Welcome back everyone. I hope you had a great Thanksgiving with family or friends. If you are back in New York this weekend (if you ever left) then you will have a few major changes to prepare for, especially related to the final touches on the South Ferry station. That means there are a lot of changes downtown this weekend. The 1, 4, D, N, and R trains have the most changes to deal with this weekend. The rest of it is pretty quiet. Also, make sure to check out the vintage subway ride between Queens Plaza and 2 Avenue. I haven’t figured out if the MTA has a press release for the vintage rides but it’s running this Sunday. Your map is below and Happy Tracks New York!

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WINNERS:

F train riders - It’s another bonus weekend for one of the city’s longest trains. To start with, there are no scheduled problems between Jamaica and Coney Island. Brooklyn riders will be happy about the fact that frequent Brooklyn changes are no longer in affect and Manhattan riders will be pleased by the fact that between Rockefeller Ctr and Broadway-Lafayette it is also possible to take the R train running on the V line. It’s like Christmas come early under 6th Ave!

7 Train riders - While 7 train riders have had a lot of weekday changes to negotiate, it has been months of clear weekends now. The remarkable thing is that usually there is an uptick in work after the Mets season ends, but things have been clear since the Mets ignominious collapse in September. Small consolation perhaps, but Mets fans will take what they can get.

6 train riders - There is a lot of stuff going on with the 4 and 5 trains lately. The 4 is local in Brooklyn and the 5 is running to 241 St with a shuttle service between E 180 St and Dyre Ave. But the 6 train is still plugging along picking up huge amounts of passengers along the South Bronx and UES. It’s a nice easy ride on the 6, if you can get on the train of course.

LOSERS:

Astoria - There’s no doubt who the big loser is this weekend. After a year of avoiding most changes, Astoria and LIC get hit hard this weekend. A trip from 30 Ave in Astoria to 59th St/5th Ave would look like this: Take a Ditmars-bound N train to Astoria Blvd, change to a Manhatta-bound N train, change at Queensboro Plaza for a Manhattan-bound 7 train, change at Grand Central to a Bronx-bound 4, 5, or 6 train and get off at 59th St and walk from Lexington to 5th. Whoah. That sucks. Astoria residents: don’t bother with the N this weekend. It would be better to take the bus or the R train. One more note for Astoria riders. The news has been bad in terms of the elimination of the W train this weekend, but buried in the coverage is that when the W train is eliminated Q trains will be extended to Ditmars Blvd.

Harlem - It’s yet another weekend shuttle buses for 2 and 3 train riders in Harlem. And as an added insult this weekend, A trains run local so the D is the only 8th Ave express service.

The Rockaways - The Rockaway shuttle makes it’s return this weekend. Remember that shuttle buses to Howard Beach only leave from Rockaway Park and Far Rockaway and not intermediate stations. T get the bus you have to take the S train to one of the terminus stations and hitch a bus there. Finally, upon reaching Howard Beach, A trains are running local. Some days you can’t win in the Rockaways.

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Friday Update: Good news for L train riders, the service cut is late night only. Daytime L trains run normally. Bad news for Gravesend as Manhattan-bound Q trains skip Neck Rd and Ave U. Even worse news for Astoria because Manhattan-bound N trains run express from Astoria Blvd and Queensboro Plaza. Keep it real out there. Also, a 5 train note. It seems as if 5 trains will run from Brooklyn Bridge to 241 St and there will be essentially a shuttle service between Dyre Ave and E 180 St. So if you are getting a 5 train at Grand Central it will only go to 241 St.
Welcome Back NYC. Today is a tough day for the MTA. Today the MTA announced the form that its budget cuts will take and the report is staggering. I can’t do others’ coverage justice but will instead point you to the New York Times and Second Avenue Sagas. Needless to say, it is going to be a tough time as more people than ever cram onto the trains but the service to support them may not be there. The MTA is in tough spot with people relying on their service more and more but not experiencing a growth in revenue. I genuinely believe the folks at the MTA want to run the best transit system possible and that to announce these cuts is not a solution they take lightly so I will cut them a break on their legal requirement to balance their budget. The most important thing is for Gov. Patterson (himself advocating cuts) and Pres. Obama to step up and help fund the most important transit system in the country. Moving on however, there is at least one more weekend of major service changes before the MTA slips into its holiday lull. It is a near replica of two weeks ago with different D train changes. But the N, Q, R, 1, 2, and 3 changes remain the same. It’s going to be especially complicated near 14th St this weekend as trains come and go from different places than normal. Winners and losers will go up tomorrow early Saturday with corrections. Until then, Happy Tracks New York!

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WINNERS:

The Outer Boroughs - I’m giving away only one winning medal this week because there are so few changes to report this week and most of the lines (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, D, F, G, J, L, and M) have no changes. In fact, the vast majority of the changes occur within Manhattan or on the bridges/tunnels between Manhattan and the outer boroughs. Astorians will be upset by having to transfer to the 7 at Queensboro Plaza, but other than that it is easy to get from the outer boroughs into Manhattan.

