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What do Staten Islanders think about bringing back the North Shore line in Staten Island? I see the transit line as creating a boon for the North Shore as well as giving residents of the North Shore rapid transit.
I think a North Shore Line makes sense, and I think it'd make a lot more sense technically, but would likely be mired in a bureaucratic infighting nightmare, if it was run partly as an extension of the Hudson-Bergen Line with an extension of the line from Bayonne over to the North Shore over the Bayonne Bridge.
What do Staten Islanders think about bringing back the North Shore line in Staten Island? I see the transit line as creating a boon for the North Shore as well as giving residents of the North Shore rapid transit.
They've been talking about reviving North Shore SIRR for decades, that's all it is, talk.
Too much of the ROI is in poor condition or actually gone. In fact IIRC everything basically east of Port Richmond or West Brighton is simply gone or under water.
ROI in St. George past Pavilion on Terrace or so towards and into ferry is long gone. Ripped up and out for baseball stadium, the "Wheel", and that outlet mall. Without going directly into ferry as SIRR now does for south shore line a NS line doesn't really make any sense.
Finally main reason for SIRR in whole was that B&O also used ROI on both north and south shore lines for freight. Passenger service alone then and certainly now won't pay for itself. SIRR now is mostly free, but building a new line with no intended fare box recovery means taxpayers would be footing bill. I think not.
SIRR along south shore is one reason so many towns out there have gone to sh*t. Bums, homeless, druggies, miscreants all have an easy free ride from ferry/St. George out there and back.
They’ve been talking about this since I first started reading newspapers in the 80’s! It will never happen (though it should).
Why?
First and foremost as already have said any such reactivated NS rail line cannot reach the ferry, so what's the effing point then? There is already ample bus service along Richmond Terrace, Victory Blvd and others that terminate at ferry.
As things stand now buses that run along Bay Street and Richmond Terrace between ferry/St. George are hugely populated by homeless that used them as free shuttle service. Same as they do with SIRR, why would any new RR line on NS be any different. Most of the towns formerly served by NS RR have been busted and otherwise gone down hill (New Brighton, West Brighton, Port Richmond, Mariners Harbor, Arlington.." Haven't they suffered enough?
I think a North Shore Line makes sense, and I think it'd make a lot more sense technically, but would likely be mired in a bureaucratic infighting nightmare, if it was run partly as an extension of the Hudson-Bergen Line with an extension of the line from Bayonne over to the North Shore over the Bayonne Bridge.
I believe that the North Shore line should be ran by the MTA, not NJT since Staten Island is a part of NY State. It makes no sense to allow NJT, with the exception of bus service connecting to Hudson County, to run rail service in Staten Island. Let the MTA be in charge of the rail service in Staten Island.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BugsyPal
It's funny because it never will happen.
They've been talking about reviving North Shore SIRR for decades, that's all it is, talk.
Too much of the ROI is in poor condition or actually gone. In fact IIRC everything basically east of Port Richmond or West Brighton is simply gone or under water.
ROI in St. George past Pavilion on Terrace or so towards and into ferry is long gone. Ripped up and out for baseball stadium, the "Wheel", and that outlet mall. Without going directly into ferry as SIRR now does for south shore line a NS line doesn't really make any sense.
So there's no ROW left between St George Terminal and the rest of the route? I've always assumed that there was a connection and if that's true, then it's bad planning by the city planners to allow that to happen. If SI were to grow even more, then that North Shore line would make a lot more sense, but this is the reason why ROWs should be respected because we'll never know when we need them in the near future.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BugsyPal
Finally main reason for SIRR in whole was that B&O also used ROI on both north and south shore lines for freight. Passenger service alone then and certainly now won't pay for itself. SIRR now is mostly free, but building a new line with no intended fare box recovery means taxpayers would be footing bill. I think not.
SIRR along south shore is one reason so many towns out there have gone to sh*t. Bums, homeless, druggies, miscreants all have an easy free ride from ferry/St. George out there and back.
The railroads from the 1850's the about the 1950's were the primary mode of transportation for many Americans, then during the 1950's the automobile replaced the train as the primary mode and ever since them, the car is still the primary way for many Americans to travel. Even so, the fact that passenger service won't pay for itself makes a lot of sense and you're right about that. In that case, take the SIRT as a "free service" and place token booths in each and every station.
When I took the SIRT from St George all the way into Tottenville, I never understood why the SIRT was solely a "free service" compared to the rest of the city subway, and I'm pretty sure that the service is subsidized by borough residents as well as the state through city and state taxes and the federal gov't, which is why it's a "free service". If you want to improve service by adding fare collection, so be it. I've always though that the South Shore was the more affluent area of SI over the North Shore.
A majority of SI residents commute by car, I assume, and I believe that the straphangers that use the SIRT do so just to go to St George just to catch the SI Ferry. I'm also pretty sure that there's intraborough travel within the route, but as always, most SI commuters are motorists, so the SIRT isn't as heavily utilized as the rest of NY's subway system.
If it makes sense to place token booths for fare collection, do so, but if not, then there needs to be constant maintenance placed on the line like the other subway lines.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BugsyPal
Why?
First and foremost as already have said any such reactivated NS rail line cannot reach the ferry, so what's the effing point then? There is already ample bus service along Richmond Terrace, Victory Blvd and others that terminate at ferry.
As things stand now buses that run along Bay Street and Richmond Terrace between ferry/St. George are hugely populated by homeless that used them as free shuttle service. Same as they do with SIRR, why would any new RR line on NS be any different. Most of the towns formerly served by NS RR have been busted and otherwise gone down hill (New Brighton, West Brighton, Port Richmond, Mariners Harbor, Arlington.." Haven't they suffered enough?
I feel the reason for the homeless is due to the "free service" that's offered by the SIRT. The only solution is to make all the stations in the system have fare collection through staffed token booths and turnstiles. It's still not going to stop the inflow of homeless, vagabonds and vagrants, but having fare collection will reduce the amount. If the SI residents don't want fare collection, then that's their prerogative, but a better plan is to make sure that the city offers homeless serivce through all five boroughs as well as lower taxes, raise wages, and keep in check the astronomical rise in prices for everything because that's the real reason why there's so many homeless people in NYC and not just the drug use, which is more an after effect of homelessness than just a symptom.
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