Falling Subway and Bus Ridership in New York

http://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/opinion/falling-subway-and-bus-ridership-in-new-york.html

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To the Editor:

Re “Subway Ridership Drops for First Time Since 2009” (news article, Feb. 24):

There are times when the system runs smoothly, and it’s great, but this is counterbalanced by times when the system is abysmal. Those abysmal times tend to fall on weekend evenings after a long day followed by a night out, when it’s not uncommon to wait 20 minutes for a C train, for example.

It feels endless. After this happens a couple of times, you don’t even try. For me and my gal, a cab is the way to go.

NORMAN SALANT, NEW YORK

To the Editor:

If the drop in subway ridership isn’t seen as “reason for alarm” by Metropolitan Transportation Authority leadership, the steep decline in bus ridership should certainly be. New York City’s buses are facing a crisis, and riders have been abandoning the bus for years because of slow speeds and unreliable service.

The agency must work to carry out solutions proved to work in other major cities, like installing all-door boarding technology and allowing buses to control transit signals to move ahead of traffic.

Bus riders have been sounding the alarm for years. It’s time to make better bus service a reality.

JAQI COHEN, NEW YORK

The writer is campaign coordinator for the Nypirg Straphangers Campaign.