What do we pay you for?!? - MTA

On this entry for "What do we pay you for?!?", it again is the MTA. As the threats and rumors of even higher rates comes closer to reality, I keep coming across disappointments in the service we pay for. Here I have two photos of two public transportation systems. One is less than a year old. Can you guess witch one? IT'S THE F-ING BOTTOM ONE!!!! That's right. That's our lovely MTA. The one on the top is about 20 years old. Does this make any sense? There's no comparison. There's no good excuse for the difference!! Look at the filth on the MTA's floor. WHAT THE HELL DO WE PAY YOU FOR?!? I'd rather have a old floor with gum and stains on it than a brand new floor with nasty stains all over it. At least with the old floor you can't tell that our money is going to waste. You figure its old. But, with this new filthy floor, its obvious our money is being thrown into some LAZY ASS'S pocket. WHERE THE HELL IS THE PERSON THAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE MAINTAINING THIS STATION?!?!?! From what I understand, there are people hired specifically to clean the stations. They get paid about $25 to $30 an hour. WHAT?!?! ARE YOU SERIOUS!?! I don't even care that you're overpaid. It's a filthy job. I get it. BUT, WHY THE HELL IS THIS FLOOR SO FILTHY?!?!?! I understand that there are some filthy inconsiderate NYers. BUT, YOUR ONLY JOB ALL DAY EVERY DAY IS TO CLEAN THE STATION!!!! DO YOUR JOB!!!! WHAT DO WE PAY YOU FOR?!?

What are you thinking?

This is a familiar scene that you see in NYC. Large groups of tourists that just take up the whole sidewalk. WHERE ARE THE OTHER PEOPLE THAT EXIST IN THIS WORLD SUPPOSED TO WALK?!?! This is not a narrow sidewalk. It's an extra wide. So, there is plenty of room for people to walk. Do you not realize that you're taking up the WHOLE sidewalk? It's a sideWALK! Not a sideSTAND! If you're not moving, PULL THE F OFF TO THE SIDE!!! ESPECIALLY, the guy in the red jacket. He even stands like a prick! What the hell is that? He looks like he's trying to straddle the friggin sidewalk. He's like," This bitch is mine and no one else can have it!" I realize that you might be the one that is supposed to be watching over the group, but seriously? That stance is ridiculous. Why don't you just beat your chest and throw feces on approaching individuals? Better yet, MOVE YOUR F-ING GROUP TO THE SIDE OF THE SIDEWALK SO THEY'RE NOT BLOCKING THE WHOLE FRIGGIN SIDEWALK!!!!

MTA - Twisted Metal

Hey readers, I have decided to slow my roll. Even tho I could rant about something new everyday about the MTA, I don't travel within the system enough to get enough pictures. I actually travel in a very limited area of the system. All of my pictures have been from within this limited area. I KNOW, RIGHT? Anyway, here's another. This little scrap metal is located on my way up an escalator from the platform. As you can see, its been this way for a while. It's obvious NO ONE has touched these surfaces in quite some time. It's got that nice brown ancient dust going on. I guess the station didn't have enough DUCT TAPE to "fix" this little blade of metal. Ooop, did I say blade? Naaah, no kid would be stupid enough to reach out and try to touch this twisted hunk, would they? In a country where toys have gone from sturdy metal to plastic blobs because kids hurt themselves, I think you might want to consider fixing the loose metal. Even if it is just duct taping the hell out of it. And, then you can clean the wood surface that sits next to the... metal surface... WHAT?!? Since when did they start using wood instead of metal for permanent paneling? Maybe, at the same time when they considered duct tape to be the choice method of holding things together?

What do we pay you for?!?

For this edition of "What do we pay you for?!?", we're looking at the DSNY. Department of Sanitation. I think they're the ones that are supposed to oversee trash collecting, right? Here's a shot of a trash container in Chinatown. Never mind that there are BAGS of trash on the ground around the trash bin. THERE IS NO TRASH CONTAINER IN THE METAL FRAME!!! What the hell happened to the trash bin? So, now, there is just trash piled up on top of the metal frame and on the ground around the frame. How are we supposed to help keep the city clean if there are no trash bins to throw trash in?!? It's not like you can just fill up the frame and the trash guys will dump that. These frames are bolted to the ground. Do you think those guys riding by on the back of the trash trucks will take the time to hand pick the trash out of this frame? They can barely spare the time to avoid throwing trash into parked cars. I know that Chinatown is dirty and smelly already, but you don't have to add to the problem. You're the FRIGGIN Department of SANITATION! Does this look sanitary to you? Help us help you. PUT TRASH BINS WHERE TRASH BINS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE!! We pay crazy taxes living in the city. Is it too much to ask to have properly placed trash bins for those of us that do not like throwing trash all over the ground? I don't pay all these taxes to keep JUST the rich sections of the city clean. WHAT DO WE PAY YOU FOR?!?

