friday nightmare! transportation woes for me and dd

[jennyanydots]

have I told you how much I hate Penn Station on friday nights in the summer?

honestly, the place is a rabbit's warren. subterranean tunnels withlow ceilings. it's always crowded and uncomfortable during rush hour, more so when there's an event at the Garden. but it's at its worst on friday nights in the summer, when the weekenders are headed for the Hamptons or Fire Island. regular commuters, who ride the same train every day, not only know which track the train will leave from, but also know where to stand so that when the door opens they can be the first to get on the train. weekenders are clueless.

enter one thunderstorm.

my summer is now complete, I've experienced the traditional thunderstorm delay.

you can tell from the way the crowd is standing even before you hear the announcement.

"Attention Long Island Railroad customers. Due to signal and switching problems we are experiencing 10-15 minute delays. please do not descend to platform level until your train is posted and announced."

so you wait for the powers that be to post your train. and when they do, the lemmings all run to the same stairway. in this case, the race is won by the clever, not the quick.

and as you board the train, you look for puddles -- the older cars have an unfortunate tendency to leak in the rain, especially near the seats next to the doors.

and that "10-15 minute delay" turns out to be closer to 25 minutes.

but in retrospect, it wasn't so bad.

I could have been with my 13 year old daughter today.

she was on a week-long trip with camp. 40 teenagers and their counselors on a Coach bus.

they left Maine this morning, made a brief stop at the basketball hall of fame in Massachusetts, and were due back at camp at 6:30 this evening.

they hit megatraffic in connecticut. at 8:20 my dd called and said that everyone on the bus was starving and exhausted, and tempers were flaring. "we're going to stop for a bite to eat, and then we'll get back on the road."

they arrived at camp shortly after 10:30.

I think I'm going to have to give the counselors an extra big tip at the end of the summer.

 

[aprilgail2]

Originally posted by jennyanydots


and as you board the train, you look for puddles -- the older cars have an unfortunate tendency to leak in the rain, especially near the seats next to the doors.

and that "10-15 minute delay" turns out to be closer to 25 minutes.

I work for the railroad and not only do they leak near the 5 seaters in the rain a lot of time the Air Conidiontioning leaks in the same area. The best is when it leaks in the engineers cab and it drips on their heads in the cab like the chinese water torture the whole trip!! But at least the old trains have some bathrooms that work..the new ones over flow and run brown disgusting stinky used toilet water down the length of the cars!! On some 10 car trains you get one working bathroom! One recent train not one bathroom was working on it!!

 

[jennyanydots]

then the words "MA reset" and "hot car" have real meaning for you. why is it that the a/c always manages to break down in the car I'm riding in? "conductor go to channel 4" (yes, I do ride the LIRR, and have been doing so for a good number of years...)

but I absolutely hate the new cars -- the seats are too narrow, the aisles are almost impossible to walk through.

 

[rcyannacci]

Yea, I got caught in that rain storm too! My shoes are still drenched!

I'm in NYC doing some research up at Lincoln Center, and when I left my friend's apt, it was like the skys just opened up. Then I realized I forgot my Metro card for the bus, and had to go back. Luckily, my friend lent me her flipflops and I packed some dry shoes.

I felt wet all day long!

 

[jennyanydots]

it's a "joy" isn't it?