May 30, 2006
The MTA Doesn't Care About Babies in Strollers
The convoluted ways of the subway never to amaze: A mother was fined for using the service entrance for her daughter in a stroller because she didn't wait for the station agent to buzz her in. WABC 7's "Seven on Your Side" gets all advocate-for-the-viewers on the case and laid out the details: The mother, Michelle, put her Metrocard in the card slot at a 34th Street service entrance - which she's done many times before. The door opened. But then a station agent told her, "Excuse me, did anyone give you permission to go through that door?" - and then ticketed Michelle and her mother $60 each for not getting permission! The MTA claims that riders are supposed to know that they should wait in line if they want to use the service entrance (which is only for the handicapped), but Seven on Your Side didn't see any signs indicating this, even after the MTA said they'd put them up! And the MTA still expects Michelle and her mother to pay.
On the MTA's website, we found this Q&A:
Why do I have to stand in line with my stroller before the agent lets me use the Service Entry gate?Customers who need to use Service Entry gates, including those with children in strollers, must wait in line with our other customers at the station booth to inform the station agent of their need to use the gate. The station agent will buzz the gate open after the customer has paid a fare at a turnstile and rotated the turnstile arm in view of the agent. We have found that customers who proceed directly to the Service Entry gate distract the station agents from conducting fare transactions at the booth. This policy also ensures that station agents will witness the payment of fares by Service Entry customers.Still, if there are no signs actually at the service doors, it doesn't seem very clear. Maybe the MTA needs to start handing out pamphlets of rules for parents at hospitals! It is interesting though, since most people will try to get the station agent's attention when using the service entry, maybe some of the stroller clan think they own the subway.
Gothamist on the new subway rules.
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There's no sign anywhere to indicate you have to swipe before passing through the turnstiles. Does that mean you shouldn't?
Yet one more reason for population control. Stop the strollers. They are ruining NYC.
And why did the grandmother go through the gate?
Sounds like the station agent was just in a prickish mood. Countless times I've passed by the agent and said "Using service door!" when I have my bike, and the agent has been cool about it. I make sure I go back and swipe my metrocard and turn the turnstile...
That's just plain retarded. I don't have any kids myself, but I have plenty of friends who do - and I know how hard it is to navigate the subway system with a stroller...
That's a load. I go right to the gate with my Bike all the time. The guy motions for me to turn the turnstile, I do it, and he buzzes me in.
Wait in line my ass. Sounds like a typical MTA troll who decided to play God for a day.
i've used the service entrance with a stroller many, many times. you're damned if you do, and damned if you don't. whenever i've asked to have the gate opened for me, i've been snapped at for not swiping my card already. if you swipe your card first, you get snapped at for not getting their attention.
in my experience with a bike or larger luggage, the station agents are douche bags with what little power they have...
wasn't an mta employee that gave the ticket,
it was one of those undercover cops,
he was also very rude, if you've seen the segment.
great PR again, hey you voted for him,
not I.
I wonder if that station agent's mother is proud of his behavior?
Funny, because I see many strollers, bikes, shelving, etc. going through the service doors every day. If these were supposedly only for handicapped riders, why do you see them in stations with no elevator? The fact is, her card opened the door, period. In a civilized world, the card activates an entrance, and somoene enters; the spastic outburst resulting from an agent's bruised ego should have no bearing on this process. If they are going to get their panties in a bunch, how about directing their anger towards the technology itself?
It's a brilliant method of collecting more fines - posting an obscure "rule" (as long as it isn't posted in the station), and claiming someone "should have known better."
And now I'm going to ask what we're all thinking...just how small is this agent's penis?
again, it was not the booth person being a prick,
it was an undercover cop,
watch the segment on the website,
be careful out there, even if you're white, they'll get you but then you voted for him.
I stand corrected - "just how small is this undercover cop's penis?" Accompanying ABC article just mentioned "the guy." Doesn't surprise me at all.
