“Where’s Ashton Kutcher?!” That was the sole thought that flooded my mind after hearing that the MTA was doing another fare hike. I was waiting for Ashton to pop out of nowhere and laugh about the fact that he just succeeded in punking New York City. I can remember paying four dollars for my round trip service during high school on those days my student MetroCard didn’t work. Now a round trip fare is five dollars which COULD be a nice meal off the dollar menu (if you choose your items wisely), earrings from H&M, or gas to put some notches on the tank. My response to this fare hike is, I hope you’re also going to hike up your service.
A couple of weeks ago my usual hour commute to work took approximately three and a half hours. After getting off the bus, walking down the stairs, and swiping my card; I’m told there is no E service at Jamaica Center. Remaining calm, I asked an employee if the F was in service (which is about a 10 minute walk) and he responds with a yes adding that it was a good idea. So I call my manager and let them know the situation and walk to Parsons Boulevard. With the reassurance of that employee I walk only to find that the F wasn’t in service either. Actually I discover by means of a handwritten sign that due to an police investigation at Kew Gardens/Union Turnpike last night, there were no southbound E or F trains operating past 71st & Continental/Forest Hills. At that particular moment I felt a rage like no other; but then another idea popped up. I knew there was a bus (Q60) that runs along Queens Boulevard that could get me to the Forest Hills station and after double checking with this employee to make sure the bus was actually running, I decided to embark on this walk. After about 25 minutes of walking and finally reaching this destination I find about 8 people who had the same idea and I call my manager again letting them know I should be there soon. There was just one issue, not a single bus passed for like 35 minutes! Every other bus must have passed about five times during that period with the regular and limited being in service. But then like a light in a dark tunnel came the Q60, and as we all in the crowd (which had increased in size) sighed with relieve the bus drove right past us saying it was full. At that moment I think the mouth of every person dropped in unison. Slowly the horns grew out of my head and my blood began to boil; how I felt can be illustrated like this (http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTWiD_xZ3OY). Besides the fact that I had been outside in the cold for over an hour due to walking and waiting, every single bus that passed was full. What made it worse was that some buses clearly had space in the back but they still wouldn’t stop. I couldn’t grasp an understanding that if the MTA knew they didn’t have service on ALL lines that give Jamaica service to Manhattan, shouldn’t they have employed shuttles or I don’t know more buses. So now with a waiting time of about an hour and a fifteen minutes in addition to the over hour period of walking and waiting; shuttles were finally sent. Upon reaching Forest Hills we of course had to wait for the train; because of course there weren’t any trains ready to get the immense and angry crowd to their destinations.
This is a situation that doesn’t happen everyday but we all run into “train traffic”, “being held by the trains dispatcher”, or other issues that delay our commute. Sometimes these issues are understandable but then at other times they don’t make sense at all. It’s frustrating when the grace period you give yourself during travel is taken up by a train moving painfully slow or a train being stuck in the tunnel for 15 minutes without a word from the conductor. Ten years ago the fare was $1.50 and now it’s going up to $2.50. Of course we can factor a changing economy and other components, but are we truly getting a service worth this hike? If a single fare is now $2.50 and an unlimited monthly is now $112, I just might consider walking.
What do you guys think about the MTA? Do you think this hike is justified? Have you ever encountered a crazy commute?
