FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com JULY 25, 2013 • THE QUEENS COURIER 21 Pols come out IN SUPPORT OF COMMUNITY SAFETY ACT MTA improve’M’ents M line will run on weekends LIAM LA GUERRE lguerre@queenscourier.com Ridgewood subway riders can rejoice, as the M line will be making stops to Manhattan on the weekends again. Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on July 22 that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) will make improvements and expansions throughout the city to bus, subway and Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) service with state funding. “For the second year in a row, the state has invested in significant enhancements and expansions to our state’s transit system that will improve the experience of the eight million commuters who use the MTA,” Cuomo said. The enhancements are possible because of state aid from the 2013 Executive Budget, cost-cutting measures by the MTA and fare hikes. The agency will spend $7.9 million annually on new bus and subway services and another $5.9 million to improve track and station cleaning, increase controllers to manage numbered line service and add more security cameras. Chief among the enchantments is the restoration of weekend service on the M line, which currently runs from Metropolitan Avenue to Myrtle Avenue stations on weekends. The route will be extended to the Essex and Delancey Street station in downtown Manhattan. Presently, weekend riders traveling to Manhattan from Ridgewood are forced to transfer to the J train at Myrtle Avenue. The service upgrade will reduce transfers and shorten waits for 37,000 weekend customers, according to the MTA. Riders agreed that the M line extension will make for faster commutes and decrease congestion on the weekends. “This helps me a lot because on the weekends I have to rely just on the R train, so now my commute to work on weekends might be a little faster,” said Maria Niedzwiedz. As part of the improvements the agency is planning to reduce wait times for G train riders by speeding up service from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays from every 10 minutes to every eight minutes. Some Queens buses will also see more service. The MTA will restore weekend service to the Q31 bus, which runs from Jamaica to Bayside. “It will be really great because I have prep school on Saturdays,” said Bayside High School student Sam Son, who currently has to take alternative routes to reach his weekend courses. Sunday service is also being established for the Q77, which travels through Jamaica and Springfield Gardens. The enhancements include $2.6 million in service add-ons for the LIRR including restored service in both directions every half hour from Ronkonkoma to Port Washington. For more information on all the updates throughout the city, visit www.governor. ny.gov/press/07222013-governor-announcesmta investments. Additional reporting by Ben Fang and Johann Hamilton BY LIAM LA GUERRE lguerre@queenscourier.com A group of Queens councilmembers that voted in favor of controversial legislation to oversee the activities of the NYPD gathered at Borough Hall to reaffirm their support last week. Led by Councilmember Leroy Comrie, the public officials, including Borough President Helen Marshall and various minority groups, said the Community Safety Act would help end profiling by police officers. The group also blasted Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who vetoed the act on Tuesday, July 23, and the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA) for “attacking” councilmembers in support of the proposed legislation. “We want people to understand that these are common-sense, tempered measures that have been put together only after a lot of consultation with many different entities, including law enforcement,” Comrie said. The act, which consists of two bills, was approved by the council about three weeks ago. One of the bills creates an inspector general to share oversight of the NYPD with the police commissioner. The other bill will make it easier for people to take the department to court over discrimination. Supporters believe it will end alleged abuses of the stop-and-frisk policy, which they say overly targets minorities, and will improve community relations with cops. “Unfortunately in this city, and in particular in communities of color, many people don’t trust the police officers,” Councilmember Mark Weprin said. “We want them to trust the police so when they see something wrong, they say something.” Opponents believe the Community Safety Act will interrupt the NYPD by dragging officers to court for costly cases. Brooklyn councilmember Jumaane Williams, a co-sponsor of the bill, joined the rally and issued a challenge to Bloomberg. “You point out in the bill where it says you cannot use descriptions and you point out where it says police officers may be financially harmed and I will pull the bill before the override vote,” Williams said. “It’s time to put up or shut up.” The PBA has challenged councilmembers in support of the bill with upcoming elections, such as Weprin, by supporting their opponents and handing out flyers in their district. “The PBA is not attacking any councilmembers,” said PBA Communications Director Albert O’Leary. “We are simply informing their constituents that the officers who protect their community believe that these representatives did not vote in the best interest of the community by supporting two badly conceived and unnecessary bills.” THE COURIER/Photos by Liam La Guerre Councilmember Leroy Comrie signing a pledge to support the Community Safety Act. NEW DCPI COMMISSIONER BY MAGGIE HAYES mhayes@queenscourier.com John McCarthy, the mayor’s current office spokesperson and senior advisor, will become the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner for Public Information (DCPI) this August. “McCarthy brings experience, judgment and legal training to this important position,” said Police Photo courtesy of John J. McCarthy Commissioner Raymond Kelly, who made the announcement on Thursday, July 18. The Queens native was previously assistant commissioner to the DCPI and was responsible for police, fire and other first responder issues in the mayor’s office, Kelly said. “McCarthy is a consummate, thoughtful professional and I welcome him back to the NYPD,” he added. Before his time with the mayor’s office and the NYPD, McCarthy was director of public affairs at the Port Authority of New York and New jersey and handled communication and legal affairs at the MTA and the state’s Office of Homeland Security. He also served as an attorney on the Moreland Commission on city schools, which investigated the old Board of Education. Prior to his public service career, McCarthy received undergraduate and law degrees from Fordham University. McCarthy succeeds Paul Browne, who will become the vice president for public affairs and communications at the University of Notre Dame. Kelly also announced the appointment of Valerie Salembier as Assistant Commissioner for Public Information. Salembier, a former newspaper and publishing executive and chair of the New York City Police Foundation, will support McCarthy in all aspects of media relations. “Salembier brings a tremendous depth of media experience to DCPI and broad knowledge of public safety issues,” Kelly said. “Her willingness to serve in this role is but the latest expression of her passionate devotion to New York City and the men and women who protect it on a daily basis.” McCarthy officially starts his position on August 19
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