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| (909267) | |
Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Allan on Mon Mar 8 10:09:34 2010 The party's over!!!http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2010/03/mta_robs_island_of_railway_fre.html By Maura Yates who covers transportation news for the Advance. "STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Next stop: Paying to ride the Staten Island Railway no matter where you get on or off. The MTA plans to restore fare collection along the entire 14-mile rail line from St. George to Tottenville within the next few years, as part of a master plan to raise more revenue, cut down on crime and close what has been a free-ride perk that is unique in the city's public transit system. Turnstiles recently installed at the Tompkinsville station are the first part of the plan, which eventually will incorporate "Smart Card" technology to collect fares along the rest of the line. Riders now swipe their cards only at Tompkinsville and St. George, while the train is free for trips beginning and ending at any other stations along the line. Make the 37-minute trip between Stapleton and Tottenville, for instance, and pay not a cent. When the new system goes online, which, owing to the MTA's budget crisis, is still at least a few years away, passengers will no longer use MetroCards but rather pay with a "Smart Card," likely a "tap and go" system, where a card is held up to a reader without the need to slow down to swipe. The system would include a way for inspectors to check for proof that the fare was paid, and scofflaws likely would face a steep fine if caught. If you didn't pay and there were a spot check, "you'd have a problem," said MTA board member Allen Cappelli. St. George and Tompkinsville will remain the only stations with gates and turnstiles, though the MTA is considering possibly installing turnstiles at Grasmere as well, as it is a heavily used transfer point for the S53 bus to and from Brooklyn. Those three stations are among the most used along the line, and having the turnstiles would mean fare inspectors could focus their attentions on other stations without gates. No more free rideSt. George and Tompkinsville will remain the only stations with gates and turnstiles, but riders will have to pay at any exit point along the 14-mile Staten Island Railway line. STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE FILE PHOTO The Railway lost about $3.4 million a year when onboard fare collectors were eliminated in 1997. Fares were collected only at St. George until this January, when a $6.9 million stationhouse opened at Tompkinsville. The Tompkinsville station alone is expected to collect about $702,000 a year in fares, but a projection of how much revenue the entire Railway could expect to earn with the new system in place was not immediately known. While "there are people who clearly enjoy this unintended benefit" of a free ride, "everybody pays to go on the system everywhere else," said Cappelli, who is among a growing contingent pushing the MTA to bring back the fare for considerations of safety. City Councilman James Oddo (R-Mid-Island/Brooklyn) said he has believed for years that "there is a direct correlation between the elimination of the fare on the Staten Island Railway and a spike in vandalism and crime on the trains and abutting communities." "I don't think in the long run it's been worth the quote-unquote break," he said." |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 10:15:30 2010, in response to Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Allan on Mon Mar 8 10:09:34 2010. City Councilman James Oddo (R-Mid-Island/Brooklyn) said he has believed for years that "there is a direct correlation between the elimination of the fare on the Staten Island Railway and a spike in vandalism and crime on the trains and abutting communities.""I don't think in the long run it's been worth the quote-unquote break," he said." I'm all for it. The "free" fare has caused a lot of problems on the SIR. The many local civic associations along the line were opposed to the free fare from the beginning back in 1997. Actual impact on 99% of commuters will be small as most get off at the ferry anyway where the fare is collected now. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by AMoreira81 on Mon Mar 8 10:37:09 2010, in response to Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Allan on Mon Mar 8 10:09:34 2010. Geez---as stated before, it might hurt customers with only large bills with which to pay, but why not install one MVM per station (except St. George) and a Bx12-style POP system, and eliminate the turnstiles? |
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iPhone 6 (4.7 Inch) Premium PU Leather Wallet Case - Red w/ Floral Interior - by Notch-It |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 10:49:22 2010, in response to Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Allan on Mon Mar 8 10:09:34 2010. This is not something that will occur within the next five years... |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by AMoreira81 on Mon Mar 8 10:57:16 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 10:49:22 2010. And what could be done within the next 5 years, or even next 6 months, isn't what the MTA is thinking of. The left hand (SIR) doesn't know what the right hand (Bx12 and M15 SBS) is doing. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 11:08:36 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by AMoreira81 on Mon Mar 8 10:57:16 2010. Of course; the point is that this could be done TODAY, with technology already in use elsewhere in the city. Just a matter of saying you don't need to use the system if you are traveling to St. George or Tompkinsville during the AM rush. They could have inspectors at random stations rather than aboard the trains. