Ridiculous idea of the day... seatless subway cars!

In the great wisdom of the head honchos of the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) here in NYC, the "seatless" subway car is on its way. They are going to start a pilot program that involves running subway trains with four of the ten cars with special seats that can be locked in the flipped up, non-usable position during rush hour. Why? To cram in 18% more paying passengers - no one sitting equals 18% more standing room. Wow, what a brilliant idea for the MTA! Did I mention that they also want another fare hike - as much as 23%? So, let's think about this - pay more to use the subway, but get even less in return. Hmmmm... doesn't sound like such a great idea to me. Talk about innovation and creativity - make people spend more for a service and don't even let them get the basics of that service!

Is a seat that important? Well, it can be to: the elderly, the disabled, parents with small children, pregnant women, anyone not in good health, riders with long commutes, people with heavy bags, or anyone who is tired and just wants to sit for a minute. We all don't need a seat all the time - many of us sit all day at work - but I think everyone is grateful for a seat when we really need one. So there will be some cars with seats, but you'd have to go out of your way to find them; and during rush hour no one wants any additional hassles. This plan is just wrong on so many levels. It truly is a slap-in-the-face to consumers, a show of complete disrespect for the MTA's ridership.

Let's all let the MTA know what we think (www.straphangers.org/complaints.html)!