Oct 11, 2009 11:56 am US/Eastern
Subway Service Disruptions Cause Major Confusion
MTA Weekend Maintenance Blitz Disrupting Service On 18 Of 20 Lines That Operate On Weekends
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
Weekend repairs are causing mass confusion on New York City's subway lines this weekend, as residents caught off guard by the disruptions are forced to change their plans or find alternate means of transportation.
Loads of red tape at Lincoln Center's subway station lets you know that, if you're downtown-bound, you are not going any where. That is but one piece of the larger puzzle created by the MTA's maintenance blitz this weekend.
The work is causing disruptions on 18 of the city's 20 subway lines that operate on weekends.
"That is a lot of inconvenience," resident Prasan Kumar said.
"That seems like a lot at one time – 18 out of 20 – so very inconvenient for a lot of people," Lower Manhattan resident John Fowler said. "I'm new to New York, I don't know if this is a regular thing."
This weekend presents an extraordinary number of trains on the wrong tracks, running late, skipping entire stops, and crowding.
Michael Hearn had paid attention to the wallpapering of warning signs, so he knew it would be bad.
"It just meant I had to leave the house earlier this morning," Hearns, a Woodside, Queens resident, said. "Now I have to walk six blocks out of my way, and hopefully get out at the stop I need in the Village – unless something is screwed up down there."
But other straphangers were stopped dead in their tracks, caught off guard by the service changes.
"It's a little confusing," one rider said.
"It's not stopping anywhere near where I have to go," said another.
It was enough to keep even the most die-hard subway users above ground, on the buses added to the mix to help out. People pushed late, however, had to push their way into taxis.
Surviving the subway scramble this weekend has proved to be a big accomplishment, but it's not over yet – another round of the runaround comes on Sunday.
Service Advisories: Sunday
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