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

Moderator: GirlOnTheTrain

 #1315471  by keyboardkat
 
SemperFidelis wrote:Must have been MANY years ago to be diverted to Idlewild Field. Last time I heard it called that was when Kruschev was due there on Car 54.

I would imagine a direct link between the two would benefit the PA as the two fields could then operate in conjunction with one another. Having flown into both, I'd imagine having those aircraft with shorter landing and takeoff requirements routed via LGA would be beneficial, leaving more slots for the heavies at JFK.
Also off topic, but the reason JFK was originally called Idlewild Airport was that it was built on the site of the old Idlewild Golf Course. And before that, there was an amusement park on the site, which was at that time owned by the Steinway family, the piano builders.
Just a bunch of little historical tidbits that you can trot out at cocktail parties to impress the hoi polloi...
 #1315729  by 4400Washboard
 
I'm not too thrilled about this proposal especially because I'm not interested in seeing the 7 train even more crowded. Then again, maybe people would opt for the express service...

Anyway, nice to see KLGA finally get an AirTrain. Although I could find it useful (Considering that I am a short walk away from the (7) train), I probably won't use it because finding a taxi is easier and actually rather quick.
 #1316651  by The EGE
 
That does a great job of failing to connect to anything useful. Airport connectors work best when they provide a one-seat or two-seat route to downtown areas. A circumferential connection to 125th Street is beyond useless.
 #1316685  by 4400Washboard
 
DogBert wrote:So far this is the only transit option I've heard of that avoids 'nimbys' and adding more riders to already overtaxed queens subway routes.
http://ltvsquad.com/2015/02/06/forget-t ... laguardia/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Not viable from a financial standpoint, but looks like an ok idea. If I was to tamper with the M60 bus route, I'd do something like this:

Have the M60 start right by the jumble of expensive hotels near Times Square:

Go north on Park Avenue stopping only at the "Big streets" (42, 57, 72, 79, etc.) so that there is connection to subway and bus routes a block away. Once you get to 96th street, go to the FDR Drive, get on the Triboro Bridge (Manhattan-Randalls), get on the next Triboro Bridge (Randalls-Queens), get off at the exit with the N/Q train (I forget the station name), pick up pax, get back on the Grand Central Pkwy and run express to the Terminal D exit for LGA. Make stops for each terminal (Including Marine Air Terminal) and bingo, there you go.

However, any sort of M60 route from the heart of Manhattan will have to traverse an uptown avenue and that is NOT feasible during rush hour. Therefore, if any sort of bus route would have to be created from midtown, the schedule would have to allow for some wiggle room in case of excessive delays on the streets.


Overall, trains would be a more suited for this type of travel.
 #1388876  by Jeff Smith
 
This has been bubbling to the surface again: http://secondavenuesagas.com/2016/06/15 ... vaporware/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

and: http://secondavenuesagas.com/2015/08/05 ... s-n-train/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Follow the links in the story for previous history as well.

And here's some old history on the prior proposal: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMT_Astor ... _proposals" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
In 1998, an extension of the BMT Astoria Line to LaGuardia Airport was planned as part of a $1.2 billion package to provide access to the New York City airports with funding from the MTA, the Port Authority and the city. The preferred route would have extended the Astoria Line along 31st Street north onto Con Edison’s property at the edge of Astoria and then east along 19th Avenue to the Marine Air Terminal. The MTA also considered an eastward extension along Ditmars Boulevard, and a plan to reroute LaGuardia-bound trains from Queensboro Plaza through the Sunnyside rail yard and along the eastern edge of St. Michael’s Cemetery to elevated tracks parallel to the Grand Central Parkway. A fourth route was to have trains turn east via Astoria Boulevard.[12] All of the options would have new elevated sections built. $645 million for the LaGuardia extension was included in the MTA’s 2000-2004 Five-Year Capital Plan, and in late 2002, Mayor Bloomberg supported the extension. However, community opposition was strong and therefore the plan was canceled in July 2003.[13][14]
 #1430755  by Jeff Smith
 
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc ... -1.3148361" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

SNIPS:
Midtown-based Parsons Brinckerhoff will get $14.6 million develop and analyze a proposal to connect LaGuardia Airport to the Willets Point transit hub in Queens by an AirTrain, Cuomo announced Monday.

With most flyers and workers reaching LaGuardia by car, Cuomo has pushed construction of a mass transit link to shuttle people to and from the airport.

Cuomo guarantees a 30-minute ride to the airport from Grand Central and Penn Station. The AirTrain would link the airport and the Willets Points stations on the No. 7 line and Long Island Rail Road.
...
From Midtown, passengers would have to travel two miles east of the airport, then backtrack on the AirTrain.

“The line is pointing in the wrong direction and is connected to the wrong line,” said Yonah Freemark, a city planner and transit blogger at Transport Politic, who studied the AirTrain proposal.
 #1514637  by Jeff Smith
 
Well, apparently the Post doesn't like it...: The $2B lunacy of the LaGuardia AirTrain
In just four and a half years, the proposed AirTrain to LaGuardia has grown from a $450 million idea of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s to a $2.05 billion Port Authority turkey. Stop this train now!

Cuomo envisioned the new rail line, to be part of the $8 billion renovation of LaGuardia Airport, as bringing a 30-minutes-or-less ride to Midtown Manhattan. That fast trip, PA Executive Director Rick Cotton adds, would be “reliable and predictable.”

No way this plan does that: The 1.5-mile line would head away from Manhattan to connect to the No. 7 train and a LIRR branch at Willets Point. But it’s 20 subway stops to Midtown from there, and trains on the Port Washington branch don’t run often enough. The “fast trip” would take longer than your options now.

Not all the dough goes for the new line itself: The plan includes an LIRR station rebuild at $75 million, work at the No. 7 stop at $50 million and another $50 million to move the MTA’s Casey Stengel Bus Depot — plus construction of employee parking lots, a consolidated rental-car facility and a hotel.
...
 #1519954  by nyrmetros
 
The current plan is horrible. $2 Billion for a light rail system that only offers a connection to the overcrowded 7 train and the once every 30 minutes if lucky Port Washington LIRR? Why would they not also connect the system to the JFK airtrain and make 1 unified system?
 #1520008  by andegold
 
Why are they focusing on/assuming a 20 stop local to Manhattan? Wouldn't there be enough traffic generated by this service to institute full time (even if only rush hour directional) express service? Is there any way to make the express service bi-directional?
 #1520046  by Head-end View
 
I agree it's a bad plan. Unfortunately there is no way to make the #7 express bi-directional on a three-track el line. I've always thought they should go with the original idea of making the air-train an extension of the Astoria N,Q line or at least having a cross-platform transfer from the Airtrain to the N, Q line at Ditmars Blvd or other appropriate location.

And while they're at it build another leg of the Airtrain from Jamaica up the Grand Central Pkwy to LGA so the two airports would be connected.
 #1520085  by njtmnrrbuff
 
There is no need to have an Airtrain route from Manhattan to LGA. Probably the best solution would be is to just have Airtrain stay in Queens and run it between the two airports. That would not only be good for people who are traveling to JFK or LGA, but it could also open up for new travel options from lets say Ozone Park to Willets where Mets fans can get to their games. The Pt. Authority needs to spend more of its energy focusing on expanding capacity at the Port Authority Bus terminal and completely renovating the building. It might not be a bad idea for the MTA to consider extending the N train from Ditmars Blvd to LaGuardia but it's probably better to have people take the 7 or the LIRR to Willets Point and then switch to an Airtrain extension.
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