Aren't you cold?

Today's post is about people sitting outside to eat when it is still too cold. Aren't you cold? Take a look at the pictures above. If people around you are wearing layers or scarfs, IT MAY BE TOO COLD TO SIT OUTSIDE! What is it about people and sitting outside when it's way too cold to sit outside? It's not like you're getting "fresh air" in NYC. Your food gets cold before you get to eat it. You have strangers(lucky if its not a bum) staring at you eating. AND, ITS COLD!! Do you feel special that you're sitting outside? Do you feel like a rebel? Like you're being different? And, if you look at the picture on the bottom, the people aren't even sitting in the sun! And, the other picture, people are sitting under a shade. WHAT?!? Are you afraid to get TOO warm?!? Why would you actually decide to sit outside in the cold under a shade away from the warming sun? It just makes no sense to me. And, I seem to notice that its mainly, if not always, white people. Whassup wit dat? White people, if you have some insight, please enlighten me. Is it some magical feeling that fills your body that sitting outside gives you? Do you eat at another level when your body is trying to fight off hypothermia? Maybe, I'd join you outside if I knew what the draw was. I HIGHLY doubt it, but never say never. Do share...I'll be waiting inside...

What do we pay you for?!?

Today I'm starting a new segment called "What do we pay you for?!?" This is for those moments when you don't understand why you pay what you do when you witness sub-par service.

For this entry of "What do we pay you for?!?", its the MTA. What a surprise! Here's a little something I saw at the West 4th platform. It's the edge of the platform. This piece of platform is actually FALLING OFF!!! You can see THROUGH the crack! I know, you're not supposed to stand that close to the tracks anyway. BUT, this is right at a door position when the subway cart pulls up. People or CHILDREN with their small feet could easily get caught in this crack. And, if a conductor is not paying attention, it could result in a horrific scene. Oh right, conductors would never dream about not paying attention... unless for those "rare" occasions when a PHATASS walks into the line of view. Now, is it too much to ask that our transit system be maintained so its at the very least safe?!? This was just sitting out there. No, warnings or bewares about it. Just sitting there. WHAT DO WE PAY YOUR FOR?!?!?

Gotcha!

Okay, so have you ever felt like you got had? Felt like an idiot for falling for a store's trickery? Felt like the store employees are laughing at you as you leave? This is one of those situations. A friend and I were heading out to lunch. We were headed to a really good pizza place. BUT, as we walked by this Subway, we saw the sign in the window. The cheap asses we are, of course, we were tempted by the thought of $4.50 footlongs. So, we stepped inside, and ordered our footlongs. No drinks. No combos. We've fallin for that before. Stepped to the cashier and BAM $13.50!! WHAT THE HELL?!?! We asked what happened to the $8.99 for two footlongs. The cashier replied," OH, that's only after 5." WHAT?!?! Now let me ask you, do you see it say anywhere on the sign that the deal is only for after 5? ANYWHERE?!?! No, right? Yes, somehow the "only after 5" part of the sign fell BEHIND the Subway sign on the window. How friggin convenient! You dirty rotten bastards. This Subway is all kinds of wrong. We heard them tell the guy in front of us that his footlong was not one of the ones that were $5. The commercial says ALL FOOTLONG. Not some. ALL!!! How does the man's footlong sandwich not fall within the "ALL" category? And, your bootleg ass sign is all kinds of misleading. This is the Subway on 72nd St if anyone is wondering. Screw you Subway. You never said I had to do battle with your CHEAP ASS franchise owners to get a actual $5 footlong. Trust me, I've tried. I haven't gotten a $5 footlong yet! And, thanks for you "complaint" section on your website. It sends the email to the store that you're complaining about. WHAT THE HELL GOOD DOES THAT DO IF THE STORE ITSELF IS THE PROBLEM?!?! Subway, do you not care about the reputation of your franchise? Why not have a "secret shopper" stop in your stores sometimes and make sure they are abiding by your official offers? For now, I'm heading to Quiznos for their $4 sandwiches.

