| Author | Message | ||
     Ken Scout Citizen Username: Lightningken Post Number: 133 Registered: 11-2005 |
Today, NJ Transit distributed new schedules and for the 3rd consecutive time, Maplewood/SO has had our train service reduced. This time has been the most extreme change (loss of another express train, which happened to be mine) and I am not confident that my 1 letter and phone call to NJ Transit will bring about any change in this trend. We need our TC to better represent the Maplewood commuter constituents. This is the only way we will recieve fair treatment. I respectfully request that all candidates for TC this fall include on their platform ways they intend to improve the communication of our needs to NJ Transit. Thank you | ||
| Duncan Supporter Username: Duncanrogers Post Number: 6825 Registered: 12-2001  |
Ken, I would send them each an email. Their addresses can be found on the main Maplewood main page, but I will save you the trouble, I have em anyway... Here ya go. Kathy Leventhal KLeventhal@aol.com Vic DeLuca vic@igc.org David R. Huemer drh23@columbia.edu Ken Pettis kap07040@yahoo.com Fred Profeta frp713@aol.com | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 7945 Registered: 5-2001 |
We were talking about this on the train platform this morning -- note an afternoon peak service train has also been lost. A concerted write in campaign by train commuters will probably be more effective than a single communication from the TC. | ||
| Ken Scout Citizen Username: Lightningken Post Number: 135 Registered: 11-2005 |
I disagree. If we get 100 commuters to commit, we'll likely get 10-15% who actually do anything.... Our best course of action is to find a way to have our Town Representatives tackle this issue on our behalf. They are the only people with the clout/responsibility to handle issues like these. The optimist that I am, I believe that this is probably just a lack of clear and frequent communication of the towns needs/hopes/desires to NJ transit. Thus that leaves us to their whims. The TC must embrace this as an important issue given the size of the commuter population in this town, and ALSO given that the town continues to tout Commuter times to Manhattan when selling itself. (I for one was fooled by the towns claim to be 26 minutes to Midtown....not realizing that this happened to be one train, offered at one time, at one point in the past). | ||
| ML Supporter Username: Ml1 Post Number: 3090 Registered: 5-2002  |
what service has been eliminated? I checked the schedule and I didn't see any changes that affected service between NYC and Maplewood. are the changes to the Hoboken line? | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12312 Registered: 5-2001 |
The early Hoboken express (@6:10am) has been eliminated and replaced by a local that leaves at 6:07am and arrives to late to catch the 6:50am ferry to Pier 11.  Believe it or not that is a pretty heavily traveled train. I believe close to 50 people get on at Maplewood most mornings and the cars are pretty well full, except for the middle seats. | ||
| bookgal Citizen Username: Bookgal Post Number: 726 Registered: 7-2001 |
Mr. Bookgal is most distressed. Looks like he'll have to get the 6.07am and he is a bit grumpy about it, possibly even grumpy enough to write a letter. | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 7950 Registered: 5-2001 |
Bobk: The crowded nature of the train may be why it is no longer stopping at Maplewood Station. Ken: I disagree. Prior experience with NJT has shown that they respond to complaints when received in bulk from LOTS of their regular customers. As I posted on your other thread on this subject, the mass complaint tactic worked once before when a major train for Maplewood commuters was eliminated. It is helpful to get the TC involved and there is no harm in e-mailing the entire TC, some of whom are regular NJT riders but an official letter or phone call from the town is not likely to be sufficient to get the newly revised schedule changed. | ||
| Ken Scout Citizen Username: Lightningken Post Number: 139 Registered: 11-2005 |
Who said anything about one official letter or phonecall from the TC? First of all, this thread is not posted in "Soapbox" for a debate over what tactics can be effective with NJ transit. Rather, it is presented as an open letter to future TC members stating my opinion about what is now the single most important issue to me when it comes time to vote this fall. I should like to think it's an issue of rising importance with others now too. Second of all, if your Letter writing campaigns of the past are so successful, than why is our towns NJ Transit service continually being cut back? Finally, if a TC member states that a simple Official Letter from the town is the best Idea they can come up with to address this significant problem, than they certainly, most assuredly will NOT get my vote. I'm looking for someone to bring ideas to the table that would offer a permanent fix. Again, if you want to debate tactics, take it up with me over in the Soapbox thread, but it's entirely innappropriate for this subject heading and topic. I, for one, have already taken your suggestion and filed my own complaint. If you want a more expansive letter campaign, start one. | ||
| Duncan Supporter Username: Duncanrogers Post Number: 6882 Registered: 12-2001 |
Ken you are getting nasty and since you "respectfully request" help from the TC, why not treat those who are trying to help you or offer you suggestions with the same due respect. Read your initial post....
