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New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. today called on the MTA to reform how it measures city subway and bus service, charging that many MTA indicators “distort reality” and seem designed to prevent the public from knowing how the Authority is performing.
In the review of the measurements, titled “Off Track,” Thompson noted that riders currently cannot track how crowded their subway or bus is compared to other lines, the severity of service gaps how clean or well lighted their subway station, among other measures.
He also noted that little data is released on a subway line-by-line or bus route-by-route basis, and no information is released for individual stations.
“If the MTA wants to win rider trust after the recent fare hike and other missteps, it must make sure that it is upfront with riders about how it is doing,” said Thompson. “One key step is measuring service accurately in a way that’s easy to understand.”
In a letter to incoming MTA Chairman Jay H. Walder and NYC Transit President Howard H. Roberts Jr. that accompanies the review, Thompson noted that riders and the rest of the public have the right to know “how effectively their fares and tax dollars are being spent.”
NYC Transit Committee agendas can contain 30 or more charts, 56 graphs and dozens of tables, Thompson noted. But much of the information is poorly presented and there is little line-by-line information and no station-by-station information, according to the review.
Thompson made several recommendations to make the measurements more user-friendly, proposing that the MTA and NYC Transit:
- Revise on-time performance data to reflect real-life experience during rush hours, off-peak periods and night-time and weekends and add measurements on service levels and crowding;
- Release more subway and bus information by line, so that riders can see how their line stacks up against other lines. Thompson praised NYC Transit for releasing subway-car breakdown information by line for the first time ever in July.
- Release station-by-station information and revising station ratings so that they include measurements of deteriorating structural conditions, water conditions and other problems;
- Ask for more complete crime information from the New York Police Department. Currently, NYC Transit releases data only about major felonies, missing many of the more commonplace crimes that occur on subway trains and in stations. For instance, NYC Transit’s crime statistics do not record petit larceny or fare-beating.
Nor is there any station-by-station or line-by-line information about subway crime – and nothing is reported about crimes on buses.
Thompson also proposed that the MTA post information in a searchable online database and, convene a task force of transit advocates, interested elected officials and outside and internal experts to develop rider-friendly measures.
“Because of the overall lack of useful data, riders, advocates and elected officials must rely on anecdotal reports or outside analyses by groups such as NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign,” added Thompson. “The lack of meaningful data makes it hard to define what must be improved and prevents NYC Transit from taking credit for service improvements.”
“An unreliable and unappealing mass transit system drives away both riders and employers,” Thompson wrote. “My intent – and I am sure yours as well – is to help position our transit system so that it receives its fair share of public financial support.”
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New York City Comptroller’s Office press@comptroller.nyc.gov / Main: (212) 669-3747 / Fax: (212) 669-8879
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