🔥 Hellish Delays, Ghost Plates & The Wienermobile Wreck: Welcome to Edition #17 of the BOMA-NY Transportation Report 🗞️
September 2024 | BOMA-NY Codes & Regs Committee
When the highlight of the summer is a hot dog flipping its bun on an Illinois highway, you know it’s been a hell of a ride. Welcome to the Super-Sized September 2024 edition — packed with delays, disasters, and development drama.
From the indefinite pause of congestion pricing (and the lawsuits it triggered) to multi-billion-dollar tunnel and terminal makeovers, NYC’s transit system is caught in a swirl of political conflict, climate chaos, and cracked infrastructure. Add in lithium-ion fires, bathroom maps, and sharks testing positive for cocaine — yes, really — and this edition just might be our most jaw-dropping yet.
In this issue:
🚧 Penn Station Hell continues while the Gateway Tunnel gets $6.8B
💥 Amtrak and NJ Transit bicker as passengers suffer 3-hour delays
🛑 Congestion Pricing lawsuits mount—AG James won’t even defend Hochul
🌡️ Climate tipping points & 50-degree Antarctic heatwaves signal danger ahead
💸 MTA hemorrhages $700M+ to fare evasion and begins cuts
🚇 Subway workers at “substantial risk of death”, audit warns
🚘 Ghost plates, fake GPS apps & “Screwber” surge scams flood NYC roads
🔥 E-bike & EV battery fires shut down CA highways and burn Queens shops
🚦 NYC red light camera program expanded to 600 intersections
🛫 Delta breaks down, JFK chokes on traffic, private jets boom at Stewart
🚲 Ed Sheeran pops up on a Citi Bike (and gives a concert!)
🐟 Cocaine sharks off Brazil and NJ hippos round out the waterfront news
🚻 Public bathroom map released—and it’s not pretty
🎭 Broadway fights back on Eighth Ave sidewalk space
📍From storm-drain scandals to hot EV charging trees, this is the definitive guide to everything moving (or melting) across NYC’s transit and infrastructure network.
— Glenn Waldorf
Transportation Subcommittee Chair
Bell Environmental Services
📞 973-575-7800
✉️ info@bellenv.com
✅ September 2024 Transportation Report Summary Bullets
🚨 Summer of Hell Returns
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NJ Transit, Amtrak, and the subway suffered mass outages, delays, and AC failures.
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Amtrak blames NJ Transit, NJ Transit blames Amtrak. Riders lose every time .
🚧 Gateway & Penn Station Mega-Projects
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$6.8B federal funding secured for Gateway Tunnels; $17B Penn Station expansion proposed.
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Amtrak wants separate terminals for NJT, LIRR, and itself .
🛑 Congestion Pricing Fallout
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Hochul’s indefinite pause sparked multiple lawsuits.
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59% of voters now oppose it. AG won’t defend governor; MTA scrambles for funding .
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New proposal: scaled-down plan with weekday-only tolls, tunnel discounts .
💸 MTA Crisis & Fare Evasion
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$700M lost annually: 13.6% subway + nearly 50% bus riders skip fares.
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MTA doubling security spend to over $35M with 1,000 private guards .
🚇 Subway Woes
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Delays surge; crime hits 14-year low but worker safety plummets.
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G Train reopens after summer overhaul with new Wi-Fi, GPS signals .
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Subway retail is 75% vacant. New art & Fair Fares cards aim to revive interest .
🌡️ Climate Change, Disasters & Dumb Mistakes
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Antarctic hits +50°F anomaly. Queens Midtown Tunnel flooded by a subcontractor’s drill.
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NJ Turnpike & Garden State Parkway buckle in July heat. Storm drains accidentally paved over in Hoboken .
🔥 Lithium & EV Fire Risks
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Tesla Semi fire closes CA highway for 7+ hours. Queens bike shop burns (again).
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Jaguar issues EV battery fire warning. NTSB calls for updated battery response guides .
🔌 EV Charging & Infrastructure
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NYC pilots “charging tree” curbside fast-chargers (up to 500kW) via Gravity.
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Tesla stalling on charger access to other brands. NYC needs 60,000 fast chargers by 2050 .
🚗 Streets, Parking, Cameras
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NYC expands red-light cameras to 600 intersections.
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42,000+ illegal mopeds/e-bikes seized since 2022.
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Ghost plates & reflective covers cost NYC $200M/year .
🚆 Buses, Terminals, Grand Central
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Port Authority bus terminal reconstruction begins late 2024.
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Grand Central Madison still needs $50M in fixes.
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Most NYC bus stops lack shade or shelter; heat index 14.5°F higher in underserved areas .
🛥️ Ferries & Waterfronts
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NYC Ferry raises fare 12.5%, seeks naming rights sponsor.
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Pete Davidson & Colin Jost’s party ferry hosting NY Fashion Week
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Red Hook to become NYC’s largest wind port + micro-distribution hub .
🛫 Air Travel & Airport Chaos
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JFK delays surge. AirTrain fare glitch lets riders through for free.
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Delta & American jets nearly collide in Syracuse.
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Dogs only: new luxury pet airline launches out of Westchester .
🤯 Wildest Moments
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“Screwber” scam nets $40M in surge fraud.
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Oscar Mayer Wienermobile flips on an Illinois highway.
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Sharks off Brazil test positive for cocaine.
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CT claims to be “First in Pizza & Basketball” — NJ and MA respond with trolling road signs .
