SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

As most know, the Metropolitan Transit Authority has proposed yet another series of cuts that will drastically alter service. With $40 million in cuts to Access-A-Ride, ten bus routes being eliminated, weekend service cuts to be implemented, and reduced service expected to take effect, the crowds of people waiting to huddle into a urine-soaked car will start to become even more inhospitable than it presently is.

With many of the route cuts affecting express lines and buses that service the Downtown Brooklyn area, it’s easy to think Sheepshead Bay residents needn’t bother opposing this. But they’re wrong.

Nearby train lines D, F, and A lines will all be affected by reduced service, while express buses X29 and X38, which service Coney Island/Seagate, will be eliminated. The B4 bus will no longer travel along Emmons Avenue/Shore Parkway – forcing some Bay residents to walk more than a mile to the nearest bus line.

Perhaps the most devastating cut will be the elimination of Student MetroCards, a luxury that has accommodated NYC youth (and predated by the illustrious bus pass) for ages. With the increased cost of transportation in recent years, the flawed logic of this plan is evident to just about everyone.

Christine Quinn of the New York City Council is encouraging Brooklyn residents to sign her petition, available here . You can also become involved by working with NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign or signing up to volunteer (contact Nick Rolf NROLF@council.nyc.gov.).

Of more immediate importance, a public hearing will be held on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at the Brooklyn Museum’s Cantor Auditorium at 6 p.m. There’s strength in numbers, so even if you don’t plan to speak, show them that the issue was important enough to bring you out in the cold weather.

From the New York Times:

Boy’s Leg Is Severed in Tunnel on N Line

A teenager’s leg was severed by a train while he was in a Brooklyn subway tunnel on Saturday night, planning to paint graffiti with two other boys, the authorities said.

…

They were about 75 feet north of the platform at the Kings Highway station when the accident occurred, the police said.

The teenagers had noticed a train leaving the station and were standing inside recesses normally used by maintenance workers alongside the tracks. It was unclear whether Jose’s leg had been in the path of the train, if his clothing got caught, or if there was some other cause, the police said.

“He was in a box by himself,” Julio said, referring to the recess that Jose was standing in. “I knew something was going to happen, I saw my cousin walk to my brother’s box. The train sliced his knee. I saw sparks and him laying there.”

According to a law enforcement official who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the details of the investigation, Jose was hit by a metal part of the train called the shoe, which connects to the third rail.

“He is lucky that all he had was his leg amputated,” the official said. “If he had been touching another piece of metal when he was hit by the shoe, he would have burst into flames because of all the electricity.”

It was not clear whether Jose’s leg was severed by the shoe or by the train’s wheels.

The train did not stop because the driver did not know anyone had been hit, the official said.

Julio said that he yelled to his brother, “Droopy’s dead! Droopy’s dead!” using Jose’s nickname.

“He was moaning, ‘Oh, my knee,’ ” Julio said. “We said, ‘Don’t worry, we’ll get you out of here.’ ”

Julio said that only a little skin connected the lower part of Jose’s leg with the top; Julio tried to hold it together while his brother struggled to carry Jose on his back.

A train passed in the other direction, and the police and rescue workers soon arrived.

“He asked the cops, ‘Can I get up and walk?’ ” Julio said. “They said, ‘No, you have no leg.’ ”

I think subway platforms – especially Sheepshead Bay train station’s – make great scenes for photography. Gary Wong proves my point with this photo taken just a few days ago. He writes on his photoblog, The Wong Way, “With the temperature in the low 20s and the wind fiercely blowing, these people were smart and stayed in the stairwell while waiting for their train.” For those interested, check out his site. Wong has challenged himself to take and publish one thought out photo per day to document his 29th year of life. He’s going from birthday to birthday. Also, you can subscribe to his Flickr stream.

Courtesy of LivableStreets.com

A bicycling and public transit advocacy group says that the areas around the Kings Highway B and Q train station needs more bike paths to alleviate stress on the connecting bus lines.

Transportation Alternatives dispatched volunteers to the station in September to survey commuters waiting for the bus home from the train station. After speaking to residents from neighborhoods along the B2, B3K, B31, and B100 bus lines, they found Southern Brooklyn may be an amenable home to new bike routes along the wider, less congested streets.

“My impressions from this survey is that there is some interest in better bike lanes and infrastructure in Mill Basin, Marine Park, Madison, Gerritsen Beach, Sheepshead Bay, etc,” said Murray Latner, a former Mill Basin resident who produced the survey materials.

What do you think? Would more bike lanes and sheltered bike parking locations near subways alleviate congestion on the streets and crowding on buses? Would you use it?

[via LivableStreets.com]

Gothamist Newsmap is reporting that a person fell onto the tracks at the Sheepshead Bay train station. The incident occurred just before noon today. No further information is available. Please contact us if you know anything.