LOSERS:

Astoria - Once again Astoria has to jump through hoops to get into Manhattan. It’s not a big deal if you are going to Times Square, you just change to the 7. But if Astoria residents are going to 59 St on the east side, a trip that might normally be no more than 4 stops, they have to change to the 7 for three stops and then change to the 4, 5, or 6 to 59 St. Three trains instead of three stops is certainly a pain.

50th Street Manhattan - There aren’t many changes this week but C trains are skipping 50th St going uptown and 1 trains are skipping 50th St going downtown. Getting to or from 50th St could be mildly annoying this weekend.

Brooklyn Q train riders - Q trains are running via Whitehall St this weekend so it’s a much longer trip from Brighton Beach. The other problem is that riders can transfer to the R train at DeKalb but R trains are running via the V line so they won’t get you anywhere along Broadway.

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 Saturday Update: I missed the A train which is not stopping between 207 St and 168 St. Also, you may have noticed that the N, Q, and R trains are running normal today but they will be messed up on Sunday. Take care everyone.

Welcome back New York. There’s been much to report this week regarding the state of the subways. The MTA’s deficit has ballooned out to more than $1.2 billion and there are dark clouds on the horizon regarding the MTA’s ability to continue running its service with the same quality New Yorker’s are accustomed to without jacking up prices. For all the reports and analysis about the future of the MTA head over to my good friends at Second Avenue Sagas. However, the MTA has said that track maintenance will remain one of the priorities of the MTA and that the repair work will go on even if the budget gap expands. In the meantime, there is not too much to report this weekend. The only major work is duplicating last weekends changes to the N, Q, and R. Check out the numerous winners in this week’s winners and losers section and stay warm this weekend. Happy Tracks New York!

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WINNERS:

6 train riders - There’s been a lot of trouble for riders of the 4 and 5 train recently but the 6 has just cruised along without any major disruptions to speak of in the past month or two. The trend continues this weekend with an easy trip on the local lex.

F train riders - Not only is the F making normal stops in both directions, but there is additional 6th Ave local service because the R is running via the V line (though it follows the D from Broadway-Lafayette to Dekalb). So anyone looking for a local F train in Manhattan can also take the R. Extra service is always a winner.

L train riders - After a few weekends of no L train service from Myrtle Ave to Canarsie, the L is back to running normal this weekend.

LOSERS:

The Rockaways - It’s shuttle time again in the Rockaways. This gets a loser rating because of the way the shuttle busses work. If you are going from an intermediate station on either Rockaway line, you have to take the shuttle train to Far Rockaway of Rockaway Park and THEN catch the shuttle bus to Howard Beach. Let’s hope that shuttle train runs regularly.

1, 2, & 3 train riders - The 2 is once again not running from the UWS all the way to Wakefield. This means that to get across town, Bronx riders will need to take a shuttle bus from Grand Concourse or some other crosstown bus. It also means there is no 2 or 3 train in Harlem. Plus to add insult to injury, the 1 only goes to 14th St with shuttle busses running from Chambers to South Ferry. Avoid the 7th Ave line if at all possible.

Astoria - Astoria has had any real problems to speak of over 2008 so it’s come due. There is no Manhattan N train service and all trains stop at Queenboro Plaza. You can catch the 7 there but to get to 59th St/Lex or 5th Aves will take three trains instead of one. Ouch.

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FRIDAY UPDATE: There is an update involving the 8th Avenue line again this weekend. Things are awfully confusing on the west side this weekend, but here it is. In the downtown direction, everything is normal on the A, C, and E lines. But going uptown C and E trains skip Spring St. After W 4th St D trains are running uptown on the local C line because that’s their only option after being redirected at W 4th St. There are no switches to put the D trains on the express track. Since after W 4th St, the C is on the express track and the D is on the local, the MTA figures they will just keep them that way until 145 St. If you are catching an uptown local train anywhere along 8th Ave, it will be the D train. Any downtown local train will be a C or an E where available. I hope the map is clear. Let me know if it’s too confusing.

Welcome back Americans. I hope everyone got out to vote this Tuesday for the candidate of their choice whether Obama or McCain or Bob Barr. While I am pumped about President Obama (Obama = more mass transit funding!), and while I got a little misty-eyed at his speech and the sscenes in Harlem, my biggest hope is that all of you got to brave the line and vote. But this weekend is a weekend like any other (besides the spectacular Central Park foliage) and it brings a huge mess of service interruptions. If you are venturing into Midtown or Downtown this weekend for work or play, be vigilant! There are wholesale changes to the midtown map this weekend. Astoria riders are screwed particularly hard this weekend as travelling anywhere but 42nd St will require three trains. But the Rockaways, Wakefield, Harlem, and Midtown all suffer this weekend. Though things are all good in Canarsie, Jackson Heights, and Parkchester. Make sure to check the map before heading into Manhattan. And Winners and Losers returns this week! Good luck and Happy Tracks New York!

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