Skyrocketing delays. Near-record overcrowding. Mechanical failures. Breakdowns. Track fires. Rats. There’s no end to NYC subway problems. Whereas the system once commanded the envy of the world, now it looks archaic, frozen, hopeless. Citing decades of “underinvestment,” the MTA’s new chairman recommended a “complete overhaul” last year, and the state now appears poised to deal with the issue. But some question whether the ambitious new plan by the governor’s NYC transit czar, Andy Byford, can even work. How did we get here? And must it only get worse?
Joseph B. Raskin, author of The Routes Not Taken, talks about the difficulty of establishing the first lines, and why many failed. Philip Plotch, who led MTA planning for the 7 Extension to Hudson Yards and the Second Avenue Subway, talks about the challenges in recent history. Jaqi Cohen, campaign coordinator for the Straphangers Campaign, evaluates today’s problems and the new Byford plan from the view of advocates. Independent transportation researcher Alon Levy challenges the standard explanations for NYC’s problems, reframing them in comparative national and international perspective. Hayley Richardson of TransitCenter moderates.
