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Sorry, but Metro North is a disaster. Reliability wise, it rivals bus service in China. Frankly it's embarrassing how bad it is. Or at least, it should be. I take the train to NYC everyday, and it's literally a coin flip at this point as to whether you will get to your destination on time (and by on time, im being generous in saying within 10 min). The track, the train, and the personnel are all in need of replacement. From the president of the line, right on down to the conductors. Awful. The conditions you have to ride in, the price you have to pay, and the service you are given, are all bottom of the barrel. Just because the stuff is physically there, doesn't mean it works worth a damn. And the best part is, we pay through the nose for it.
Sorry, but Metro North is a disaster. Reliability wise, it rivals bus service in China. Frankly it's embarrassing how bad it is. Or at least, it should be. I take the train to NYC everyday, and it's literally a coin flip at this point as to whether you will get to your destination on time (and by on time, im being generous in saying within 10 min). The track, the train, and the personnel are all in need of replacement. From the president of the line, right on down to the conductors. Awful. The conditions you have to ride in, the price you have to pay, and the service you are given, are all bottom of the barrel. Just because the stuff is physically there, doesn't mean it works worth a damn. And the best part is, we pay through the nose for it.
Idk , The New Haven is in bad shape...but Metro North overall is one of the better systems in the region. I would not blame Metro North that much they do an Awesome job for a congested line like the NHL. Moving 133,000 daily along one line is a hard task....then there are capacity and a ton of our issues. Some conductors may have issues , but i would not say all of them , considering i know a decent amount. Your also getting New trains....so you won't have to , the tracks are all replaced....the wires are being replaced. The MNRR President is one of the best , you could always get a LIRR president... The Fares could be lower by 5-10 , and the peak fare surcharge needs to be eliminated...
Metro North is one of the most reliable railroads in this country. It's reliability is over 90%. This winter was particularly bad for them because of the weather issues but that was true across the entire country. The new train sets will only improve service in the next year. Jay
Downtown Manahattan can take just as long to get to from some parts of the city (UWS, UES) as it does to get to Stamford. Its clear they are getting some generous subsidies to move (like they got when they moved to CT), and that is what is drving this. If Malloy is serious about being open for business (which I'm not sure I believe), then he will need to be aggressive about making it worth it for UBS to stay.
And the thing is that the WTC area isn't really that great of a place to locate a corporate HQ. Transportation is inferior since it is not accessible by the major railway lines. Not as much to do in the surrounding areas compared to midtown.
Clearly, officials failed to make Stamford a more attractive and diverse place to locate a business over the past 17 years, whether it's because of the cost, inefficient public transpo, etc. Having a major anchor tenant like UBS should've catapulted Stamford to success but public officials blew the opportunity.
And the thing is that the WTC area isn't really that great of a place to locate a corporate HQ. Transportation is inferior since it is not accessible by the major railway lines. Not as much to do in the surrounding areas compared to midtown.
Clearly, officials failed to make Stamford a more attractive and diverse place to locate a business over the past 17 years, whether it's because of the cost, inefficient public transpo, etc. Having a major anchor tenant like UBS should've catapulted Stamford to success but public officials blew the opportunity.
Huh , Stamford is located on the busiest Railway , Highway and is near the Major and minor airports. Its not lacking in transportation....although there are plently of enhancements needed. There are a few cities in NJ or LHV similar to Stamford and there having no problems attracting small and large business. Lower Manhattan is well connected by the PATH , Ferries and Bus Network.... Midtown has reached its limits so space is needed , Lower Manhattan still has space...
Metro North is one of the most reliable railroads in this country. It's reliability is over 90%. This winter was particularly bad for them because of the weather issues but that was true across the entire country. The new train sets will only improve service in the next year. Jay
It should be near 100%. You know that in Japan, if the train is more than 1 min late it's free!?! I'm not saying we need to be at that anal level, but MNR is nowhere near that. Your 90% number sounds like you pulled it out of thin air.
I'm tired of their excuses, and I'm tried of the sheeple who defend them, who don't ride those trains everyday. If they were private, they'd be out of business 10X over.
Idk , The New Haven is in bad shape...but Metro North overall is one of the better systems in the region. I would not blame Metro North that much they do an Awesome job for a congested line like the NHL. Moving 133,000 daily along one line is a hard task....then there are capacity and a ton of our issues. Some conductors may have issues , but i would not say all of them , considering i know a decent amount. Your also getting New trains....so you won't have to , the tracks are all replaced....the wires are being replaced. The MNRR President is one of the best , you could always get a LIRR president... The Fares could be lower by 5-10 , and the peak fare surcharge needs to be eliminated...
I don't want to hear the excuses. That's their JOB and they are paid HANDSOMELY to do it. A lot of overpaid union jobbers from the top down. Unfortunately very typical in this country, which is why we our infrastructure is in such bad shape. And I'll believe that "rumor" about new trains when I see them. The MTA isn't quite done padding their coffers by inventing those "testing delays" yet. And then it'll be the tracks...and then it'll be the wires..and then it'll be something else.
Did they lower the prices when they were only running 60% of the fleet on a drastically reduced schedule? Have you ever been stranded on one of those death traps for 3 hours? I have. Did I even get as much as a "sorry"? Nope. They know you'll take it because you have to. They're criminals.