MTA - clean?

So, what are we supposed to think about this? Yay, they...cleaned? Or, are they just trying to show us how clean the walls could be? Like a bully walking away and giving you hope that its over. THEN, coming back and continuously pounding your eyeball. It's cruel. Look how nice shiny white that clean spot is. That is how a properly maintained wall would look like. But, as you can see, THAT IS THE ONLY SPOT THEY CLEANED!!! What the hell?!? Were you scared that someone couldn't make out the numbers? Or, did a rookie MTA employee actually start doing their job and the veterans stopped them in their tracks? How do you explain a clean spot on a wall? Its not like they were hunting for treasure and needed to wipe away the dirt to see the hidden message. And, its not small enough to be a accident. Like someone accidentally needed to put their hands on the wall and knocked some of the dirt off. It was clearly wiped away. And, now I get to look at this and know what could be if only the MTA actually did their jobs properly. DAMMIT!! Either clean it or leave it. Don't just clean a spot! It just defines how little work you are actually doing for our hard earned money. Those tiles are less than a year old. Filthy and unmaintained. LESS THAN A YEAR!! I've seen 30 year old floors cleaner than the walls in our subway system. Could you imagine if all the walls in the system were as clean as that spot? How about this MTA? DO YOUR JOBS RIGHT and maybe,JUST MAYBE, your commuters wouldn't be so furious when you mention a fare hike. HOWBOUTDAT?!?! You may think that the new carts and updates is a good thing. But, you're just throwing perfume on a bum. IT DOESN'T FRIGGIN WORK IF YOU DON'T CLEAN THE BUM!!!

Why?

I've been ranting about the MTA for a while now, and I'm sure I will be a lot more. But, I thought I'd take a break and rant about something else for this post. As you can probably guess from my picture, its people that stop in the middle of the street. ARE YOU THAT STUPID?!?! First, you buy the bootleg bags for waaay too much, and now you have to stop right in the middle of the sidewalk forcing everyone behind you to stop as well. Are you that oblivious to your surroundings that you can't sense that everyone else behind you wants to kick you in the head? Can you not pull off to the side to gaze at the shiny object that has captured your attention in consideration to your fellow pedestrians? The ladies in the picture are obvious tourists, so they have some what of an excuse for their stewpid assness. But, those that live here in the city and do the same thing. If I wouldn't be thrown in jail for assault, I surely would have hit you with a bat by now. "I'm sorry, were you in the way of my F-ING BAT?!?!" WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING?!?! You may think that you own the sidewalk or that everyone should move out of the way for your wonderful self, but my foot may not agree with you. I may all of a sudden have a case of the "I can't help but kick assholes in the head" syndrome. So, next time you're mesmerized by a shiny object, pull of to the side. You can stand there as long as you want. Don't just stop in your tracks. Other people DO EXIST in this world.

MTA - crack

Here's a little something I spotted the other day. This is a pillar on the East Broadway stop. I guess its made out of concrete. That's a crack that runs pretty much the full length of the pillar... on both sides. Which kind of makes me think that its cracked all the way through. So, at what point does the MTA consider this dangerous enough that it should be fixed? WHEN IT COLLAPSES ONTO ONE OF THEIR RIDERS?!? Unfortunately, this is not the only pillar at this station that is cracked like this. Shouldn't they at least put some duct tape on it? It seems like that is the tool of choice for repairs at this station. Wires exposed? DUCT TAPE IT! Escalator is falling apart? DUCT TAPE IT! Pillar cracked and falling apart? DUCT TAPE IT!! I wish I were exaggerating. But, from my previous posts, you can see that I am not. AND, check out the layer of dust on the pillar. That's no normal dust. That's that concentrated type of dust that movie set designers like to imitate for that "abandoned and haven't been touched in centuries" type of look. Check out movies that have to deal with abandoned subway tunnels or ancient underground ruins that haven't been touched for centuries. You'll see this type of dust. Unfortunately, this is my everyday. This is a fully functional subway platform. With thousands of commuters everyday. But, with all the money going into the system, they can't seem to clean properly. WHY IS THAT?!? This is not some inconsiderate punk that threw their drink on the floor. IT'S A FRIGGIN CRACK IN THE PILLAR AND ANCIENT LOOKING DUST!!! These are obvious maintenance issues that the MTA should be attending to with the money we throw at them everyday. And, you wonder why commuters don't think we should have to go through ANOTHER fare hike. LOOK AT THE PICTURE!!! WOULD YOU WANT A FARE HIKE IF THAT IS THE EXAMPLE OF CARE YOU GET?!?!?

