Archive for April, 2008
Friday, April 18th, 2008
Kids Alone on the Subway
SecondAvenueSagas picks up on the debate about at what age a child should be allowed to ride the subway by himself. SecondAve estimates he was 12 when he undertook this Gotham rite of passage.
To me, riding the subways alone was a non-event. It was just another part of living in and growing up in New […]
No Comments » - Posted in Lenore Skenazy by TJ
Thursday, April 17th, 2008
School Buses Get Tune-Up
Kids in parts of Massachusetts, Connecticut and other select states are being treated to school buses that feature state-of-the-art sound systems airing current music and boy-girl advice, reports the NY Times, and will soon roll out a feature that sends riders emails or text messages alerting them that the bus is ten minutes from their […]
No Comments » - Posted in BusRadio, The Scofflaws by TJ
Thursday, April 17th, 2008
What Metro-North Has to Say About the Torn Trousers
I’d heard Metro-North reimburses the poor suckers who’ve had their pants ripped on those ill-tempered M7 armrests, so I figured I’d look into it.
Mind you, as I mentioned, it’s a 10-year-old pair of chinos–hardly my good suit or even my pretty good suit.
I called the general information number on the MTA Website and things start […]
No Comments » - Posted in Armrest, Metro North by TJ
Thursday, April 17th, 2008
The Armrest That Tore My Trousers
“It’s been nearly four months of commuting now,” we said in February 2007, “and we haven’t seen a soul rip his pants on the train. In fact, we can’t even picture it happening. If you knew the armrests were known for this–and if you read the papers and watch the news, it’s hard not to […]
2 Comments » - Posted in Armrest by TJ
Wednesday, April 16th, 2008
How to Get From Rockland to Rye
Our terrific newspaper lady Dolores L. came through for us again, delivering the Journal News, which we do not subscribe to, and failing to deliver the New York Times, which we do subscribe to. So if you’re curious about how Dobbs Ferry’s baseball team fared against rival Ardsley, just ask me.
Thanks to Dolores L., I […]
No Comments » - Posted in Bus Rapid Transit, Journal News by TJ
Tuesday, April 15th, 2008
To bug or not to bug
We all know the cars on the New Haven line are gross. To be honest though, as a regular on the “bloodline,” (named for the red motif used on the trains,) the squalor isn’t usually forefront on my mind. I learned pretty quickly to recognize and avoid the dreaded bathroom cars and to keep my […]
3 Comments » - Posted in New Haven Line, filth by G. Francis
Tuesday, April 15th, 2008
Monorail One Way, “Deuce” the Other
That 40-plus hour per week diversion that calls itself “work” sees us in Vegas, which means a chance to revist our previous fling with Sin City’s monorail. Indeed, it was a year ago that I first tried the Strip’s tram–when God himself wreaked holy hell on Mamaroneck and submerged it under 10 feet of water.
The monorail […]
No Comments » - Posted in Monorail, Vegas by TJ
Monday, April 14th, 2008
Word of the Week: Birds of a Pleather (Special Airline Edition)
BIRDS OF A PLEATHER /BURDZ uv a pleth urr/ noun: Couples seen in airports wearing (often matching) track suits designed for maximum comfort on long flights.
Usage: I saw a couple heavy-set birds of a pleather in JFK wearing cheesy matching purple track suits; wouldn’t you know it, I ended up in the middle seat, right between their fat […]
No Comments » - Posted in Word of the Week by TJ
Friday, April 11th, 2008
The Great Train Revelry, Part III: The Hudson Line
Trainjotting examined the first two parts of InTown Magazine’s “The Great Train Revelry,” covering the pubs along the Harlem Line and the New Haven Line, earlier this week. Here, ladies and gentlemen, is the third and final installment: the Hudson Line.
Of the three rail routes, the Hudson Line is the hands-down winner in the […]
No Comments » - Posted in Hudson Line by TJ
Friday, April 11th, 2008
Surprise Winner in On-Time Race, and New Haven Riders Have Long Wait For New Cars
Longest headline ever, or what?
The new Mileposts is out, which Trainjotting readers know tickles TJ to no end. Among this month’s factoids and findings: The winner in February’s on-time performance race was, for once, not the darling Hudson Line. Indeed, the Harlem Line was best in class, posting a 99.2% on-time* performance (*”on-time” of course […]