MTA will not raise fares in 2010, but is considering cutting services and staff to close the budget gap

MTA Chairman Jay H. Walder told reporters yesterday that the agency will avoid jacking prices next year, despite a $140 million cut from its budget.

“It is my intent to stay with the schedule of fare hikes that was agreed with the Legislature in May, which does not call for a fare hike in 2010,” he told reporters after a three-hour hearing in Lower Manhattan on the authority’s capital plan. “It is my intent to stay with that.”

Instead, the authority is looking at ways to tighten the belt in-house, and is weighing service cuts, worker layoffs, and maximizing other revenue sources to fill the gap.

Still, Walder says the agency will look to raise fares 7.5 percent in 2011 and 2013, as approved by Legislature.

(Photo courtesy of via William Darhy Flickr)

Sheepshead Bites reader Paul (a.k.a PayPaul) came across this nasty scrape earlier today between a callous truck driver and an overpass at Avenue J and East 15th Street. That’s the B/Q station at Avenue J, and as you can see in the photo it has a 10 foot, 10 inch clearance. This truck was taller than that. We can only guess how fast he was going to get that wedged under. Here’s what Paul had to say, and a bunch more photos: Continue Reading »

Councilman Fidler sent over a letter from the president of MTA Bus regarding BM3/BM4 service, discussed at last week’s subway meeting. MTA says a decrease in riders is the reason for cutting BM3 service, though we heard whispers that the ridership survey was done on a Jewish holiday. And now that there’s no B express, and as complaints roll in about congested cars on both lines, more people will be interested in a bus alternative. But gripes aside, they say they’re looking into scheduling an earlier BM4 bus. Congrats, residents of Gerritsen Beach. Now when do we get something?

Continue Reading »

Local leaders pressed MTA officials and the agency’s contractor for proposals and promises from the authority this morning, but the biggest payoff appears to be for residents of Gerritsen Beach and communities east of Sheepshead Bay.

“Did a magic bullet appear? No,” said Councilman Lew Fidler of the meeting. “The thing that probably will come out of it – and we’re optimistic will come out of it – and it doesn’t affect a whole lot of people, but it does affect Weinstein’s constituents and mine – there was some willingness to consider reversing some of the service cuts on the BM3 and BM4 buses. That’s the thing we’re most optimistic will happen, but obviously it doesn’t help the vast majority of people affected by the construction.”

It appears the MTA came unaware of the demands and complaints awaiting them.

“They were there to tell their side of the story, and I think that’s all they thought they were there for,” said George Broadhead, president of the Gerritsen Beach Property Owners Association. Broadhead said they came to discuss the construction plans, not alter them. However, the meeting changed direction when Broadhead brought up the recent service changes to the BM3 and BM4 buses, which provide alternative Manhattan-bound service to Gerritsen Beach and the eastern portion of Sheepshead Bay. Those bus routes now leave many riders with only the handicapped B/Q line.

The MTA officials present only represented the subway service, and according to sources at the meeting, they were unaware of the bus division’s actions and dismissed it as the other branch’s responsibility.

“[State Senator Carl] Kruger blew his top,” said one source who asked not to be named. “[The MTA was] there to really apologize for all the bullcrap. But I think they got a taste of it from Kruger.”

Kruger scolded the MTA for its dismissive attitude towards bus alternatives, reportedly saying, “We bailed you out with billions of tax-payer dollars, and now you’re telling me the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing?” Continue Reading »

Today the area’s elected politicians are meeting with MTA officials. On the agenda? The B train.

One full week after the B train kicked off its two-year hiatus – though it’s three weeks if you count the unannounced termination of service before that – the area’s leaders are gathering at Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein’s office on Nostrand Avenue with MTA officials. In attendance are Councilmen Lew Fidler and Mike Nelson, Assemblymen Weinstein and Maisel, State Senators Carl Kruger and Marty Golden, as well as Community Board Chairperson Theresa Scavo. An invite has also been sent to Congressman Weiner’s office.

The gang of seven-ish is hoping to press the MTA to seek alternatives to the current plans, which will see the B train running local until late 2011.

“We want to hear from them on what they want to accomplish. They’re inconveniencing a lot of people,” Fidler said. He added that he’s looking for assurances that they’ve looked into alternative plans. “There’s got to be a better way. I’d like to hear there’s an option that’s more convenient for the public.”

Assemblyman Maisel said he hoped the gang could gain some ground with the agency by airing the community’s grievances. However, he also noted the MTA isn’t required to accomodate the group’s demands. “They’re called the authority for a reason,” he said, and pointed out that the authority system has been a troubled one for decades.

As the only unelected party in the group, Theresa Scavo was more blunt with her assessment. “I don’t think anything’s going to get accomplished,” she said. “I think they’re basically going to ignore us.”

Sheepshead Bites will check in later with the pols to see how it went. Stay tuned!