Sunday, September 23, 2007

EARLIER EXPRESS TRAIN NEEDED FROM SCARSDALE TO NYC

I spent some time at the Cotswold neighborhood association picnic this afternoon. Among the suggestions made: Metro North should offer commuters who take the train from Scarsdale with earlier express train service. The first express train leaves for NYC around 6:30 AM. Many commuters who reside in Edgemont leave Edgemont earlier in the AM.It would be nice if there were earlier express trains from Scarsdale.
An earlier express train would also be a nice quality of life enhancement. I like the idea and will encourage Metro North to implement the suggestion.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Trains depart Scarsdale at 5:01am, 5:30am, 5:54am and 6:15am. They take a mere ten minutes longer than the 6:30am express train (39 minutes instead of 29 minutes to Grand Central), which is no big deal whatsoever.

Also, the county's express bus from Edgemont to Midtown is also quick (about 45-50 minutes) at that time (5:11am, 5:41am, 6:11am, 6:31am), and it's less expensive than the train.

There are so many everyday quality of life basic expectations that Greenburgh management needs to attend to. The regional transportation schedule is certainly not one of them.

Anonymous said...

If the supervisor suggested this idea it means some of the residents of Cotswold complained to him.

Anonymous said...

Dear 4:41,
While I would agree that there are alternatives to Grand Central, your explanation is somewhat less than complete.
If one took the 4C express bus into Manhattan at that hour, the ride indeed is "scheduled" to last about 50 minutes and it is less expensive. However, one also has to return home and there is the rub. The return trip takes about an hour and fifteen minutes to an hour and 45 minutes (vs the train's 35 minutes) based on road conditions. A person who got up that early certainly doesn't want to spend a greater amount of time in transit at the END of the work day.
Bus in the morning and train home at night is a more expensive alternative to a monthly commutation on the train and does not involve the problems encountered in trying to purchase bus tickets in Westchester (metro card or exact CHANGE ONLY accepted on board.

And inclement weather, snow and traffic are wild cards.

But clearly the opportunity to bicker over a minor life enhancement appeals to you. I suggest that Feiner will make a few calls and perhaps write a letter or two but it is unlikely that getting another train added to the Metro North schedule is the raised bar of his newest term of office.

You might be on firmer ground had you questioned how great the need was for the early train but it is certain that is what Metro North will examine.

But contrary to your posting, the train schedule in Hartsdale and Scarsdale is hardly a regional transportation issue but one which does concern the everyday quality of life for commuters.

P.S, how did you do the "italics" on your posting? I don't see any of the usual buttons for bold, italics, underscore on the blog or the visible toolbar.

Paul Feiner said...

I received a response from Mark Mannix of Metro North advising that Metro North will look into the suggestion and get back to me. As Hal pointed out - this is not the most immportant issue in the town. However, some people raised it yesterday when I was at the Cotswold neighborhood picnic. It's a quality of life concern-I don't see anything wrong with following up on the suggestion.

Anonymous said...

RIGHT ON PAUL ,
There's no reason for you not to follow thru There's no harm in trying.

Anonymous said...

Paul,
if you are going to participate in the comments on the blog, I suggest that you change the comment settings on your blogspot page to allow for comments only by registered users. Any reader could then easily set up a free google/blogspot account to post. This change would disallow anonymous comments and, I believe, make discussions more helpful and informative.

Anonymous said...

I think people who want to use this blog should be registered users but they should not be forced to open a blogspot account.
Those who write anonymous are cowards.

Anonymous said...

Elmo,I don't think that's your name.
I'd rather sign off as anon.than to be a phony like you.

Anonymous said...

You are very correct about the return trip on the bus; it's seemingly endless. (Though it is comfortable and quiet, which is nice.)

My intent was 1) to point out options, particularly the early morning options that made me think that an earlier express train isn't needed and 2) to express frustration that Greenburgh seems to like to try to manage others (ConEd, MetroNorth) more than managing itself.

You can use some basic HTML tags to use bold and/or italics. Go to http://www.webspawner.com/cc/html/alpha.html for details. (Blogger.com won't let me type the codes themselves here because it sees those as a command.) It's slightly awkward at first, but basically you just type a code directly before and directly after the phrase you want bolded and/or italicized.

Anonymous said...

Er....Has Scarsdale started to sell train parking permits to Greenburgh residents again? Last I heard they were not. Are these Cotswold residents walking to the Scarsdale train station?

Regardless, Hartsdale is the designated station for all unincorporated residents as it provides their parking. Why would anyone lobby for additional Scarsdale express trains? How silly is this whole effort?

If one was inclined to waste the Town resources on such a trivial matter, wouldn't we choose to change Hartsdale schedule so that all Greenburgh residents could benefit?

I'm getting mighty tired all all of the "Edgemont" nonsense.

Paul. Give it a rest will ya?

Anonymous said...

To DND,

Thanks but you are talking to someone who hasn't mastered cut and paste.

To 9:21,

Metro North "express" trains serve White Plains, Hartsdale and Scarsdale; a few add Crestwood for transfer to a local train. It is likely that Cottswald residents would find it more convenient to use the Scarsdale station.

Anonymous said...

"Are these Cotswold residents walking to the Scarsdale train station?"

Yes, Old Edgemont and Cotswold residents walk to and from the station in droves every day. The Scarsdale train station is a huge benefit of living in these Greenburgh neighborhoods. People also get dropped off/picked up, and others take the 65 or 66 bus from the other side of Central Park Avenue to and from the Scarsdale train.

Anonymous said...

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