FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com JULY 10, 2014 • THE QUEENS COURIER 31 SNAPS QUEENS Queens Zoo farmhouse with Terrace on the Park in the background Photo by John Tsavalos “I really don’t know what I’ll do!” Brie Rosa BY PAULINA TAM AND ROSA LOVIS “Take the bus.” Bridget Suse “It’ll obviously be more time-consuming and I’ll be fairly upset but I’ll take the bus and the E line.” Jason Kwasnicki “I would go to the city much less.” Victoria C. “I would support the strike, I guess. This economy is bad and people don’t have enough money to buy necessities after paying off their bills and payments.” Brian Reynoso “I don’t know what I would do. This is the quickest way into the city. So that would be a problem.” Calvin A. oped street talk “I live in Midtown so I’ll probably take the bus.” Chris Miller “I have no choice but to take the bus, subway or drive.” Joyce C. Send us your photos of Queens and you could see them online or in our paper! Submit them to us via our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ QueensCourier, by tweeting@queenscourier or by emailing them to [email protected] What will you do if there’s a Long Island Rail Road strike? HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY TO THE URBAN MASS TRANSPORTATION ACT BY LARRY PENNER The success of public transportation can be traced back to one of the late President Lyndon Johnson’s greatest accomplishments, which continues benefi ting many Americans today. On July 10, 1964, he signed the “Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964” into law. Subsequently this has resulted in the investment over time of several hundred billion dollars into public transportation. Millions of Americans including many residing in Queens County today on a daily basis utilize various public transportation alternatives. They include local and express bus, ferry, jitney, light rail, subway and commuter rail services. All of these systems use less fuel and move far more people than conventional single occupancy vehicles. Most are funded with your tax dollars thanks to President Johnson. Depending upon where you live, consider the public transportation alternative. Try riding a local or express bus, commuter van, ferry, light rail, commuter rail or subway. Up until the ‘60s, I remember bus drivers made change and drove the bus at the same time. Nobody would dare bring soda or food on the bus or leave any litter behind. Fast forward to today. Fortunately we have the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and its various operating agencies, including New York City Transit subway and bus, Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North Railroad, Staten Island Rapid Transit Authority and MTA Bus. Chartered by the State Legislature in 1965 as the Metropolitan Commuter Transportation Authority (MCTA), it was created to purchase and operate the bankrupt Long Island Rail Road. The MCTA changed its name to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) in 1968 when it took over operations of the New York City Transit Authority. Previously, in 1953, the old NYC Board of Transportation passed on control of the municipal subway system, including all its assets to the newly created NYCTA. In 1968, the MTA also acquired through lease the New York State commuter trackage of Penn Central’s Hudson, Harlem and New Haven lines, contracting their subsidized operation to Penn Central. In 1976, they became part of Conrail. In 1983 the Metro-North Railroad was formed to take over all of Conrail’s New York State commuter operations. The MTA took over all service in 1983 as the Metro-North Railroad. The ancestors to the MTA Bus that operated in NYC were eight private bus operators. Some of these included Steinway Bus and Queens Transit, which combined to become Queens Surface Bus Corporation, along with Green Bus, Jamaica Bus and Triboro Coach. They all provided both local service in Queens and express to Manhattan. Several years ago, NYC took over the franchises and entered into long-term leases for utilization of the facilities owned by these operators. The City between 2005 and 2006 entered into an agreement with the MTA transferring their routes and equipment to the newly created MTA Bus. All of these private bus operators previously received capital and operating assistance from both the NYC Department of Transportation and New York State. There is also New Jersey Transit (NJT), Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PATH) and NYCDOT Staten Island Ferry. Using MTA MetroCards provides free transfers between the subway and bus. This has eliminated the old two fare zones making public transportation an even better bargain. Purchasing a monthly Long Island Rail Road or MTA subway/bus pass reduces the cost per ride and provides virtually unlimited trips. The ability to travel from home to workplace, school, shopping, entertainment, medical, library, etc. is a factor when moving to a new neighborhood. Economically successful communities are not 100 percent dependent on automobiles as the sole means of mobility. Seniors, students and low- and middle-income people need these transportation alternatives. Investment in public transportation today contributes to economic growth, employment and a stronger economy. Dollar for dollar, it is one of the best investments we can make.
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