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 11:38:55 2010, in response to Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Allan on Mon Mar 8 10:09:34 2010. Think this was already mentioned, but I like the idea. It isn't really fair to the rest of NYr's to pay the fare while folks on SI don't. Sorry for those who argue "well they're so isolated" sorry no one put a gun to their head and forced them to move there.Now, I think the tap in go is great. I like the inspector idea. They should be on the train not at random locations. Actually on the train is industry standard used on the HBLR, RvrLine, SF MUNI, Caltrain, SJ VTA, and elsewhere. About time, sooner the better |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Larry,RedbirdR33 on Mon Mar 8 11:54:06 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 10:49:22 2010. Hank: You're a Staten Island resident. Has there been any widespread vandalism or trouble on SIRT? I ride it about twice a month and have always enjoyed the ride and felt very comfortable.Larry, RedbirdR33 |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 13:11:47 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 11:38:55 2010. "It isn't really fair to the rest of NYr's to pay the fare while folks on SI don't."There was never any political support on Staten Island for eliminating the SIR fare. It occured as part of the "one city - one fare" program in 1997. The MTA didn't want to spend the money to install metrocard readers in the SIR stations, and the NYCDOT didn't want to spend the money to install metrocard readers in the SI Ferry terminals. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 13:22:10 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 13:11:47 2010. Because in both cases, it was determined that the cost of the equipment wasn't worth the fares that would be collected, since the majority of the customers would be transferring, and thus entitled to a free ride anyhow. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 13:23:40 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Larry,RedbirdR33 on Mon Mar 8 11:54:06 2010. Yes, since the days of conductors roaming the trains, there was a major increase in vandalism on the trains. Trouble was generally confined to post-school hours. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Lou from Brooklyn on Mon Mar 8 13:56:27 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 13:23:40 2010. IAWTP |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 13:56:36 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 13:11:47 2010. It shouldn't have ever been done but glad they will get no more free rides. I was against the elimination of the fare to begin with. Actually they can do it now by bringing back on board fare collection but with a c/r carrying a handheld m/c swiper thingy. Put one or 2 MVMs at each stop encourage merchants to sell m/cs, etc but yes smartcard would be better |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Lou from Brooklyn on Mon Mar 8 13:58:21 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 13:11:47 2010. Cost of equipment and MAINTENANCE of same.The proposed swipe card has no moving parts or dedicated read/write heads so the cost of maintenance and the time out of service will be less then current turnstiles. Of course they will install all this at about the current pace of 2nd Ave Subway or the new tower at WTC, years and years... |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 15:08:26 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 13:56:36 2010. "...a c/r carrying a handheld m/c swiper thingy."Is there such a gadget? |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 15:29:30 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 15:08:26 2010. No, but all the technology to create it exists. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 15:35:46 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 15:08:26 2010. No, but am sure they can make one |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by 156n3rd on Mon Mar 8 17:48:29 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 10:15:30 2010. That's quite a handsome sum of money they lost. They are going to get new equipment, so they can just add turnstiles to the list as well. It's time to return to fiscal responsibility. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 18:13:29 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by 156n3rd on Mon Mar 8 17:48:29 2010. Is it fiscally responsible to spend $7M to collect $700k/yr? |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 18:15:43 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 18:13:29 2010. 700k/year? I thought it was over a million a year. IMHO they can turn the line into an efficient POP system. But it is time those on SI get to pay a fare like everyone else |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Henry R32 #3730 on Mon Mar 8 19:44:50 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 15:08:26 2010. A USB magnetic stripe reader/writer and a smartphone (with appropriate software) cabled/taped together would do the trick, and be fairly light. Multiply pricetag by 10 to put it in a fancy box and mass produce. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Olog-hai on Mon Mar 8 19:47:42 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 13:56:36 2010. With all the new revenue, they oughta build an extension into Perth Amboy. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 19:57:15 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Olog-hai on Mon Mar 8 19:47:42 2010. Don't know if they'll get that much new revenue but maybe with proper marketing they can :) |
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Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Olog-hai on Mon Mar 8 20:37:41 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 19:57:15 2010. It is the Perth Amboy Division, after all. Where's NY Waterway when we need them? The ferry slips are still in place on the Perth Amboy side at least . . . |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by WillD on Mon Mar 8 22:41:19 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Dan on Mon Mar 8 15:08:26 2010. Contrary to the other uninformed responses Cubic offered a version of their handheld fare checker with a magnetic read/write head until recently. They now only advertise it as being compatible with smartcards, mostly because magnetic cards are largely obsolete. The Metrocard is a Cubic product, so the MTA could undoubtedly get them to produce a handheld scanner for the SIRT.But then they could always just install a device like the BX12 uses which would combine a Metrocard validator and ticket dispenser to spit out tickets with an expiration time. Get a paper ticket stock with a magnetic strip like NJT's ASCOM systems use, upgrade the St George turnstiles to read those tickets, and we will have a system capable of a high level of enforcement at St George while gaining flexibility along the rest of the line. