LIRR and why conductors as opposed to fare machines (Babylon: 2013, buying)
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Works for Washington DC Metro as well as Denver light rail. Why not on here?
Start up costs would be tailoring the platforms to facilitate same.
In long run wouldn't it be wise? Instead of paying exorbitant salaries?
Works for Washington DC Metro as well as Denver light rail. Why not on here?
Start up costs would be tailoring the platforms to facilitate same.
In long run wouldn't it be wise? Instead of paying exorbitant salaries?
Because those are subway systems and not FRA regulated railroads.
FRA regulated railroads require at least 1 conductor. LIRR rules require a conductor and a flagman (brakeman)
Plus the added cost of figuring out how to gate all the outlying stations and Penn when its shared with Amtrak make it logistically very hard
when a LIRR conductor as per NYT makes $239K. What I've read the recently approved fare increase funds pensions and salaries.
Reforms in the MTA are painfully slow if at all. Would seem to me that in the year 2013 the thought of a person punching paper tickets is tantamount to a human standing at a table instead of vending machine.
Would refitting the LIRR platforms be difficult, probably, in the long run,however,would the refit capture lost fares undoubtedly.
Location: Prince Georges County, MD (formerly Long Island, NY)
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Logistically, its pretty much near impossible. How do you gate off an entire station? Think of stations like Merrilon Avenue that are ground level and adjacent to a road crossing.
The reason why it works for places like DC is that the stations are grade separated (be they underground, or elevated above ground). The few Metro stations that are ground level are isolated enough that it's feasible to gate off the entire station.
We have fare machines at my local station, but I still see people buying their tickets on the train.
If there were no conductors to check tickets, couldn't a rider purchase a ticket for a closer zone to save a few bucks but ride on through to the more distant and expensive zone?
Location: Prince Georges County, MD (formerly Long Island, NY)
1,558 posts, read 2,725,628 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by beachcomber11
like in the education system.
Except with the LIRR it is the march off the cliff.
We can put drones in the sky thousands of miles away on station for hours at a time, but on Long Island cannot design a train platform ingress/egress.
Not unlike LIPA, MTA-LIRR is poorly run and as such we're getting hosed again and again.
Leadership leading from the front is what is required
The money we spend to demolish and rebuild all the LIRR stations to raise them above ground or sink them below ground (not to mention the tracks between the stations) would negate any savings of not having conductors. Let's also not forget the NIMBYs.
On a line like the Babylon line, this could work, but good luck doing that to the Ronkonkoma line.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OhBeeHave
We have fare machines at my local station, but I still see people buying their tickets on the train.
If there were no conductors to check tickets, couldn't a rider purchase a ticket for a closer zone to save a few bucks but ride on through to the more distant and expensive zone?
I think what the OP is advocating is the model the DC Metro uses. You have to swipe in and swipe out-- you're then charged on the distance you traveled. For instance, I go to the Mineola train station, and swipe my card to enter the station, I then board my train. Upon reaching Penn Station, I get off and swipe again through an exit turnstile. At that point, my card is debited for traveling from fare zone 4 to fare zone 1.
Like I said, if the LIRR were to be built today, this model would make so much more sense. But it's just not feasible to rebuild the entire system just to get rid of conductors.
when a LIRR conductor as per NYT makes $239K. What I've read the recently approved fare increase funds pensions and salaries.
Reforms in the MTA are painfully slow if at all. Would seem to me that in the year 2013 the thought of a person punching paper tickets is tantamount to a human standing at a table instead of vending machine.
Would refitting the LIRR platforms be difficult, probably, in the long run,however,would the refit capture lost fares undoubtedly.
Can you provide a link for that article where it states the $239K figure? I dont think it is anywhere close to that.
It would be nice if they could configure the stations to eliminate the ticket taking aspect of it but they still would have to have someone on the train anyway. Wouldn't you also need someone to monitor the stations so that people don't just hop the gate to get in?
Can you provide a link for that article where it states the $239K figure? I dont think it is anywhere close to that.
It would be nice if they could configure the stations to eliminate the ticket taking aspect of it but they still would have to have someone on the train anyway. Wouldn't you also need someone to monitor the stations so that people don't just hop the gate to get in?
One useless idiot per station vs one per train sounds like a good tradeoff to me
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Fiscal insanity