I then provided you with the emails of every member of the TC so you could express your desire to have them better represent the commuters of this town to NJT. Have you done that? Not every member of the TC checks this board everyday but likely does check their email everyday. This is a bulletin board run by citizens. It is not an official town sanctioned or operated site. So take your complaint or your request or whatever it is to the appropriate place. I provided you with those addresses so you could do so. And based on the fact that you posted this on 8/3
and no one has jumped on your bandwagon, it can be assumed that a) this is not the place people come to seek specific relief with the aid of the TC or B) it is not an issue of rising importance. Joan is correct when she says that the last time there was a MAJOR change in the schedule a mass letter writing campaign did indeed restore the lost service. And the only person treating this as a soapbox, seems to be you. I spoke to NJ Transit before responding here and was told that schedules are modified based on ridership, which is calculated by tickets, and passes. So, in an effort to become a bit more efficient with their resources they occasionally change trains. She could not easily provide a reason as to why your train was discontinued but she offered to look into it and I left my phone number. If I hear anything I will be sure to let you know. And Ken you are never going to get a permenant fix for this problem. Population changes, work patterns, and ridership all change and will always call for rescheduling of trains. What would you have the TC do? At first you ask for them to get behind their commuter constituants then you say a letter or phone call to NJT isn't going to satisfy you and if thats the best they can do than they don't deserve their office then why don't you come up with a plan a stategy and present it to the TC during the open sessions every other tuesday night. Heck if it works you could run for TC and see what working with a company like NJT is actually like. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12391 Registered: 5-2001 |
Joan, it isn't that the train is skipping MW. It has been turned into a local. Caught the "new" 6:08am this morning. It got into Hoboken at 6:44am, leaving plenty of time to catch the 6:50am ferry to Pier 11. If this continues to be the case I will grumble a little, but wouldn't have kittens, but then I am not the type who arrives at a dead run to catch a train. | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 8047 Registered: 5-2001 |
Bob: There used to be two trains: an express and a local. They have been combined into a single local train. August is not a good time to test for the on time record or the occupany rates of the new consolidated train. Let's see what happens in September. | ||
| Ken Scout Citizen Username: Lightningken Post Number: 149 Registered: 11-2005 |
Joan is correct. There was the Exrpess to hoboken followed by a local 10 minutes later. Both trains were cancelled and replaced by a local leaving a few minute earlier than the express left. Roughly speaking, it used to look like this: 6:10 Express 6:19 Local 6:35 Local The new and improved schedule looks like this: 6:08 Local 6:35 Local I reiterate the importance of this issue to me in this falls elections, and I'll be seeking a candidate who incorporates commuters needs into their agenda. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12421 Registered: 5-2001 |
Joan, I agree that August isn't the best time to judge a commute. However, early indications are, as they say, favorable. Ken, the late 6:10am (actually I think it was a 6:12) train has always been a orphan. It was inserted into the schedule when the current 6:01am MTD train was changed from a Hoboken train and people protested about a large gap. Its departure time changed almost every time their was a schedule change. As I said before, it looks like it is going to work for most Maplewood commuters. | ||
| wnb Citizen Username: Wnb Post Number: 507 Registered: 8-2001 |
Last time the 8:16 was cut from the South Orange schedule, a mass email and call-in campaign directly to NJT resulted in the re-institution of that stop in a matter of days. It was highly effective. | ||
| Dogbert Citizen Username: Dogbert Post Number: 128 Registered: 1-2006  |
How would they know what ridership is from a particular station when so many people use monthly tickets? It must just be the impressions given to them by conductors. Not very scientific. |