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Mon Mar 8 23:14:30 2010, in response to Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Allan on Mon Mar 8 10:09:34 2010. I never understood the idea of having it free anyway. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Fytton on Tue Mar 9 04:18:58 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Mon Mar 8 23:14:30 2010. 'I never understood the idea of having it free anyway.'I don't think anyone in authority ever said 'I have a good idea - let's give Staten Islanders free rides!' The issue was the cost of installing MetroCard equipment and fare-control barriers at little-used stations which could never justify the capital cost. Given that most SIR riders are heading to or from the ferry anyway, it was a much better investment decision to put 'swipe both ways' barriers at St George only, and just accept that intra-island travellers go free. When people started walking from Tompkinsville, they put in barriers there. These were pragmatic decisions. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by arnine on Tue Mar 9 04:54:46 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Olog-hai on Mon Mar 8 20:37:41 2010. I think IIRC they are also having $$ troubles, so not sure they wanna expand. But, maybe a new venture or NY Water Taxi? |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Michael549 on Tue Mar 9 11:10:27 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Fytton on Tue Mar 9 04:18:58 2010. I am in complete agreement with you.I think that major reason for all of the writing about this on the transit forums, was the idea that "somebody somewhere is getting something for free", no matter how much the practical matter of the "free ride" is a dis-incentive to actually using it. Leading some folks to try to think of various schemes to "fix the problem", while others trump up every doom and gloom scenario about the supposed free rides. As if the days when fares were collected on the trains were such great times, or that so many problems were solved. Then included in the effort is the idea that Staten Island is such a strange place, oh so different than the rest of the city - that strange exotic transit systems, transit fares, etc. are needed, well because Staten Island is strange. Too often the local papers and political types by into that idea - that Staten Island is oh so different. Just my thoughts. Mike |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by ClearAspect on Tue Mar 9 11:39:36 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 11:38:55 2010. Ive ridden the HBLR a lot... and still after 5-6 years of riding it I have YET to see a ticket inspector... but knowing my luck the day I try to press my luck and go on with an expired ticket they'd come on board. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Fytton on Tue Mar 9 11:55:46 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Michael549 on Tue Mar 9 11:10:27 2010. 'Then included in the effort is the idea that Staten Island is such a strange place, oh so different than the rest of the city - that strange exotic transit systems, transit fares, etc. are needed, well because Staten Island is strange. Too often the local papers and political types by into that idea - that Staten Island is oh so different.'LOL. But then, from where I'm sitting (in England) it seems to me that people here often argue, in effect, that NYC as a whole is oh so different! So that things that are taken for granted in other large rapid transit systems around the world - like OPTO, and POP fare systems, and electronic signs that tell you (accurately!) when the next train is coming and where it is going to - can't possibly work in NYC and never will.... |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by arnine on Tue Mar 9 12:07:08 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by ClearAspect on Tue Mar 9 11:39:36 2010. Lol, that will always happen. I have seen ticket inspectors but most of the time I don't see them my guess though is they will appear more |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Wado MP73 on Tue Mar 9 13:00:48 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Fytton on Tue Mar 9 11:55:46 2010. That may imply that SI is kinda normal. LOL! |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Wado MP73 on Tue Mar 9 13:37:02 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by WillD on Mon Mar 8 22:41:19 2010. You don't need St. George's turnstiles upgraded to read paper tickets or have them with a magnetic stripe. Just re-program them to recognize that the MetroCard spat out a ticket.Anyway, if SmartCard is around the corner, there is no point of investing in this. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Easy on Tue Mar 9 14:39:29 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Fytton on Tue Mar 9 11:55:46 2010. I agree. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by R42 4820 on Tue Mar 9 14:53:11 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Wado MP73 on Tue Mar 9 13:37:02 2010. I'd like to see how this form of fare control will turn out to be. I wonder if it'll be anything like the HBLR. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Tue Mar 9 15:05:09 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 13:22:10 2010. It didn't take into account the unintended costs like increased vandalism. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Tue Mar 9 15:10:20 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Mon Mar 8 15:29:30 2010. It would essentially be a battery-powered MetroCard-only bus farebox. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by arnine on Tue Mar 9 15:23:34 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Spider-Pig on Tue Mar 9 15:05:09 2010. Exactly |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by ntrainride on Tue Mar 9 18:17:57 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Michael549 on Tue Mar 9 11:10:27 2010. But Staten Island really is different from the rest of N.Y.C. More so than Brooklyn is different from the Bronx, or Queens is different from Manhattan. And the Staten Island Rail line is a one of a kind line. It's too bad there hasn't been massive development around most of the stations...but that's understandable, considering the terminii. Link it to New Jersey again...whole nuther story. