CITY SERVICE – A NEW SUBWAY PRICED TRAIN SERVICE ON THE             UNDERUTILIZED COMMUTER RAIL SYSTEM IN THE CITY

  1. Ridership on the subways has increased so much in the last 25 years that many lines are now filled beyond their     capacities and experience frequent delays due to the overcrowding.  There are also many densely populated underserved neighborhoods (transit deserts) in the outer boroughs that are far from any subway station and where commuters to the central business district or to local hubs have no fast, inexpensive mode of transportation to their jobs.  A large expansion of subway priced train service in the city is desirable.  It would be more desirable if this expansion could be accomplished soon and even better if it required no capital construction funds.

  1. There are about 50 miles of track and three dozen stations inside the city that are part of the MTA commuter rail system run by the LIRR and Metro-North.  Many of these stations are in underserved neighborhoods.  Outside of the one-hour peak period from 8 to 9 in the morning, these tracks and stations are underutilized and have room now for additional train service.  A limited City Service, run by the railroads and involving just 40 weekday roundtrips, could carry 40,000 passengers (80,000 riders) and be in operation by next year.  The new service could be introduced gradually on five routes through Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx and would not adversely affect the current commuter services.  

  1. According to data submitted by the LIRR and Metro-North to the National Transit Database, the operating cost for one roundtrip (about 30 miles and 1 hour) is about $6,000.  The annual cost for adding one roundtrip to the weekday schedule is about $1.5 million and the operating expenses for running a limited City Service involving 40 weekday roundtrips is about $60 million.  In a few years, after the $12 billion East Side Access Project is completed, the LIRR and Metro North could then safely expand City Service throughout the day (even in rush hours).  This expanded service would involve 160 weekday roundtrips, carry 160,000 daily commuters (320,000 riders) and cost only $240 million a year.  

  1. If City Service was run as a separate new service with subway priced fares and free transfers at both ends, it would be extremely attractive to current drivers, Express Bus riders and bus/subway riders because it would cut their commute times by about one hour per day.  Moreover, Express bus and current train commuters could save between $100 and $200 per month.  A very small percent of workers in the underserved city neighborhoods who have jobs in the central business district currently commute on the expensive railroads.  If special City Service commuter passes were distributed fairly by lottery to city residents who apply, then less than 10% would go to current train riders.

 

  1. Monthly City Service passes would bring in about $5.50 per passenger roundtrip in revenues to the railroads.  If the schedule of City Service roundtrips was limited to ensure that the trains were carrying an average of 2,000 riders (1,000 passengers) per roundtrip, then the fare revenues per roundtrip would total about $5,500.  For each City Service roundtrip, the railroads would lose at most $1,000 in total revenues from former rail passengers switching to the cheaper City Service trains, reducing the net revenues per roundtrip to $4,500.  The City Service revenues would cover 75% of the $6,000 operating costs. In 2015, the percentage of operating costs covered by fare revenues was 56.8% for Metro North, 51.7% for the LIRR, and 45.1% for New York City Transit subways and buses.  City Service compares very favorably.

   

  1. An expanded City Service would not only halve the commute times for many of many its 160,000 passengers.  It would take almost 95,000 passengers off overcrowded subways, such as the E and the 7 in Queens and the 1, 2, 4 and 5 in the Bronx.  It would also reduce the number of drivers entering the central business district each day by about 48,000 – from 731,000 to 683,000 (a 6.6% decrease).  These commuters drive about 20 miles a day (100 miles a week or 5,000 miles a year.)  The annual total vehicle miles driven would go down by 240,000,000 miles reducing congestion all over the city.

  1. Based on EPA emission facts, this large decrease in vehicle miles driven in New York City would reduce the annual unhealthy nitrous oxides in the air we breathe by 166,000 kg, the fine particulate matter (PM2.5) by 1,000 kg and the CO2 (greenhouse gas) emissions by 88,000 metric tons.  150,000 children in New York City have asthma – that’s one out of ten kids.  And studies have shown that all kids breathe better when air pollution is reduced.   In addition, many thousands of adults go to the hospital each year with respiratory and cardiovascular difficulties caused by air pollution.  Many of these New Yorkers die prematurely and unnecessarily.  

  1. In the future, about 50 additional miles of existing tracks on the Triboro, the Montauk Division, and the Amtrak routes in the city could carry City Service trains, bringing the total track mileage for City Service to 100 miles.  

City Service could make life in the city much better in many ways for all New Yorkers.  It deserves serious consideration.