All MTA employees need a lesson in customer service. I just got back from a trip to London and even though their subway is older than ours, it is sooo much better. The trains are actually smaller for the most part, but the whole subway experience is so much more relaxing than in New York. The employees there actually know what they are talking about and are almost happy to help when you have a question! This stroller fiasco is just another reason why New York is no longer 'the greatest city on earth'. My wife and I are seriously considering moving to London. I know, the grass is greener...
I go through 34th St. every day and I can tell you the MTA workers there are the biggest jerks in the system (and I usually go to bat for the TWU crowd), especially regarding the service entrances. In the morning there are hordes of communters coming off their trains for their little suburban towns pouring through the turnstiles and not knowing or caring enough to let you through. If you're coming the other direction you're out of luck unless the service entrance is open... which it isn't half of the time. And this is leaving the subway! You knock on the door to get their attention and if you do get an acknowlegement it's a dirty look or a phone call to the NYPD.
At most other stations the MTA crew couldn't be cooler about buzzing you in or out. You swipe your card, they see you, they buzz you. Issue over.
And I really can't believe they gave this woman flack AFTER she swiped her card! Actually, I can believe it.
"I just got back from a trip to London and even though their subway is older than ours, it is sooo much better."
thats because they dont have nearly as many uneducated rude and lazy latinos and self-righteous, uppity disgruntled blacks as we do.
if you've seen the clip, you'll see that she used the handicapped metrocard machine next to the service gate.
for some reason, her REGULAR metrocard (not for handicapped) worked and openned the gate.
then the cop came out of nowhere and asked what are you doing?
again, no involvement with the token booth clerk.
not a fault of the booth worker.
yes, this was at the penn station subway, which entrance, I don't know, there are millions there.
so, for some odd reason, her REGULAR metrocard openned the gate. and, she got a ticket for that.
maybe that's why her mother went in too, because it worked with her card or she swiped it twice.
it's not rocket science, folks.
I think what the MTA needs to remember is that it's PUBLIC transportation. Do they really, need the $2.00 fare that badly?
It all goes back to this:
Thinking of having kids? Stop being so selfish!
I agree that London Tube workers are wonderful, They suffer fools gladly and always provide kind and caring customer service.
I am embarrased when I have someone in from out of town here in NYC and we have to interact with an MTA employee; 99 times out of 100 we are subjected to a rude response and prime examples of passive aggression. That is why I had no sympathy for them when they struck.
Still, is is 24 hours a day whereas London shuts down by 01:00am.
Wow, you mean a policeman was arrogant, rude, apathetic, and on a power trip?
Imagine that?
If I were going to have a kid, I'd be prepared to pay for taxis.
The whole service entrance thing is very unclear- I didn't know you were supposed to swipe your card. And sometimes I've been let through the door without swiping my card. If people can open the door themselves, they will and should; if the MTA doesn't like that, they should make the door only open for the person in the booth. Not that the booth people are usually rays of sunshine- they usually look pretty pissed when you talk to them about anything.
I was thinking the exact same thing as #21, Matt.... If i ever pop out a kid, i better have enough money to take taxis. I always think they shouldn't allow strollers during rush hour...those things take up enough room for 3 adults.
Who is the self-righteous prick that keeps posting these comments about having kids in the city? I didn't realize that there wasn't enough room in this city for both families and your big fat head. You are an idiot of the highest caliber.
BABIES ARE GROSS.
STOP MAKING THEM. USE FUCKING BIRTH CONTROL.
As a parent, trust me... the subways are safer.
Having said that, unless it was a dire emergency, I tried like hell to stay out of the subway at rush hour with the stroller. It's no fun for the person pushing it, either.
Actually Dan, as gothamist earlier reported today, kids in NYC are being born dumber and dumber as a result of pollution in the air.
So maybe what the self-righteous prick has been saying, could not only be good for NY'ers, but also children. He loves children, cant you see that?
It is time for open season on these useless pieces of shit - all transit workers should be held accountable for their illegal strike by being pushed in front of moving trains. Tonight I'm going to spit on as many of them as I see - this story has enraged me.