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by N6 Limited on Wed Mar 10 14:25:24 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by ntrainride on Tue Mar 9 18:17:57 2010. The line crossed into NJ? |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Wed Mar 10 14:40:21 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by N6 Limited on Wed Mar 10 14:25:24 2010. Passenger service never extended into New Jersey by rail. There was a ferry connection at Tottenville to Perth Amboy.Freight-only connection on the North Shore to New Jersey. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Larry,RedbirdR33 on Thu Mar 11 08:13:29 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Wed Mar 10 14:40:21 2010. Passenger service never extended into New Jersey by rail. There was a ferry connection at Tottenville to Perth Amboy.There may have been some passenger service in the early days. In his history of the Staten Island Rapid Transit Paul Matus relates that passenger service over the Arthur Kill Bridge began on January 1, 1890. Its unclear of these were B&O or SIRT trains. This service probably did not last very long as the B&O found that the CNJ Terminal in Communipaw was more convenient for there trains and offered the ferry connections there offered more choices for their riders. They could even get a ferry to Whitehall Street. Larry, RedbirdR33 |
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Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Thu Mar 11 09:59:35 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by arnine on Tue Mar 9 04:54:46 2010. There's no desire for pedestrian traffic between Perth Amboy and Staten Island. You've got a chicken/egg scenario there. A better investment would be a direct ferry connection from St. George to Jersey City/Hoboken. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by AMoreira81 on Thu Mar 11 10:19:19 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by Fytton on Tue Mar 9 04:18:58 2010. That was then...since then, the MTA has begun a proof-of-payment system on a bus route. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Olog-hai on Thu Mar 11 10:28:30 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Thu Mar 11 09:59:35 2010. There's no desire for pedestrian traffic between Perth Amboy and Staten IslandNot on the Outerbridge Crossing, certainly. Not easy to get to by foot at either side. Water Taxi for Tottenville-Perth Amboy wouldn't be a "pedestrian connection". A better investment would be a direct ferry connection from St. George to Jersey City/Hoboken No, actually. There would be a demand for Brooklyn-JC or Queens-JC ferries before that market . . . |
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Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Thu Mar 11 10:46:08 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway - the days of free rides are coming ot an end, posted by arnine on Mon Mar 8 18:15:43 2010. As was pointed out repeatedly, the costs significantly outweigh the benefits. As pointed out in this thread, which contains the entire referenced article, establishing fare control at ONE station with a center platform cost $6.9M, and expected annual revenue is $702k. If this were a business, this would not be a justifiable expense; more likely, the station would simply be closed, with passengers forced to transfer to buses at St. George. Unless you're looking for a tax dodge, no one is going to make that kind of investment.Most rush hour trains, even the locals, skip the station. Most passengers not heading to/from St. George are transferring to/from local buses at one end of their 'free' trip on the SIR; their fares are captured anyway. And there were not as many people making the 'free' trip to the Ferry that included the walk anyway; there are a number of businesses in the Tompkinsville area that it is its own destination. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Thu Mar 11 10:50:04 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Olog-hai on Thu Mar 11 10:28:30 2010. There is a significant commuter market for Staten Island-Jersey City/Hoboken. Just go to 34th in Bayonne or Liberty State Park stations, and count the NY plates in the lot. Not to mention the s89 bus.You can't walk across the Outerbridge Crossing, there is no walkway. There is no major attraction in Perth Amboy that would drive pedestrian traffic between Staten Island and Perth Amboy. There are no major job centers there. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Olog-hai on Thu Mar 11 11:05:30 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Hank Eisenstein on Thu Mar 11 10:50:04 2010. There is a significant commuter market for Staten Island-Jersey City/Hoboken. Just go to 34th in Bayonne or Liberty State Park stations, and count the NY plates in the lot. Not to mention the S89 busYou're misjudging the market. Those people could indeed be traveling to Manhattan via PATH. There is no major attraction in Perth Amboy that would drive pedestrian traffic between Staten Island and Perth Amboy A Perth Amboy-Tottenville ferry isn't intended for pedestrian traffic in that market. That's like claiming that the NY Waterway between Hoboken and Manhattan is for the pedestrian market. |
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Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end |
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Posted by Hank Eisenstein on Thu Mar 11 11:24:45 2010, in response to Re: Staten Island Railway — the days of free rides are coming to an end, posted by Olog-hai on Thu Mar 11 11:05:30 2010. Too many step involved, IMO, for them to be going to Manhattan via HBLR and PATH.By 'pedestrian market' I mean people who have no other means to travel between those two points. I doubt there are more than 100 people who commute to Perth Amboy from Staten Island, and maybe twice that for the reverse. |
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