I don't blame UBS one bit. There is no advantage to being in CT vs NYC at all.
Not to mention the horrendous traffic UBS clients go through when driving up from JFK/LaGuardia. NYC is simply more practical from just about every perspective.
It will be very interesting to see what RBS does in the upcoming years.
Speaking of corporate jobs, GE Capital recently announced the addition of 1,000 jobs in Chicago. I find this interesting since they are headquartered in Norwalk and have roots in Stamford.
I don't want to hear the excuses. That's their JOB and they are paid HANDSOMELY. Overpaid union jobbers from the top down. Unfortunately very typical in this country, which is why we our infrastructure is in such bad shape. And I'll believe that "rumor" about new trains when I see them. The MTA isn't quite done padding their coffers by inventing those "testing delays" yet. And then it'll be the tracks...and then it'll be the wires..and then it'll be something else.
Did they lower the prices when they were only running 60% of the fleet? Have you ever been stranded on one of those death traps for 3 hours? I have. Did I even get as much as a "sorry"? Nope. They know you'll take it because you have to. They're criminals.
I don't blame UBS one bit. There is no advantage to being in CT vs NYC at all.
I remember reading in one of the many articles linked to here on this topic something about a non compete pact between NJ/NY/CT. It even mentioned when CT lured UBS to Stamford NYC took out full page ads in CT newspapers to protest it.
What happened to this pact? Was it ever valid and/or is it still valid?
In regards to Metro north I'm an infrequent user of the system. Luckily I don't have to commute on it. From what I've seen though it is an embarrassment and is extremely dirty. I would actually qualify it as disgusting. I've been on cleaner NYC subway cars. Conn should be embarrassed to be connected to MNRR. And they should be embarrassed to charge what they currently charge for fares. Cut the price in half and I could tolerate the disgusting cars.
Conversely, I've been on the LIRR and the Hudson line of MNRR and both of those lines had much cleaner cars. The hudson line trains even had bathrooms.
It should be near 100%. You know that in Japan, if the train is more than 1 min late it's free!?! I'm not saying we need to be at that anal level, but MNR is nowhere near that. Your 90% number sounds like you pulled it out of thin air.
I'm tired of their excuses, and I'm tried of the sheeple who defend them, who don't ride those trains everyday. If they were private, they'd be out of business 10X over.
This is not Japan , with all the plans ive seen it will one day be as big as Japan. 90% is accurate for New Haven line , it may not seem like it but it is... I'm sure they would survive if they were private , the fares might even be lower like in Japan.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SVTJayC
I don't want to hear the excuses. That's their JOB and they are paid HANDSOMELY to do it. A lot of overpaid union jobbers from the top down. Unfortunately very typical in this country, which is why we our infrastructure is in such bad shape. And I'll believe that "rumor" about new trains when I see them. The MTA isn't quite done padding their coffers by inventing those "testing delays" yet. And then it'll be the tracks...and then it'll be the wires..and then it'll be something else.
Did they lower the prices when they were only running 60% of the fleet on a drastically reduced schedule? Have you ever been stranded on one of those death traps for 3 hours? I have. Did I even get as much as a "sorry"? Nope. They know you'll take it because you have to. They're criminals.
I don't blame UBS one bit. There is no advantage to being in CT vs NYC at all.
The Truth is most aren't paided that much , there Salary is capped at 60k , some older and higher ups make 90-120k which is ridiculous but those making that much is shrinking. It wasn't there fault that half the fleet went out in the winter , its your states fault for not replacing the fleet in the 80s and 90s like the rest of the MNRR and NJT. If you don't like it , don't use it , but its growing in Ridership every year. There was alot of issues with the Newer fleet , one was it messed with the Amtrak signals which isn't one of those things you can ignore. But there are 20 cars so far , if your lucky by December you'll have 60 cars out of 360.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGompers
I remember reading in one of the many articles linked to here on this topic something about a non compete pact between NJ/NY/CT. It even mentioned when CT lured UBS to Stamford NYC took out full page ads in CT newspapers to protest it.
What happened to this pact? Was it ever valid and/or is it still valid?
In regards to Metro north I'm an infrequent user of the system. Luckily I don't have to commute on it. From what I've seen though it is an embarrassment and is extremely dirty. I would actually qualify it as disgusting. I've been on cleaner NYC subway cars. Conn should be embarrassed to be connected to MNRR. And they should be embarrassed to charge what they currently charge for fares. Cut the price in half and I could tolerate the disgusting cars.
Conversely, I've been on the LIRR and the Hudson line of MNRR and both of those lines had much cleaner cars. The hudson line trains even had bathrooms.
CT runs the MNRR in CT , so its CTDOT fault for all the old cars and slow upgrading of the NHL. They are replacing them now , but there way behind... The 133,000 who use the NHL leaves little time for the trains to get cleaned , so there usually serviced.... CT also plans on Expanding Metro North , and so does New York state....So get ready for more stations and lines. Theres a small but growing waiting list of towns that want stations and Line improvements are underway along the Waterbury and Danbury branch. So NYC Subway cars are clean , but most are dirty....even more dirty then the NHL. LIRR is worse then MNRR in terms then service and delays , slightly cleaner cars...but in the winter time it just collapses... I'm sure the price will drop once all there projects are completed....
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