TIME FOR ACTION
Not that I'm a fan of either the MTA and/or the TWU but I don't think it's a fair comparison between the NYC Subway and the London Underground. Having traveled both the Underground is crazy expensive compare to NYC subway. A week of unlimited travel in London Underground would last me a whole month on a unlimited metrocard and you also pay by the zone area of where you're heading like the LIRR or Metro North. NYC subway is also 3x more extensive than the Underground and while I was there the whole central line was out of service for a month and probably out for another month or more. Try having a whole nyc subway line being out of service for a month or two and people will be screaming bloody hell and asking for heads to roll. Besides being smaller there's also no A/C in the London subway cars so in the heat of summer you'll be suffering 4 or 5 story underground. There's also no conductor and as the other poster said London underground shuts down at 1am. The one positive thing I will say they have gotten is the LCD display that tell you when the next train or bus will be arriving. Supposedly this feature will be coming to the MTA.
So if you love all of that be my guest and head over to London you won't have to deal with the "uneducated rude and lazy latinos and self-righteous, uppity disgruntled blacks" of NYC, just a lot of really drunk white people who like throwing up. Lovely.
u do that, i'll make sure to push u on to the tracks. with a kick to ur kidneys.
it's the cop who gave this mother a ticket and you're mad at the token booth guy?
she swiped her card, gate openned, went through,
then she got 2 tickets.
"Actually Dan, as gothamist earlier reported today, kids in NYC are being born dumber and dumber as a result of pollution in the air."
wouldn't it be awesome if we could actually blame it on air pollution?
i'd sleep better.
Someone beat me to it, but I was going to also note that the London Underground (tube):
1. Is not 24-hours (closes at 1am)
2. Does NOT have air conditioning
3. Fares vary by distance
4. They track your whereabouts via photo ID and exit-station tracking
5. Is a LOT more expensive
Hey, if you want bells and whistles, you gotta pay for it. We arguably have the best mass transit value on Earth.
I agree, stop bringing your damn kids and their monstrous strollers onto the subway, especially during rush hour.
Furthermore, I disagree with the fact that one should give up a seat for old people, and people with young children. Sorry but those arent my problems and maybe they should have thought of that before getting old and pregnant.
I hate getting off of work (in which I stand for my 8.5 hrs) and I have to give up my seat b/c Momma No Contraceptive and her 4 kids get on the train.
Sorry, but user beware.
I always wondered why people give seats to those with children. I can understand giving seats to a pregnant woman, but if the baby is already out of the womb, the mother is no longer physically hindered.
How come if you have kids you don't have to wait in line? what the fuck? if i'm single I have to wait on this huge line but if you popped some babies out you get preferential treatment? hell no! I hate people with kids who think they deserve better treatment than everyone else. hello? you had kids to carry on your eugenics, which is totally selfish in and unto itself. Why should I bow down to you? You shouldn't even use the subway if you had kids cause you should have enough money to afford a car. only rich people should have children.
"Only rich people should have children" is a little over the top. I don't think anyone considers it a "right" for people with children to not wait in line or to have a seat. Usually any preference given to people with kids is a choice another person makes to be kind. It is also obviously a person's right not to do so and let those people stand.
I don't give seats to mothers that aren't pregnant, but I will give a seat to a young, small child since they are often not able to steady themselves when the train jerks and it is safer for them to sit down.
For the record, I do not have kids.
How do you make a dead baby shake? Two scoops vanilla, two scoops dead baby.
"I will give a seat to a young, small child since they are often not able to steady themselves when the train jerks and it is safer for them to sit down."
thats BS, kids are more agile and limber, they have softer bones, are lighter and have a shorter distance to travel when they fall. they also have a lot of learning to do wrt balance and motor function, therefore it is both less dangerous for them to get jostled around, they are inherently less prone to hurting themselves, and it is to their benefit to learn how to steady themselves. when i was a kid, i prefered to stand and hang off the poles. let the little snotnosed pukes stand. i do give my seat to old people and pregnant ladies, but once theyre out, screw them and their moms.
