Riders 'C' Some Improvements In Grading 7 And L Train Lines

The results for the second annual Rider Report Cards for the 7 and L lines are in, and commuters have given both trains overall grades of C- and C+, respectively, MTA New York City Transit announced.

More than 6,000 riders graded the lines on a variety of categories including delays during trips, room on board during rush hour, cleanliness of stations, station announcements, vandalism in subway cars and availability of MetroCard vending machines.

L train

Regarding the L line, which runs between Canarsie, Brooklyn and Eighth Avenue and 14th Street in Manhattan, the C+ grade given by riders for overall service was an improvement from the C grade issued in 2007. Over 2,200 riders graded service by mail and through the Internet; in 2007, more than 4,000 responses were received to the survey.

Some of the criteria graded by L train riders are as follows:

• Minimal delays during trips— C (last year, C-);

• Reasonable wait times for trains—C+ (last year, C);

• Cleanliness of stations—C+ (last year, C-);

• Cleanliness of subway cars— B- (last year, C+);

• Station announcements that are easy to hear—C+ (last year, C);

• Station announcements that are informative—C+ (last year, C-);

• Adequate room on board at rush hour—D (last year, D).

Riders were also asked to prioritize what three improvements they would like to see made to service. As was the case in 2007, the top three improvements, in order, were adequate room on board during rush hour, minimal delays during trips and reasonable wait times for trains.

"I am pleased that Canarsie Line riders have noticed the effort put in by Line General Manager Greg Lombardi and his team to improve the service they receive," said MTA NYC Transit President Howard H. Roberts Jr.

7 train

As for the 7 train, more than 4,100 Flushing line riders took part in the survey; more than 3,900 of them completed their report cards by mail, while another 200 submitted their responses through the Internet.

Overall, the C- minus grade for the line that operates between Times Square in Manhattan and Main Street in Flushing was unchanged from the grade it received in 2007.

Some of the criteria graded by 7 train riders are as follows:

• Cleanliness of stations—C (last year, C-);

• Cleanliness of subway cars—C (last year, C-);

• Lack of "scratchitti" in subway cars—C (last year, C-);

• Station announcements that are easy to hear—C- (last year, D+);

• Station announcements that are informative—C- (last year, D+);

• Minimal delays during trips— D+ (last year, C-);

• Reasonable wait times for trains—C- (last year, C);

• Adequate room on board at rush hour—D (last year, D).

As for the top three priorities for improvement, riders listed minimal delays during trips, adequate room on board at rush hour and reasonable wait times for trains as their top preferences.

"While the overall grade did not improve, riders clearly appreciated the extra effort the 7 line team put into cleaning," Roberts said. "There is a lot of work still to be done, but I know that incoming General Manager John Hoban and his team will use their resources wisely as they look to improve in areas where they are currently deficient."