Railroad Forums 

Discussion relating to the past and present operations of the NYC Subway, PATH, and Staten Island Railway (SIRT).

Moderator: GirlOnTheTrain

 #1356755  by Allan
 
Backshophoss wrote:Try the NJ governor's mansion instead,they(the PA) seem to listen to him. :P
But he is rarely ever there with him running for the GOP presidential nomination and all.

Maybe people should all go to New Hampshire and find him. He seems to like it there.
 #1364467  by Hawaiitiki
 
Another unfortunate, albeit unsurprising, update.
  • *Still no new entrances open. As recent as November '15, PA officials were quoted saying the PATH entrances to the more trafficked south side of the WTC complex would open before this New Year's Eve.
    *Two escalators broken this morning. Escalator on far right, looking from the bottom, been out of order since at least September '15.
    *They're saying now that the complex will open in early March '16. If you've seen the progress, or lack thereof, recently, I would say even that sounds optimistic. http://curbed.com/archives/2015/12/28/c ... o-open.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Also this: http://www.constructiondive.com/news/co ... me/410738/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. The thought that no one in the Port Authority was complicit in these schemes is outright ludicrous.
 #1370852  by Hawaiitiki
 
A little update:
-5 of 8 escalators broken this morning
-still a ton of exposed electrical and HVAC work in the PATH hall area.

The whole complex and experience feels extremely "developing world". The thought that this will open in 3 weeks as advertised by politicos and the PA is starting to seem again outlandish.

Image
 #1372648  by Gilbert B Norman
 
Next week; very low key says The Times:

http://nytimes.com/2016/02/25/nyregion/ ... -open.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Fair Use:
After a 12-year gestation, Santiago Calatrava’s phoenix at the World Trade Center is ready to soar.

Or, at least, to hatch.

One half of the enormous Oculus, the birdlike centerpiece of the World Trade Center Transportation Hub, is scheduled to open next week, seven years later than it was supposed to when Mr. Calatrava’s design was unveiled in 2004. And at double the estimated cost.

It will be a soft opening, unmarked by the kind of ceremony that used to be conducted at ground zero with embarrassing frequency — in part to bolster officials’ egos, in part to assure a devastated city that there was hope of recovery.
 #1372979  by Gilbert B Norman
 
http://www.wsj.com/articles/santiago-ca ... 1456498182" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here's an "up close and personal" article on Mr. Calatrava appearing in Today's Wall Street Journal.

Fair Use:
Completing the hub is bittersweet. “The architect works for so many years building it, and the moment you deliver it to the people is the moment when you are unnecessary,” he says with a smile.

Just as Grand Central Terminal has endured for over a century, he hopes the hub will be around for a long time. There’s only one problem. “This station is a milestone” in his career, he says. “What can I do now?
 #1373085  by TDowling
 
The article says that the hub is to connect eleven subway lines with a commuter train. What commuter train are they referring to? PATH?
Also, is the PA going to finally institute direct weekend service from HOB to WTC now that the hub is complete?
 #1373169  by Hawaiitiki
 
TDowling wrote:What commuter train are they referring to? PATH?
Also, is the PA going to finally institute direct weekend service from HOB to WTC now that the hub is complete?
Yes, the Path is often considered a commuter railroad despite it arguably sharing more characteristics with Rapid Transit. But only in the past 10 years has reverse morning commuting (NYC > JC/HOB/NWK) actually ramped up.
TDowling wrote:Also, is the PA going to finally institute direct weekend service from HOB to WTC now that the hub is complete?
I've never seen any documentation on this. Would be great for me as I work downtown and live in Hoboken, and often go in for an hour or two on weekends, but I don't think the general demand is there for direct Hob-WTC weekend service. The whole weekend Hoboken > Grove St > WTC schlepp would be bearable if weekend NWK - WTC wasn't as abhorrent as it currently is. The last two weeks I've waited midday 15 min and 35 min on the Grove Street platform for a WTC train, which is disgraceful. Seemed like single tracking in the Hudson River tunnels and more snow related repairs were the culprit, but still come on. People still use the train on the weekends to get to work, not everybody works 9-5 on Wall Street weekdays.
 #1373188  by Gilbert B Norman
 
Hawaiitiki wrote: Yes, the Path is often considered a commuter railroad despite it arguably sharing more characteristics with Rapid Transit
Indeed Mr. Tiki, "once upon a time" the H&M (railroad, youngsters; not the retailer) was a "billing road". Interline tickets to points on the PRR were issued, and the particular connecting train to Newark was shown in PRR timetables. I cannot rrecall if baggage could be checked directly to Hudson Terminal.
 #1373197  by MACTRAXX
 
Everyone:

The New York Daily News described the Calatrava designed WTC station canopy as a "monument to waste" noting
how the uncontrolled cost almost tripled over its construction period and is an example of excesses by the PA...

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/monu ... -1.2545524" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This editorial describes what some posters here think about the Calatrava design of the new WTC Terminal...
I will not comment until I can travel there and see it for myself...

MACTRAXX
 #1373645  by Gilbert B Norman
 
The Times architecture critic has sure teed off on the Calatrava "Oculus" at World Trade Center:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/03/arts/ ... oggle.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Fair Use:
For a dozen years, the World Trade Center Transportation Hub was a train wreck. Santiago Calatrava’s winged dove, beefed up to meet security demands, devolved into a dino carcass. The project’s cost soared toward a head-slapping, unconscionable $4 billion in public money for what, in effect, is the 18th-busiest subway stop in New York City, tucked inside a shopping mall, down the block from another shopping center.

And it’s not really a hub. A maze of underground passages connects the site to far-flung subway lines, but there are not free transfers. The place is a glorified PATH station for some 50,000 weekday riders commuting to and from New Jersey. Predictions by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which built the hub, that this number will somehow double when the site opens seem as reliable as the authority’s initial promises that the project would take five years and cost $2.2 billion.
If whatever is to de done at/about Penn, one can only hope that all critics, architectural and otherwise, will say it represents responsible use of public funds.
 #1373647  by Hawaiitiki
 
HEY EVERYBODY GUESS WHAT DIDN'T ACTUALLY OPEN UP THIS MORNING AS ADVERTISED? (AGAIN)

You guessed it, the WTC Path Station. The PA was not in rare form as the only thing new about this mornings commute was that the blaring fire alarm was going off, construction workers were taking selfies, and the temporary walls in the PATH hall came down, so you can SEE the new area, but still not access it. Excuse the crude pics, was rushing to work.

New View from Path hall
http://i.imgur.com/S2GViBr.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Still unopened turnstiles
http://i.imgur.com/7ukg29s.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Church and Liberty exit, also still not open.
http://i.imgur.com/8XUzCir.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 #1373859  by Hawaiitiki
 
Tdowling was correct. The facility opened later in the day. Really only two more entrances opened. I created a (crude) map below highlighted red that are portions that are set to be open but are not yet open.

New to Open:
Church and Liberty Street Entrances
Entrance Directly to WTC 3

Not yet Open:
Connection to Fulton Center (biggest disappointment)
Remaining PATH platforms and associated mezzanine level
Remaining Portion of East West Corridor.
Any NYC Subway connections whatsoever

Image
 #1374596  by Allan
 
"Santiago Calatrava’s winged dove"

It is a dove, huh? Well, it figures that with this project someone was giving us the bird.