Posted on 03/10/2023 6:34:15 PM PST by SamAdams76
I hated commuting to NYC on trains from New Jersey. The service was terrible and the peak hour trains were usually packed beyond standing-room-only.
FWIW ... I'm a civil engineer by trade, and I did some work on the preliminary design of the LIRR Grand Central extension project way back in the 1990s. I think it was officially called the LIRR East Side Access Project.
The last time I was on the LIRR was 25 years ago. I was traveling to visit family with my then 3 year old to save them the 2-3 hour horror of picking us up at the airport. We were on an fairly empty early afternoon train from Jamaica at the back of the car.
We were riding along when my daughter says in her unmodulated child voice, “Mommy, why does everybody look so angry?” Slowly people looked up, looked around and started smiling at her, and each other. It was kind of amazing.
The outer seat on a three-seater is next to get filled.
I always fill first the outer seat on the three seater. If the three seater fills up you can always stretch your legs toward the aisle when you are in that outer seat. The same can't be said when you are in the inside seat
After I fill the outer seater, anybody who wants the inner or middle seat usually politely asks, and I get up, step out into the aisle and I let them in.
I've been waiting for this for years as I have a branch office on Long Island which previously required me to get to Penn Station to catch a LIRR train out there. My main office is on Lexington Ave just across from Grand Central. So now it is very easy to get to Long Island from my primary office.
The New Jersey commuters have the worse of it. Many of them drive in, which to me is horrifying as I would never want to take my personal car into Manhattan.
The Metro North is the best of the three and my main commute (up to Westport, CT). The LIRR is also pretty reliable though they have some real growing pains due to this East Side Access opening up. They've had to split the trains between Penn and Grand Station resulting in many passengers having to get off at Jamaica to catch a train to their final destination. Sometimes they only have a minute or two to run up the stairs and across the ramp to get to the track their next train is on.
They will get it right eventually.
Too bad. So sad.
Grand Central also used to have "bar carts" on the platforms and in the lower level dining area. These were actually run by Metro North employees. They were shut down in late 2016 due to a money skimming scandal.
However, there are plenty of places at Grand Central to get some brews or wine to take on board. Most of them overcharge. But at the Rite Aid pharmacy on the west side of Grand Central, they have a large selection of canned alcoholic beverages for reasonable prices. At rush hour, the lines are practically out the door with commuters buying beer.
Train lines bringing in thousands of people to the harbor for the fireworks show that night.
Between 2200 and 2300 hours the various trains lines shut down for the night, stranding passengers from a return trip to their home stations & vehicles.
The problem with the middle seat is that many people would rather stand than sit in it, so TPTB realized that they simply had to get rid of it completely.
But most New Yorkers are very decent. They only appear rude because pretty much anybody approaching them is a panhandler or scamster. My recommendation for tourists looking for directions and such is to approach a NYPD officer as they will definitely help you out.
1. Long Island Railroad (118 million annual riders)
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You mean trips.
Right?
Noted that the only railroad I’ve experienced was Grand Funk Railroad.
I grew up there so the attitudes were normal. But to see it through the eyes of a child who for the most part was used to people being pleasant, made me realize leaving NY was definitely the right choice.
The double decker cars cannot get into the Park Ave tunnel so the Metro North is out of luck. I believe the LIRR extension into Grand Central will allow them however.
Eating a cold sandwich should be OK. Pack it at home and eat it on the ride home
This was in the days before Uber and Lyft so those people were really challenged finding a way home.
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards for fire safety are a limiting factor in the operation of GCT — especially for the lowest platforms. A full passenger load that is discharged from a train of double decker cars may not be able to evacuate within the two key time limits established by the NFPA code for train stations: 4 minutes to clear the platform and 6 minutes to get every passenger from a train out of the station entirely.
Bravissimo. Excellent analysis. Your analysis should be printed on every window at train stops.
“This level of detail is only attained by train geeks and I am one of them.” For sure. Only a train geek, train buff, and train expert can make such an analysis. Yes, cooked food on a train or subway is unethical and disrespectful.
FYI. Rome, Italy, also has super lengthy escalators going down to the subway.
Also,in the last year or so I've taken Metro North trains from Connecticut into Manhattan...on weekdays. The trains,going in and coming back,were no more that 10% full...as was the parking lot.
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