Apparently she did not notice the signs on the special MetroCard reader by the gates. They have something about reduced fare cards and wheelchair symbol. That should be a giveaway that it is not for everyone to use.
A $60 fine for being stupid isn't that bad.
Now what is really needed is something like on PATH, which have very nice handicapped turnstiles that everyone can use - which is very nice when you have a bike. The catch is they are only in their accessable stations.
tappy phillips was at the service gate and showed the metrocard machine,
there were no signage on the machine and none when they went back to do an update.
Why do people not freaking take the kids out of the stroller and fold them up while on the subway? They are just asking for someone to fall on the thing when it takes up 3/4's of a already tight aisle.
Not bothering to consider anyone else except your kid who is way to old to still be pushed around in that stupid $1200 stroller?: Thats a paddlin'
the mother did fold the stroller up, she did not just roll it through the gate. i rarely see a mother with an open stroller, sure you get them but not as much as you think. even when i do see them, it's the cheap umbrella looking folders not the SUV stroller.
supposedly the handicap service gate only works with the handicap/snr citizen discount photo ID'ed metrocards.
only this time her plain no discount one worked on this particular machine.
Hey, dumb-asses.
Did your parents have kids?
word up to Sean. What's with all these trolls making ignorant comments about kids?
My aunt once used the service entrance at 42nd street. It worked with her regular metrocard, despite what the the above comments imply. If she's paying her fare, I don't see what the problem is in any case.
I think people should be a little more giving when it comes to mother and their kids, it is already hard enough to have them around.
If parents kept their kids under control, then maybe slack could be given. Its few and far between to see well behaved children in this city.
Also, kids aren't like a medical condition. People know how condoms work, yes? If they can't control their kids then don't have them.
London Underground has freakin' maps, people.
If MTA printed more than 2 tiny print maps per subway car I think Satan takes back the whole system, or something.
Following a strike just before the biggest holiday of the year, and rude behavior from its employees as a matter of course, the MTA should be falling all over themselves to accommodate this passenger and the rest of us.
"what the fuck?... only rich people should have children."
[35] Posted by: only rich people should have children | May 30, 2006 05:01 PM
WHAT SHOULD RICH PEOPLE DO WITH THEIR KIDS AND MAMA IF DADDDY LOSES HIS one year old $0,000,000 SALARY JOB. MOM DOESN'T WORK. Assets ARE Locked up in stocks and bonds, HOUSE mortgage, Summer SHARE, and OTHER Assets.
DADDY CAN'T FIND ANOTHER JOB @ $0,000,000, to cover car payments, gas, tuition payments, day care payment$.
House goes into forclosure AND cars ARE reposessed, LITTLE JOHNNY AND LINDA ARE AWAY AT BOARDING SCHOOL, can't pay tuition. Have to get them home on the METRO North.
I SAID, MOM DOESN'T work AND THE TODDLERS, STILL AT HOME, have to get to "baby" day care.
MOM HAS TO GET HER MANICURE, PEDICURE, TAN AND WAXING done DOWN TOWN.
Everything has to be sold to cover bills.
OH MY.... They are now "poe"... not poor.
How will daddy, mommy and the kids get around town now:(
What will they do for transportation...in NYC. Should they give up the kids because they are no longer rich and have to travel the subways.
"Should they walk to school or carry their lunch?"
Saw a guy with his children in tow and lots of bags to carry exit through the un-"station attendant"-manned service entrance at my local stop using the new cool "emergency entrance" bars. He set off the alarm intentionally as he walked out with no fuss. What a great idea! Why stuff your groceries and yourself through the bread slicer when you can just walk out the emergency exit and register a highly audible siren laden protest at the same time.
I hate when Godzilla gets on the train. He's big.
