bensonhurst and Dyker Heights, and a new route that would go along 65th Street down First Avenue towards Lutheran Medical Center are also on the table, Cappelli said. “There is an increased number people working in Brooklyn and they are coming from southern Brooklyn so we need new crosstown buses,” commented State Senator Marty Golden, also at the round table, adding that an elevator is needed at the 86th Street R train station. One is scheduled to be installed there in the future, but not for several years, to make the station ADA-compliant. Cappelli explained that the 2010 service cuts were due to a $2 billion budget deficit. “I know how much the express bus cuts hurt. It was on everyone’s mind,” he said. Currently, the MTA is aiming to reduce unnecessary spending to free up more funds to put towards expanding service. “From my perspective, we have to get leaner,” Cappelli said, adding that the agency is looking into decreasing the budget for non-transportation administrative services. Another way to balance the budget is by waiving bond fees that the MTA would have to give to the state to reduce debt. “The [bond fees] are approximately $50 million per year and we have legislation in to waive it permanently,” Malliotakis said. “We got $30 million [of those funds] to do restorations.” Fare evasion is also an issue. “Fare evasion costs us at least $100 million annually. It is a huge problem and it is unlawful,” Cappelli said. Malliotakis added that there are talks of injecting $5 to $6 million into the MTA budget to put undercover officers on buses to stop fare beaters on problematic routes. “It’s dangerous for bus drivers,” she commented. “We are also drafting legislation that would require fines from summonses issued to people by the MTA to go to the MTA and not to the city.” The MTA is also trying to work with the community to reduce the toll on the Verrazano Bridge much like the Port Authority did on its bridges last month. “The key is looking at a whole new toll structure and paying via E-Z Pass or license plates,” Cappelli said. “I know the Verrazano Bridge is a lifeline to generations of families. The way we toll people doesn’t make sense to me. We have to relieve the inequity.” Golden also noted that he would like to see a bike lane across the span. “It’s a dream, not a reality and it’s a reality I would like to see,” he said. One other way to increase the MTA’s revenue is to sell more advertising on subways, buses and even on MetroCards – with the MTA announcing last month that it was retooling its MetroCard advertising program, allowing the fronts of cards to carry advertising. “This is the first inning of a nine inning ballgame. We have to keep continuing what we are doing,” Cappelli said. “Things are a little bit better but we have to see where the economy goes. We have to find ways to do more with less and bring back services that we had.” ---http://www.homereporternews.com/news/general/bay-ridge-mta-roundtable-discussion/article_5bd61562-dbf6-11e1-8f51-0019bb2963f4.html |
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