Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today (8th January, 2016 EST) unveiled the eighth signature proposal of his 2016 agenda: modernize and fundamentally transform the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, dramatically improving the travel experience for millions of New Yorkers and visitors to the metropolitan region.
The Governor’s proposal includes a new approach to rapidly redesign and renew 30 existing subway stations across the system. It also includes a number of technology initiatives to bring the system into the 21st century, including expanding Wi-Fi hotspots, accelerating mobile payments and ticketing to replace the MetroCard, and providing USB ports on subway trains, buses and in stations to allow customers to charge their mobile devices. The Governor detailed this proposal at an event earlier today at the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn, where he was joined by MTA Chairman and CEO Tom Prendergast.
“The MTA is absolutely vital to the daily functioning of New York City, but for too long it has failed to meet the region’s growing size and strength,” Governor Cuomo said. “This is about doing more than just repair and maintain – this is thinking bigger and better and building the 21st century transit system New Yorkers deserve. We are modernizing the MTA like never before and improving it for years to come.”
“The MTA is committed to meeting Governor Cuomo’s challenge head-on, eliminating every possible inefficiency to deliver these improvements faster, better and at a lower cost,” MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas F. Prendergast said. “We’ll accomplish this by incorporating the Governor’s suggestions to use alternative delivery methods such as design-build, leveraging private-sector expertise through public-private partnerships, and streamlining our procurement processes to ensure the entire MTA is focused on delivering improvements to the people who rely on us every day.”
“Once again Gov. Cuomo is stepping up on behalf of transit riders and transit workers,” Transport Workers Union Local 100 President John Samuelsen said. “These projects will greatly improve the commutes for scores of riders and we’re proud to be doing our part.”
More than six million people ride the New York City subway on its busiest days, and the Governor’s proposal is designed to bring rapid improvements to their daily experience while enhancing a system that is more than a century old. The Governor’s proposal introduces new customer-friendly initiatives and accelerates existing projects to bring meaningful improvements to the transit system that New York relies on.
Read more – Transit Wireless website