Sorry, but I really must say, NYC subways are just fucked up and that's part of using them. In Paris or London, you will never see a person bring a stroller on a train. No one has to give up their seat there because the trains come so frequently that there is enough room on them for almost everyone to sit. Even when there isn't room on them, people move over or move out of your way so that you can access the seats.
In Paris, many trains have collapsable seats in the front so that if the standing area becomes crowded, those seats can fold up to make room. I assure you that if NYC tried the same thing the system would fail miserably. People would just sit on those seats and it would allow less room for those standing. In Paris, however, when the standing area begins to fill, people give up those seats to allow more room.
In Paris, there are also food/drink vending machines in all the subway systems yet SOMEHOW, no one eats on the train. Why is this? Because they have cooth.
People, get WITH it. We share this subway system. You cannot bring you cereal on the train and expect to eat it. You cannot be 80 years old or pregnant with two children and expect a seat. You cannot go shopping and expect to leave your bags on a seat. Sorry...you just can't.
Unfortunately, some people think this behavior is acceptable; however, this bad subway etiquette will never change until people look to make the change.
Sorry, last I checked this is still America.
You're free to go to France, though.
Here we give up our seats to women, children and the elderly.
If it were rush hour and I wheeled in a giant piece of luggage, I would expect some dirty looks.
As far as London, their subway has padded seats to soak up the homeless' urine... which bakes in the summer, as there is no AC. People put bombs in their subway too... which sucks.
^ that was funny Matt. Only New Yorkers would understand the big picture surrounding your comment. I tried to explain the surrounding of NYC subways to some friends in Tennessee. They looked at me as if I had two heads.
In NYC, however, I think we do more cooking then baking. It is hot down there. I can't figure out if the the homeless smell like the tunnels/train stations or do the tunnels smell like homeless people.
Sure are a lot of ignorant people out there. A few notes:
1- Getting old happens. Acting ignorant or stupid is more of a choice.
2- If YOU are tired after a long day at work, that is YOUR problem and no one else's. Just like it's no one else's problem that someone is old, pregnant, or disabled.
3- If you are going to be "tired" after 8.5 hours of work, then you should buy a car. That way you are guaranteed a seat. Should have thought about that before you took a job that required you to use mass transit.
People, the subway can be very convenient, but unfortunately, using it often requires you to give up some comfort. Not saying it should be this way, but the subway will never be perfect.
I am a Londoner. (Followed the link through the Londonist) The tube isn't as great as made out in some of the comments above! The staff are often seen ahnging around doing, well not a lot and quite happily go on strike a couple of times a year to get more holiday and pay. A station assistant gets something like £18k basic, (probably works out around $30k+) and something daft like 30+ days holiday a year.
We also get lots of pushchairs (strollers) on there, thankfully not in rush hour that often, and they use the service gate then have fun trying to get down the esculators.
The biggest complaint we tend to have is that the prices are too high and it can be a bit unreilable and have a great habit of breaking down, particluarly in the middle of summer when it is cramped, overcrowded, hot etc...
Feel free to come over and have a go on ours, just dont act like a complete tourist! Cheers!
My stop is 34th street station, I decided to walk the scenic route and appreciate the Macy’s decoration, which are beautiful, if it wasn’t for the unprofessional encounter with an MTA cop. I was walking on the other side of the railing and a MTA cop asked me to walk on the other side of the street, as I was trying to dodge the cars and get to the other side another cop came towards me fondling his gun. I asked him why he was playing with his gun, which was unnecessary.
His response was “I don’t need my gun; I can knock you down in a minute”. Of course I was furious. What gives these ass holes the power? And why did he want to knock a lady down? Go and pick on the real criminals ass hole, then again criminals are not easy pickings.
I know lots of good cops, but those bad apples have to go. They can not go around threatening people, and I told him that I wasn’t breaking any law; I was just trying to admire the lights in the city. Now I know why everyone is so angry, people like the cop that I encountered at 8:40 AM in Herald Square should be away from the population, because they make New Yorkers look bad, and we do not want to have a worst reputation.