(no subject)

[chelseagirl]

Transit strike? *sigh* Ok, I walk to work so all this really means for me personally is that Columbia library is probably not gonna be my site for study until further notice (it's a 2-3 hour walk, I think; I've never done it without stopping off here and there en route). Oh, and I'm going to have to print out a lot of email final papers from the students who commute. Oh, and an important meeting I had today will no doubt be rescheduled yet *again*, since the other person lives in Brooklyn.

However . . . for all of those who are tremendously inconvenienced by today's events, my sympathies. And this had better settle before it f***s up people getting to the airports for their holiday trips, or the transit workers are gonna lose any sympathy they've got from anybody. *grumblegrowl*

Comments

[sbgrl.livejournal.com]

You know, I was wondering how quickly it’s going to turn around, especially now that so many issues have been brought to the courts. They’re not going to go back to the tables until everything is settled there. Are the courts going to push this through because of what it’s going to cost the city, which is my guess, or are things going to be delayed because of the holidays? I’m sure some judge is pissed off right now that their vacation is being ruined.

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

And an annoyed judge is a harsh judge . . .

My guess would ordinarily be that this might run a week, long enough to bring the city to its knees. But how it's going to affect holiday travel is boggling my mind. Just on a personal level I'm already worrying about how possible it's going to be for us to get a taxi to the airport this weekend, now, and multiply that by all the people who are travelling for Christmas or New Years or Hannukah or "the week that the company shuts down anyway, so why not plan a trip?" How are my students going to get to the airport to get home for break?

[sbgrl.livejournal.com]

Totally. We have friends coming in from France next week. Thankfully they're flying Continental so they can take the air train to NJ transit and we can then pick them up at Pen Station.

Hopefully the bus services to the airports will be beefing up service because unless you have a car that's really going to be the only way to get there. Are you guys going to England?

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

No, just Buffalo. But we are really looking forward to it -- usually M.'s working on Christmas, or at least Christmas eve. And there'll be snow, and parents, and a fireplace. And taking Martin to Niagara Falls, which is pretty in winter.

[sbgrl.livejournal.com]

Oh have a fabulous time! Yes, Niagra falls this time of year is pretty.

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

yeah, just hope we're not hitchhiking our way to the airport!

[silme.livejournal.com]

Ah, but the French should be used to transit strikes. I'm thinking of the time not too long ago when my husband had to find an alternative way home from Belgium (driving -- work related) to England because the French dock workers went on strike suddenly that day and the ferries from Calais came to a halt. And the time I was in Paris during an Air France strike. And the time the trains stopped due to a strike and... :)

[sbgrl.livejournal.com]

True, they do strike quite a bit. When we were in France over Thanksgiving the Metro was on strike the day we arrived. Ended up taking an expensive cab to my in-laws.

I've been pretty fortunate strike wise on my trips, but whenever my husband goes with out me he seems to get stuck at the airport or something.

[silme.livejournal.com]

It mostly seems to happen to us in France. :( (But I like going there anyway. :)

As an ex-pat American in the UK, I love how they don't tend to have that many wildcat strikes. Transit strikes often are one day only and announced weeks ahead of time. So polite. They're still annoying, but at least you're told about it ahead of time and can try to make alternative arrangements.
Of course, the bus replacement on service on trains at nights and on weekends can be more frustrating.

[sbgrl.livejournal.com]

Yes, it nice that they tell you ahead of time and people there manage. We're just not civilised here ;-)

[reginaspina.livejournal.com]

Apparently, so far the airport travel parts are OK - although I think the air-train (accessed via LIRR) probably is much slower because the LIRR is so crowded and so hard to get onto. I'm taking the day off today, hoping things will be resolved by tomorrow, and if not, I'm looking at that nice long walk in the a.m.! And the p.m. GRRRR!

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

Please -- can you tell me how to access this information? It would make me feel a lot calmer; I think the chances of getting a car service or taxi to the airport on Sunday may be slim.

[reginaspina.livejournal.com]

Here's the air train main page. Obviously, the only way to access it given the subway strike would be the LIRR - which leaves from Penn Station; they SAY it takes 35 minutes, but that's assuming all the connections work like clockwork - so I would leave lots of time given that I think the clocks have all pretty sprung a leak at this point...

The LIRR schedule also comes up on the MTA main site - so you can check what times the trains are scheduled to leave.

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

Thanks! We can walk to Penn Station!

[nycdeb.livejournal.com]

http://www.supershuttle.com/ and http://www.nyairportservice.com/ might be options you could check out

[(Anonymous)]

You are the most fabulous! My aunt gave me the phone # for supershuttle and swore up and down they were terrific -- except their number is always busy. Should've known to google them -- thanks for the links!

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

That was me thanking you anonymously.

[holzman.livejournal.com]

Not for me, it's not. (I think I sum my position up pretty well in my blog.)

If it goes on for long, don't blame the union, this is the only alternative they have to accepting a horrible contract for no good reason. Blame the MTA for not putting a realistic offer on the table, blame Bloomberg for not stepping up and keeping the talks going, blame Pataki for the same.

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

I can and do blame all those people pretty much every day. However, disrupting an ordinary work week is one thing. Disrupting the chances of people who would much rather support the union than the politicians or the bureaucrats to be home with their families for the holidays? Not so sure about that.

[holzman.livejournal.com]

This isn't an ordinary work week -- this is going to be devestating to Manhatten businesses that were depending on a shopping boost the week before Yule.

But what's the union to do? Once they're on strike, if they call the strike off without anything to show for it, they've got nothing to bargain with when they return to the table. I'm sorry, but that's a whole lot bigger than people wanting to be home with their families for the holidays.

[mortalwombat731.livejournal.com]

I can always shuttle from GC to JFK for my flight, and I live closer to a Metro North than a subway, but we have tickets for the Globe's summer performance of Measure for Measure for tomorrow night in Brooklyn--that is going to be a problem.

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

Um, what do you mean by shuttling? I'm desperately nervous about Sunday and looking for all possibilities -- if you mean Grand Central, do you mean those buses? We can walk to Grand Central if need be.

[mortalwombat731.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly. That same shuttle bus company also picks up at Penn and Port Authority, which might be easier for you. It runs like $13, takes maybe an hour... J and I took it to get to and from JFK last spring, and it was relatively painless.

I forgot the link

[mortalwombat731.livejournal.com]

http://www.nyairportservice.com/

Re: I forgot the link

[chelseagirl.livejournal.com]

Thanks!