Line for the L train. Things are going great New York! #mta #nyc pic.twitter.com/pAkGr6XIU3
— Eric Yearwood (@EricYearwood) April 27, 2019
Officially a slowdown. #LTrainSlowdown pic.twitter.com/W2mblzsr97
— Edgar Sandoval (@edjsandoval) April 27, 2019
For many of the city's regular L riders — a group that numbers 400,000 on a normal day — the reality underground was a far cry from the governor's description of "service that would still work." In Union Square, crowds were penned in along barricades on the mezzanine level, in some cases waiting to board an open train that wouldn't arrive for close to an hour. Transit workers, stationed across the system in large numbers, practically begged customers to make use of the increased service on the M, G, and 7 lines, or the free transfers on the M14A/D and Williamsburg Link buses.
Those who did stay encountered extended waits not only inside stations, but on unmoving trains as well. The dwell times seemed especially bad at Union Square, where the MTA's interlocking system means that Brooklyn-bound service must wait for a passing train to arrive before switching over to the shared track, in order to avoid the construction area between 3rd Avenue and Bedford.
"It's worse than I thought," said Alfredo Fernando, a dish-washer at a restaurant near Union Square.
“[We] are aware of how critically important it is to have that smooth transition so that at 5 a.m. we can start back in service,” said Ronnie Hakim, the MTA’s managing director, during a trip along the L line on Sunday. “We do this. We know how to do it. It’s a function of working out all the kinks.”
Look how many buses are trapped on 14th Street! Ugh.
— Thomas DeVito (@PedestrianTom) April 27, 2019
Seeing it in person just makes me more 😡 that a few cranks in the West Village almost succeeded in dictating the policy response to the #LTrainSlowdown
Now let’s activate this busway, please. #Peopleway @TransAlt pic.twitter.com/NU3hXxu9v6
"I went in there a few days ago to ask when their closing date was, and the employee told me they're no longer closing, they're just downsizing. So I asked why everything was still on sale, and she said she didn't know."
On Sunday (April 28), the merchants of East Ninth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue are gathering on a local stoop for "A Great Day on 9th Street," a quasi recreation of the famous Art Kane photo "A Great Day In Harlem."
Afterwards, stroll down both sides of the street and check out the various specials the stores are offering.
Come celebrate our community of small businesses.
#shopthe921
