With talk of the MTA raising fares again after recently raising them (well, not the bus and subway base fare, but still), there are some suggestions about what the MTA can do instead. For instance, City Councilman Eric Gioia proposed that the MTA sell its midtown building at 44th Street and Madison Avenue to raise money. He said, "There's no justification for the MTA to be on Madison Avenue. This is a glaring example......

Since the MTA is working on finder another developer to transform its 26 acres of Midtown Manhattan rail yards after its talks with Tishman Speyer collapse, it's only natural officials are trying to put on a happy face. NY1 notes that MTA executive director Lee Sander's positive spin is, "We're hopeful that we can put the deal back together. You never know till it's done, as we found out with Tishman. But we are optimistic."......

Photograph of MTA CEO and Executive Director Lee Sander during the inaugural State of the MTA Address, courtesy of the MTA This morning, the first-ever State of the MTA Address was given, with MTA CEO and Executive Director Elliot Sander Sander emphasizing the MTA was born 40 years ago out of crisis and needed federal, state, and municipal cooperation to get things done (in other words, nothing changes!). Sander said he's committed to creating......

A plan is going to be submitted to the MTA's board for approval this week to spend $1.3 million to install a computerized monitoring system for the subway systems 300+ elevators and escalators. The purpose is to speed the response when elevators and escalators are out of service. Currently, the MTA operates a web page that is updated three times a day to inform riders when escalators and elevators are out of service, but it......

So much for halting the hike! Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Spitzer have both given their approval of the MTA's proposed 4-7% fare hikes for subway and bus riders. The base fare will remain $2, but the unlimited Metrocard prices will increase. The Mayor (from China apparently) said, "Based on the information that my staff and I have received and reviewed over the past few weeks, I am now satisfied that the MTA budget is a......

Yesterday, Governor Spitzer, Mayor Bloomberg, MTA CEO and Executive Director Lee Sander and other officials kicked off the extension of the 7 line by unveiling a new sign in Times Square pointing the way to Hudson Yards. Ah, nothing like putting in signs for things that won't be ready for years - the 7 will reach 34th and 11th Avenue in 2013. The 7 line extension will cost $2 billion for the 1.5 miles......

Dunh dunh DUNH! Governor Spitzer has announced that he is asking the MTA to hold off raising subway and bus fares! Spitzer, who has been smarting from widely hated policy proposals and low approval ratings, made a pre-Thanksgiving bid to show he's listening to his public and said, during a specially planned 9AM press conference, via CityRoom: As the M.T.A. budget forecasts, their balance sheets yielded another $220 million. Based on the current economic......

A storefront at the corner of Vanderbilt Avenue and 43rd Street (across from Grand Central) may be a window into the future of the West Side Rail Yards. The MTA unveiled an exhibition of the five proposals to redevelop the rail yards on the Far West Side of Manhattan, and the public will get a chance to see the models every day (except Thanksgiving) through December 3. And what's more, the MTA wants the......

As part of the deal to advance congestion pricing (and nab the $354 million the feds are offering), the city and state have announced their appointees to a panel to, ur, study congestion pricing and develop a recommendation. The Mayor, Governor, City Council, State Senate Majority Leader, and State Assembly Speaker each get to select three appointees, while the Senate minority leader and Assembly minority leader each select one. Mayor Bloomberg said, "Today we are......

The MTA's CEO Lee Sander says that the agency will consider crediting unlimited ride Metrocards for travel missed on Wednesday, during the subway shutdown due to severe flooding. That's a novel idea from the MTA, but getting credited less than $4 seems like a hollow gesture - what about the overall pain and suffering of riders? The MTA should try to do something more meaningful, though a something it could actually execute escapes us (we......

Residents are trying to clean up after the mess of yesterday's EF2 tornado that touched down in Brooklyn. At least 40 homes, many in Bay Ridge and Sunset Park, and buildings were damaged. The tornado touched down first at 6:30AM, with winds of over 100 miles per hour, making it the first in the borough since 1889 (there was an F1 in Staten Island in 1995; a F2 in Queens in 1985). Interesting fact: While......

Photographs of frustrated subway riders by md76 on Flickr While this morning's commute seems better, most mass transit riders are still confused, frustrated and even betrayed by the subway system and other rail service coming to a stand still during the Wednesday morning rush hour. The MTA admitted that the service was not acceptable on many accounts, from the flooding to the fact that the MTA's website was overwhelmed. Then there's also the fact......

Holy Tornado, Brooklyn! Reader Jeanne just emailed us with this observation: I live in Kensington, Brooklyn and I think that a tornado just passed through. Have you heard any news about a tornado from anyone else? Around 6:30am there were heavy rains, thunder and lightning when all of a sudden the wind got really loud and we could hear stuff smashing into the house. It was all just 30 seconds or so but now......

Yesterday, MTA CEO and executive director Lee Sander took the case for subway and bus fare hikes to the people by standing at the Grand Central shuttle platform yesterday morning. The MTA has argued that with looming billion-dollar deficits, fare hikes, as well as agency cuts, are the only way for the MTA to stay afloat without trimming service. According to the NY Times, very few people stopped to talk to Sander who was handing......

During a board meeting to present the MTA's 2008-2011 financial plan, MTA executive director Lee Sander confirmed yesterday that, yes, fare and toll hikes would be needed in the future because of looming billion-dollar deficits - even in spite of a current billion dollar surplus. And though some politicians were quick to criticize potential hikes (no pol wants fare increases on their watch), the Straphangers Campaign's Gene Russianoff told the Times, "[The MTA has] good......

If you take the Shuttle at Grand Central around 8AM on weekday morning, study this photograph and find this man - it's MTA CEO and Executive Director Lee Sander, and he'll be at the Shuttle platform tomorrow morning! You've been commenting about future subway and bus fare hikes all day long with some great questions for the MTA. And here's your chance to actually talk to some MTA suits - the MTA says that "senior......

MTA Chairman Peter S. Kalikow announced that he is stepping down from his position as chairman of the MTA. Kalikow, who was appointed by then Governor George Pataki back in 2001, was reappointed to a 6-year term last summer, which suggested there might be battles ahead between him and new governor Eliot Spitzer. But at the end of 2006, Kalikow said he would step down during the second quarter of this year, after finishing up......

While umbrellas are most convenient when they are small enough to stow into a bag, this 43" umbrella is very tempting. It's the MTA Transit Museum Store's Grand Central Ceiling Umbrella, which was created with the Municipal Art Society. Arching over the 80,000 square-foot Main Concourse, this extraordinary ceiling was painted from a design by French artist Paul Helleu. The blue-green and gold mural portrays the October to March zodiac and contains more than 2,500......

Many businesses have strict policies about accepting "gifts" from vendors, but when you work for a public agency, scrutiny is extremely intense. amNew York found an intriguing connection between an MTA executive's favorite charity and law firms that get business from his division. It turns out that five law firms have donated thousands of dollars to a charity where Wallace Gossett, director of the Transit Authority's torts division (think lawsuits where people sue after falling......