At a rally held in the Broad Street station on the M Line during the morning rush hour in lower Manhattan, over 35 advocates, including Transport Workers Union Local 100 President John Samuelsen, Public Advocate Bill DiBlasio, City Council President Christine Quinn, leaders in the State Legislature, and Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign, called for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to use available federal stimulus dollars to fund operating expenses, reversing planned service cuts and enabling the continuation of the free fare program for schoolchildren.

Here are links to key press coverage of the event including two links to TV news reports: 

•    MTA finds itself in another big hole [with link to 2.5-minute video] - WABC-TV
http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/local&id=7256250&rss=rss-wabc-article-7256250

•    Transit Agencies, Unions Make Joint Push for Federal Operating Support - Tri-State Transportation Campaign
blog.tstc.org/2010/02/04/transit-agencies-unions-make-joint-push-for-federal-operating-support/

•    Local Leaders: MTA Can Take Action To Prevent Service Cuts - NY1 News
www.ny1.com/1-all-boroughs-news-content/news_beats/transit/113145/local-leaders--mta-can-take-action-to-prevent-service-cuts

•    MTA facing $400 million budget deficit; fare hikes and service cuts loom - Staten Island Advance
www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2010/02/mta_facing_another_budget_defi.html

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