2005 New York City Transit Strike - Contingency Plans

Contingency Plans

In anticipation of exceptional traffic volumes, an emergency traffic plan was put into effect shortly after the strike officially began. Weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. EST, Manhattan south of 96th street, as well as all MTA tunnels and bridges, were subject to HOV4 restrictions; that is, vehicles must contain a minimum of four passengers, and commercial trucks and vans are prohibited. To increase car capacities, carpool staging areas were set up. Alternate side of the street parking rules had been suspended.

Taxis were permitted to pick up multiple fares, and operated on a zone system rather than metered fare. Manhattan was divided into four zones, with one zone for each of the other four boroughs. The base fare, for travel within one zone, was limited to US$10 a person (although few cabbies charged less) charged in advance instead of at the end of the ride, plus an additional $5 per person for each additional zone. There were, however, reports of much higher prices than normal demanded by taxi drivers, some charging over $50 per person. One report indicates a driver was attempting to charge $250 per person for a ride from John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens, NY to Midtown Manhattan. However, this was not the norm, and most taxi drivers provided their services within the guidelines.

Public schools started two hours later than usual, with school bus pickup times also two hours later than normal. Major universities provided extended shuttle service to students, faculty and staff. Many students were in the middle of taking final exams.

Multi-day MetroCard passes were extended on a day-for-day basis for the duration of the strike. Passengers on the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad were charged a strike fare of US$4.00 for intracity travel.

In addition Metro North Commuter Railroad had a special East Bronx shuttle (making all Harlem Line stops from Mount Vernon West to Grand Central Terminal, but bypassing Tremont and Melrose) by December 21. Regular peak trains did not stop in the Bronx. There were similar plans on the Hudson Line, and in addition there was a special park and ride lot near Yankee Stadium, and at Shea Stadium in Queens. The New Haven Line ran normally, stopping at Fordham only in the Bronx, as usual. Long Island Rail Road customers also faced service changes. There was no service to Bellerose, Hollis, Rosedale, Locust Manor, Saint Albans, or Hunterspoint Avenue during rush hours. Shuttle trains operated between Jamaica/Great Neck and Penn Station. During middays, additional shuttle service was provided to Bellerose and Long Island City.

The PATH Train ran extra service between 33rd St and the World Trade Center from 6 AM to 8 PM during the days of the strike.

Commuters were being encouraged by the city to walk or bike to work; many bridges were open to pedestrian traffic, including the Triborough Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, and George Washington Bridge for commuters from New Jersey. On the third day of the strike, a firefighter was critically injured while biking to work, when he collided with a privately operated bus. The mayor addressed this in a press conference later on in the day.

Many commuters used the New York Water Taxi service from NY Waterway as an alternative to get to Manhattan from the Brooklyn Army Terminal, Hunts Point, South Amboy and Jersey City. Many commuters simply stayed home from work.

The HOV car restrictions changed much of the commuting schedules of thousands of motorists. For example, at 4:00AM each day, the Lincoln Tunnel saw up to an hour delay inbound, and also after 11AM when the restrictions were lifted. Traffic however was remarkably light in most sections of the city once the HOV ban was lifted for the day.

The Fox News Channel operated its own buses during the strike along several major routes, giving riders a free trip while the station broadcast live from the buses.

While buses under the New York City Transit banner were non-operational, some MTA Bus Company services—such as the Command Bus Company—were running. These included some express buses between Brooklyn and Manhattan.