Category: Special Events

Why The Upcoming MTA Capital Projects Hearing Is Important

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By Joseph Morales

For more information or to sign up to speak the MTA’s hybrid Capital Projects Hearing on February 6th, click here: https://new.mta.info/transparency/public-hearings/2024-capital-projects-hearing

     In New York City, much of the population relies on mass transit run by the MTA(Metropolitan Transportation Authority)to get around. According to data from the NYC Department of City Planning, only 46% of city households own a car. Even vehicle owners often use mass transit to get to Manhattan due to traffic congestion and high parking costs. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of riders from outside of the city ride the Metro-North and LIRR commuter rails to get around the suburbs as well as into the city daily. Given how many people it moves, the MTA also plays a major part in New York’s economy. An NYU study from October 2020 found that a 40% reduction in bus/subway service and a 50% reduction in commuter rail service would cost riders more than $1.7 billion in lost time each year. This is only reflective of the impact of transit service reduction and does not reflect the impact of if mass transit were to not exist at all.

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This Year’s Holiday Fair At Grand Central Terminal Is A Huge Success

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By Joseph Morales

      All year round in addition to being one of the largest transportation hubs in the city as well as the country, Grand Central Terminal hosts a plethora of special events and exhibitions for visitors in its Vanderbilt Hall. Vanderbilt Hall, which was once the main waiting room in Grand Central,is now a world-famous event space with a 6,000 foot raw space with five chandeliers that 200,000 people pass through daily when entering and exiting the terminal. Events at Vanderbilt Hall Make for amazing experiences to have upon entering and exiting the city or even when someone is not traveling and is looking for fun things to do and see. Such events have included art and historical exhibitions, professional squash tournaments and it’s Annual Holiday Fair.

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How Will Open Streets in Rockefeller Center Change How People Get Around And Enjoy The Area?

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By Joseph Morales

 Rockefeller Center is one of the most famous recreational and tourist destinations in Midtown Manhattan as well as all of New York City during the holiday season. Treasured by locals and visitors alike, Rockefeller Center is world-famous for its 82-foot tall Christmas Tree, ice skating rink, observatory and slew of other attractions that draws over 750,000 people daily, this is about double the average weekday ridership for all MTA Buses total in 2019.  In addition to Rockefeller Center itself, the surrounding neighborhood is home to many tourist attractions that increase the density of pedestrians in the area such as St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Museum of Modern Art, Radio City Music Hall and much more. There is also a high density of transit options, employment and housing in the area which all increase pedestrian volumes. 

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  The Train Of Many Colors Is Back On The NYC Subway

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By Joseph Morales

            The New York City Transit Museum ran its first run of The Train of Many Colors this year on the 1 line between 137th St-City College and Chambers St in Manhattan. The train features subway cars with multiple different colors that were manufactured in the 1960’s and served through different eras of the New York City Subway system and were retired as recently as 2003. These cars were the R-33, R-33WF(World’s Fair) and R-36 cars. Cars with the Kale Green “Green Machines”,“Tartar Red” and “Gunn Red” Redbird, two-tone robin’s egg blue and cream “Bluebird” as well as the blue-and-silver “Platinum Mist” color schemes were all featured on the train and these schemes are all likely familiar to most adult New Yorkers. The train also featured special holiday decorations which included some paper snowflakes on the windows as well as a special snowflake designed wreath at the front of the train. 

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1st Annual We Move NY Basketball Game Was an Epic Showdown between Subways and Buses

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By Joseph Morales

            The 1st Annual We Move NY Basketball Invitational was held at the Barclays Center this Saturday with three basketball games occurring. The games were We Move New Jersey(NJ Transit employees) vs We Move Philly(SEPTA employees), NYCT Buses vs Trains and even a pee-wee game for youth. The games were all action-packed and down to the wire with players from all across the transit industry in the Northeast showing their skills.

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Car-Free Earth Day 2022 Has Been A Magical Experience For Everyone Involved

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By Joseph Morales

                Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending New York City’s largest ever Car-Free Earth Day celebration and opening day for this year’s open streets season. On Car-Free Earth Day, more than 100 streets across all 5 boroughs were closed to car traffic and offered an array of activities from educational workshops to sports clinics and performances through 150 partners that included city agencies, community groups and more. In addition, over 100 open streets, 22 plazas and 1,000 miles of the NYC Bike Network were connected to streets that were closed to vehicles for Car-Free Earth Day. Citi Bike offered unlimited 30 minute rides for free via a promo code. There truly was something for everyone.

                 Initiated in 2016 on a few Manhattan streets, the purpose of Car-Free Earth Day is to celebrate the planet and bring awareness to the negative impact carbon emissions have on the environment as well as the other negative impacts of climate change. Corridors closed to car traffic and open to activities included Broadway between Times Square and Union Square in Manhattan and 3rd Avenue between 148th and 149th streets(The Hub) in The Bronx.

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