Reuse your MetroCard?
I recently returned from a trip to New York, the country's transit capital. The Metro in D.C. is a toy train set compared to the subway in New York. This is despite the fact that the D.C. Metro is the second busiest subway in the country. It's a distant second, though: according to this not-perfectly-reliable source, the ridership of a single line in New York--the one beneath Lexington Avenue--exceeds the traffic on the entire D.C. system.
The subway seemed quite lively to me. It teemed with vendors and performers who would roam from one car to another. People also performed in the stations; I saw some good breakdancers in Grand Central.
Speaking of Grand Central, I didn't know that MTA practically owns the place. It is spectacular, and there's a restaurant--Junior's?--on the lower level with some great cheesecake. Pennsylvania Station, on the other hand, seemed to be a big basement.
Most appalling to me were the piles of MetroCards in many stations, on the floor. Still more MetroCards littered the trains. The MetroCard is a sturdy piece of plastic, so I'd think it could be reused for at least a year. But people have no incentive to reuse them: a new MetroCard costs nothing, so when one's MetroCard runs out of money, only a conscience for the environment keeps him from tossing it aside. I'd bet that if MTA put a minor deposit on the Metro card--even as little as a quarter--they'd be reused a lot more. I wouldn't be surprised if they considered this but rejected the idea because New Yorkers were used to tokens--they might have had a rebellion on their hands if they suggested that people had to pay for the card!
Overall I was surprised by the subway, and by New York. I found both to be very welcoming and hospitable, in a unique sort of way. I wouldn't mind commuting or working in New York. Whether I could squeeze myself into a tiny New York apartment is another question.
Post Author:
massysett | 2:05 PM |
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Oh, the wide-eyed look of a NYC newbie. The Junior's in Grand Central is a pale imitation of the original in downtown Brooklyn.
Amen to that, brother. The REAL Junior's is on Flatbush Avenue, near my old Brooklyn nabe. You can get there from Grand Central Terminal, though, by hopping on the IRT to Nevins St.
And thank you for not calling it Grand Central Station (since that's a post office).
I agree that the NY subway is a wonderful thing. However comparisons with the DC Metro are as pointless as comparing DC and NYC overall.... they are both wonderful in their own ways and that is enough. As far as squeezing in to a tiny New York apartment - it will be good practice for squeezing into the subway in rush hour.... I was never happier than when I started working at home and could give up rush hour on the N train forever. (I was born in NY but grew up and currently live in DC.)
Penn Station IS a huge basement. But, once the Farley Building redevelopment is done, the combined station won't be.
