Politicians Really Want The MTA To Do Something About The G
- Photo via StageBuddy
If you were into that idea from a while back about bringing Citi Bike stations to Greenpoint while the G undergoes months and months of repairs—or are just tired of having your weekend commute ruined—looks like you’re not alone. Over the weekend, a group of local politicians including Christine Quinn and City Councilmen Stephen Levin and Jimmy Van Bramer further pressed the MTA on the issue (or “begged,” as Gothamist weirdly put it), pushing for the Transit Administration to subsidize East River Ferry rides and new Citi Bike stations until the G is back on a normal schedule.
“There’s no question they need to repair the G line, but the MTA needs to provide alternate forms of transportation for those in the area,” said Quinn. “The MTA should step up and help with financial to accelerate Citi Bike; to make sure that the Citi Bikes come to Long Island City and Greenpoint immediately. That would help people get to where they need to go more easily while the train tunnel is under reconstruction.”
And their proposed plan, sent out by press release, does sound pretty good, mapping out an additional 22 Citi Bike stations positioned in such a way that it’d be easy for riders to transfer from, say, the 7 train or the L train when the G is down on weekends. Plus, free rides on the East River Ferry sound pretty nice, and it’s about time Greenpoint got some Citi Bike stations, anyway. But if the MTA does end up footing the bill for most of this, it doesn’t bode well for our faint hope of avoiding those forthcoming fare hikes (or the easy political popularity of just giving us all some more bikes). You win some, you lose some.
Follow Virginia K. Smith on Twitter @vksmith.