MTA - maintenance

Here's a little picture of my home station. That's what I call maintenance. Check out the quality of the paint chips flaking off the ceiling. You won't be able to find this standard of care anywhere else in the world. The stains... breathtaking. Actually, if I inhaled too hard, I might catch something in this stop. Why is this stop so neglected while others are not? Is it because of the location of the stop? It's mainly minorities down here. So, MTA, are you racist or just care less about minorities? I wonder what stops out in other heavy minority areas look like. Do they have the updated lights? Do they also have duct tape quality repairs on their escalators? Probably.

MTA repairs

Here's an example of the quality of repairs that we receive from the MTA. This escalator is shut down for repairs at least once a month. And, how does the MTA think it should be fixed. DUCT TAPE THE SH*T OUT OF IT!! Yes, that is layers upon layers of duct tape. AND, YES, those are stripes of duct tape all the way down the escalator. I guess they figure that's the best way to hold the panels onto the escalator. No, not tamper proof panels. DUCT TAPE IT!! No, don't worry about the crappy appearance. DUCT TAPE IT!! Lets do some math here. $3.70 per roll of duct tape. At $2 a card(for now), it would take two individual swipes to buy a roll of duct tape. I know I'm oversimplifying, but you get the idea. Something doesn't add up here. You tell me that someone is not pocketing the money? Someone has to be taking more than their worth if we're left with duct tape as the choice of repair in the system. COMMON ON MTA!! I think you could do better than duct taping escalators. Think about it, FIX IT RIGHT, and you might not have to pay to repair it every month. Uhh, maybe, that would save you some money. Maybe, you could spend some of our hard earned money and think up of money saving ideas for the system. INSTEAD OF FORCING YOUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS TO TAKE A HIT EVERYTIME YOUR BOOKS DON'T WORK OUT!! Or, maybe, I'm just being too naive. Maybe, it doesn't have anything to do with the books at all. Because to think of how you could not be making money off of the millions of commuters that travel your system everyday at $2 a pop(one way) is beyond me. Please, reveal your costs so we can see what YOU are spending OUR hard earned money on.

MTA trash disposal

Here's another wonderful benefit that we gain from the hard earned money we pore into the MTA system. I came across our top notch professional MTA's method of trash disposal. Throw it in a corner and leave it there...for days...maybe weeks. Months? At first I thought," Maybe, they're just busy setting up the updates for the 59th St station." But, NO, this has been here for weeks. This is a perfect example of what NOT to do to a new station. Since you're spending millions in updating a station, WHY NOT KEEP IT CLEAN?!?! This is not the doing of some stupid scum bag pedestrian. We all know there are inconsiderate assholes that add to the filth. But, this is clearly the service of the MTA's top notch employees. The breathtaking service that they want to give us a fare hike for. See the floors? THOSE ARE NEW TILES!!! Seriously!! They're less that THREE MONTHS OLD!! MTA, is there some sort of rush to force these new stations to be as filthy as the old ones? COMMON!! Is it too much to ask to keep a corner clean?!?

MTA paint chips

So, when does maintenance actually become a part of the plan? Instead of throwing all the money into updating the busiest stations, why not spread the money out and maintain the full system? You know, keeping all the stations looking presentable for your everyday riders. The riders that pay day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year. Everybody knows the system is old. Embrace it and keep it clean and running. Who cares if you throw millions into updating stations, if you don't maintain them? It's just going to be a filthy updated station. Here's an idea, how about MAINTAINING the stations?!? And, I don't mean emptying the trash and sweeping up. How about a scheduled yearly process? Cleaning walls one month, repainting another, cleaning the tracks the next, and so on. If you look at my earlier post, YOU KNOW that those walls have not been cleaned in decades. WHY IS THAT?!?! I, for one, would rather have a clean and well maintained older structure than a FILTHY newer structure. And, maybe, if the stations were maintained properly, it wouldn't require millions of dollars of updates. And, I'm not even talking about cleaning up graffiti or trash. How about just not having lead paint chips flake of the ceilings and walls?
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