4 Train Ranks Lowest

SUBWAY GRADES: WE ALL RIDE THE ‘C’ LINE

By Tom Namako – NY Post

Eight subway lines have gotten their report cards from riders – and they all scored in the C range.

The lines – the 2, 4, 5, 7, B, L, M and J/Z – were rated on a variety of criteria, including lack of graffiti and availability of seats. When all the categories were averaged out, the trains were rated “average.”

New York City Transit handed out 795,883 report cards in 2008. Officials don’t have a final tally because they’re still waiting for results from a few more lines, which will be released “over the next few weeks,” said spokesman Paul Fleuranges.

The year’s lowest grade in an individual category was a D-minus for the No. 4. It won the dubious honor for being most overcrowded at rush hour.

The L raked in the highest honor with a B for lack of graffiti – up from a B-minus the previous year. But when its other scores were averaged in, it, too, fell into the C range.

The grades seem to push the MTA into action, said Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign.

“They’re honest assessments,” he said. “I give the MTA points for talking to their customers. It’s not easy.”

Fleuranges said the agency doesn’t expect grades to go from C’s to A’s overnight.

“There are some areas where we cannot – due to increased ridership, capacity constraints and other factors – respond to the customers’ top priorities, like overcrowding on the 4 line,” he said. “In those cases, we expect grades to drop or remain the same.”

The L line, where new, technologically advanced cars and signals are being introduced, consistently earns some of the highest grades. The line’s overall score jumped from a C to a C-plus this year.

Passengers on all the rated lines were most unhappy with rush-hour crowding. The M line got the highest grade on crowding, but even that was a C-minus.

Another common complaint was the inability to hear station and train announcements. The best score, a C-plus, was awarded to the L train.

Riders also were asked to rank their highest and lowest priorities for each line.

Straphangers on five of the eight lines – the J/Z, 5, M, B, and 7 – said they’re mostly concerned with being on time or experiencing minimal delays during the ride, edging out other concerns like litter, cramped space, and the availability of MetroCard vending machines.