CHANGING THE RIDE TO WORK

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s plan to replace the M train with the V line that will provide direct service from Middle Village to midtown Manhattan was a hot topic during last Tuesday’s meeting of Community Board 5’s Transportation and Public Transit committees in Glendale.

Joseph Raskin, assistant director of governmental affairs for the MTA, explained the proposal that is among a slew of service cutbacks and changes proposed by the authority earlier this year due to budget constraints.

If approved by the MTA board of directors, as previously reported, the M train would be eliminated and sup- planted by the V train, which would run along the current M line route between Metropolitan Avenue and Essex Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. From there, the V line would then shift onto the F line and travel north into midtown Manhattan before turning back into Queens and ending at 71st-Continental Avenues in Forest Hills.

“What we’ve tried to do is come up with plans that reduce operating costs in the best possible way for our customers,” Raskin said, noting that the V train plan mimics the defunct K train which ran between Brooklyn and Manhattan during the 1970s.

He noted that the MTA found in its research that thousands of customers who ride the M and J lines each day transfer at Essex Street to pick up the F line into midtown Manhattan. It is expected that as many as 22,000 riders per day would benefit from the V line switch, which would offer them a one-seat ride uptown.

On the other hand, those commuting to lower Manhattan would be required to transfer from the M line at either Myrtle Avenue-Broadway, Marcy Avenue or Essex Street to pick up the J train, which will make stops at Bowery, Canal Street, Chambers Street, Fulton Street and Broad Street. Raskin estimated that the switch would add about 2 1/2 minutes to the daily commute to and from lower Manhattan.

Committee members expressed favor with the plan, observing that it would benefit an expanding workforce in midtown Manhattan while also creating an alternative route to the L line, which has become increasingly overcrowded in recent years.

“I’ve wanted the uptown transfer [on the M line] for years,” said Public Transit Committee Co-chair John Maier. “The number of travelers heading to downtown Manhattan is less than those who will benefit” from the one-seat ride to midtown Manhattan.

“This may also alleviate overcrowding on the L train,” added the committee’s other co-chair, Ted Renz. “People in Greenpoint may not have to wait two to three trains in order to board.”

Two residents in attendance voiced concerns over the plan. One woman claimed that the Essex Street station is generally packed with riders during rush hour periods, adding that the congestion would become even greater if riders heading downtown were forced to depart and transfer to the J train there.

Maier urged the MTA to re-examine headways (time between trains) along the V line in order to make service more frequent. He also asked about how V train service through Middle Village, Ridgewood and Brooklyn would be affected by service problems along the current route in western Queens.

Authority representatives noted that the V line would most likely be shortened at various points in midtown Manhattan in the event of a service disruption.

Renz also suggested that the MTA consider designating the amended route as the M line—which, he noted, “has been around forever”—rather than continuing the V brand, which became active in 2001.

Palmetto Street project

The finishing touches are being made to the long-awaited Palmetto Street intermodal terminal in Ridgewood aimed at making it easier for riders to transfer between six bus lines and the M and L trains, according to the MTA’s Paul Gutkowski.

Crews have reconstructed the segment of Palmetto Street between St. Nicholas and Myrtle avenues, which is designated exclusively for buses and trucks making local deliveries. New canopies were affixed to the elevated M line to shield commuters from the elements while waiting for one of six buses to arrive.

Each of the canopies also include flood lights aimed at making the area brighter and safer for all passengers during nighttime hours, Gutkowski said. New signs have also been installed, including an electronic system to alert bus drivers when L trains are arriving at the Myrtle-Wyckoff Avenues station (the system does not apply to the M line).

When asked by District Manager Gary Giordano about when the electronic system would be operated, Gutkowski said that the service would operate during overnight hours when bus service is less frequent. This will enable drivers to stay at the stop longer in order for passengers departing the L train to directly board upon arriving at the station.

In all, six bus lines—the B13, B26, B52, B54, Q55 and Q58—will make stops at the Palmetto Street intermodal facility, Gutkowski said. To achieve this objective, he stated, the MTA will need to make slight adjustments to the routes of the B13 heading north to Williamsburg as well as the B52 and B54 heading east from Bushwick.

Traveling westbound from Gates Avenue, B13 buses would turn left at St. Nicholas Avenue before turning right into the intermodal terminal at Palmetto Street. From there, the B13 would then turn right onto Wyckoff Avenue and continue on its normal route. Gutkowski noted that the Palmetto Street stop would be the new terminus for the B13 line if the MTA approves a proposed plan to shorten the route.

Buses on the B54 line traveling eastbound on Myrtle Avenue into Ridgewood would turn left at Gates Avenue before turning right onto St. Nicholas Avenue, then right one block later onto Palmetto Street. B52 buses heading north on Gates Avenue from Bushwick would turn right onto Irving Avenue, then left onto Palmetto Street, making its last stop at the corner of Palmetto Street and Wyckoff Avenue. The B52 would then enter the intermodal terminal to pick up passengers for its return trip into Brooklyn.

“We want to keep it clean and an attractive venue,” Gutkowski said, noting that the MTA would be seeking assistance from police and the Department of Transportation to keep unauthorized vehicles off of the oneblock segment of Palmetto Street, which is restricted to buses and trucks making local deliveries.

Traffic safety requests

Board 5 Chairperson Vincent Arcuri reviewed a number of requests submitted by the public for the installation of traffic control devices at locations around the community. The committees agreed to ask the New York City Department of Transportation to consider:

• painting crosswalks and stop lines at the intersection of 60th Road and 60th Street in Maspeth (Arcuri noted that a traffic signal was recently installed at the location);

• installing signs along Fresh Pond Road near Catalpa Avenue in Ridgewood directing drivers to the 104th Precinct, located at 64-02 Catalpa Ave.;

• suspending street cleaning regulations on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24;

• removing parking restrictions on the south side of 71st Avenue between Stephen and 60th streets in Ridgewood.

• relocating a Rego Park-bound Q38 bus stop in Middle Village from the southwest corner of Penelope Avenue and 79th Street to the corner of Penelope Avenue and 80th Street; and,

• installing truck restriction signage along 72nd Street between Calamus and 52nd avenues in Maspeth.

Community Board 5’s Transportation and Public Transit committees generally meet on the last Tuesday each month at 7:30 p.m. in the board’s Glendale office located at 61-23 Myrtle Ave. For more information, call 1-718-366-1834 during normal business hours.