The MTA just released the results of a study they undertook to understand why the F train was delayed so frequently. It discovered, unsurprisingly, that there are lots of reasons! “The review shows that the F lags behind other routes in many performance measures and that the older parts of its infrastructure, some of which are 90 years old, can affect service reliability.” As in, the type of “affected service reliability” that makes you miss that one big important meeting. With your girlfriend’s parents. To ask them for her hand. Seriously, people are pissed at the F train. What’s frustrating is not that the MTA is just discovering what the problem is now. It’s that they can actually do something to fix it! They’ve had solutions this whole time. Sure, some of them are B.S.-sounding, like “Reorganizing line management, to provide greater accountability over multiple disciplines,” and “Establishing a task force of senior managers to review F line operations and develop strategies for improvements.” (Anyone surprised this agency is constantly over budget?) But real solutions. Like overhauling the signal system, getting newer train cars, phasing out old ones, creating a dedicated maintenance team, and starting express service in Brooklyn.
This is kind of like when someone told Dorothy that she’d been tooling all around Oz in the very devices that could have gotten her home swiftly and efficiently this whole time. Dorothy was delighted, but she was a Kansan. A New Yorker would have smacked that Glinda witch right in the mouth.
On the F Train, the M.T.A. Confirms What Riders Know [City Room/NYT]
