Media Links
December 23, 2011
-
Source: DNAinfo.comMore than 1,000 nurses who work for the Manhattan hospitals are planning to strike early next year after intense contract talks broke down early Thursday morning.
-
Source: The Star-LedgerGov. Chris Christie and two public employee unions have reached a four-year tentative contract agreement, the first agreement reached with the Christie administration since all state workers' contracts expired in June.
-
Source: NBC New York
View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.
Harlem businesses say an MTA construction project has caused them to lose money. Roseanne Colletti reports.
-
Source: DNAinfo.comThe $1.4 billion subway hub won't open until 2014, but one of its most distinctive features is already in place: a yawning skylight, measuring 53 feet in diameter, which funnels natural light down into the station, brightening the darkest corners, even during the ongoing construction.
-
Source: Albany Watch / Journal NewsPEF President Ken Brynien said in a statement that, “We remain concerned that without specificity surrounding the recommendations there is the potential that if implemented without safeguards in place they could lead to layoffs, increased reliance on costly contracting out and privatization, and would weaken the civil service merit and fitness system, opening the door to increased patronage and cronyism. These will cost the taxpayers more money.”
-
Source: Staten Island AdvanceThey call it the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey partly because, since 1987, control of the agency has been shared by the governors of those states.
-
Source: Chicago TribuneThe amount of income that commuters who use mass transit will be eligible to shelter from taxes to pay their fares drops on Jan. 1 to $125 a month from the current $230 a month, while the tax-free parking benefit for drivers will increase from $230 to $240 a month, officials said Thursday. The steep reduction in the transit provision is due to Congress' failure to renew the higher limit in the Commuter Benefits Equity Act, officials said, adding that they are hopeful lawmakers will approve a higher limit sometime in 2012.
-
Source: Transportation NationAfter a nasty crash in the Bronx that killed 15, long-distance buses came under scrutiny this year. There was much hand-wringing, a few crackdowns, and many stories about the shape-shifting nature of bus companies that are closed down, then pop up again with the same staff, buses, and drivers.
-
Source: Crain's New York BusinessIn getting a new plan for taxis in the outer boroughs approved by the state, Mayor Bloomberg saw his plan for an iconic new yellow cab put in jeopardy. City officials say they're not worried.
-
Source: BusinessweekPresident Barack Obama’s administration maintained an 11-hour limit on truck drivers’ hours today, scaling back a proposal to give them more rest. The U.S. Transportation Department’s proposed rule to reduce the daily driving limit to 10 hours was one of seven regulations the Obama administration said would cost companies at least $1 billion. Trucking companies opposed it, saying the shorter hours would force them to rework routes and hire more drivers.
-
Source: The Atlantic CitiesThe shortcomings of New York's Penn Station are clear all year round, but they come into view most painfully during the holiday rush. At the current Penn Station, intercity passengers traveling on Amtrak pack into the same inadequately sized waiting area with New Jersey Transit commuters, hoping to get a jump on the track announcements. Travelers arriving at the station must push through the crowds to reach a street exit or weave through the station's catacombs to find a subway connection. According to a 2010 report by the state of New York [PDF], Penn Station is the "busiest, most congested, passenger transportation facility in North America" on a daily basis — with a greater traffic flow than all three of New York City's airports combined.
December 22, 2011
-
Source: WABC 7
The World Trade Center Transportation Hub is behind schedule and hundreds of millions over budget. The dual pressure of time and cost-overruns might help explain why the Port Authority has decided to eliminate the fireproofing of the huge above-ground steel structure that 200,000 people will pass under every day.
-
Source: Mobilizing the Region / Tri-State Transportation CampaignWhile some in Congress indulge in end-of-year partisanship, it’s transit riders who will be hit by the hangover come January 1. Transportation For America reports that the transit commuter tax benefit is essentially guaranteed to drop next year, from $230/month to $125/month, while the equivalent benefit for parking will rise to $240/month. This means the federal tax code will incentivize driving over public transportation. The benefit rollback would cost commuters hundreds of dollars a year. According to a white paper produced by a coalition of benefit providers, someone who makes $50,000 a year and spends at least $230/month on transit will be hit with a “transit tax” of more than $400/year.
-
Source: Brooklyn Daily Eagle“Let’s give the city three cheers for the plans for the city’s new applied science campus on Roosevelt Island, but we’ll give it five cheers when the city decides to support NYU and Polytechnic’s proposal for an applied science campus here.” These words, spoken by Assemblywoman Joan Milllman (D-Downtown Brooklyn/Heights) in front of the nearly vacant former MTA headquarters building at 370 Jay St., captured the mood of Wednesday’s press conference.
-
Source: Fox 5 NYThe NYPD has released a photograph of a man who exposed himself to a woman on the subway in the Bronx last week.
-
Source: Mobilizing the Region / Tri-State Transportation CampaignA law firm that specializes in shareholder class action suits has announced an investigation into Veolia Environnement, the parent company of Nassau County’s new bus operator.
-
Source: WABC 7
The MTA reports subway crime is surging, up 18 percent. At the same time, subway cops are harder to find, with the number of officers down 10 percent.
-
Source: NY TimesThe measure was the last major policy decision made by the National Labor Relations Board before it drops to two members and can no longer make new rulings.
-
Source: TheTransitWire.comTA New York City Transit launched an email notification system to let customers subscribe to updates on the status of station elevators and escalators. “This new email alert will help our riders avoid the frustrating experience of arriving at a station only to find that the elevator or escalator isn’t working,” said NYC Transit president Thomas F. Prendergast in a statement. Riders can sign up for notifications on the MTA website.
-
Source: DNAinfo.comPolice are looking for an unhinged man who crossed two subway tracks on the Upper East Side to punch a stranger in the face after a stare down with the victim.
These links are provided for the information of Local 100 members. Local 100 does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in them.
