Sept. 17, 2015 By Christian Murray
The NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign today issued its 17th annual “State of the Subways” Report Card, and rated the 7 as the best of 19 subway lines.
The 7 was ranked number one for the eighth time that Straphangers has been putting out the reports.
Straphangers, a transit interest group, evaluates subway lines on six measures of service: the number of breakdowns, car cleanliness, the number of seats available, the amount of scheduled service, the actual regularity of service and the quality of announcements in subway cars.
“The 7 ranked highest because it was the best in the system on frequency of service and subway car cleanliness,” according to the Straphangers report. It also performed above average on two other measures: “delays caused by mechanical breakdowns and seat availability at the most crowded point during rush hour.”
The line, however, performed below average on regularity of service and subway car announcements.
The report card was based on an extensive review of 2014 transit data.
“Passengers on the top lines – such as the 1, 6, 7, E, J/Z, and L – hands down get a much better ride for their MetroCard than those on its worst, such as the 5, B, C, M or R,” said Gene Russianoff, Campaign attorney. “Disparities abound. Some lines stink; others just need work.”
Russianoff said, “The 5 and the B have been ‘bottom feeders’ for most of their modern careers.” The 5 has been rated worst a total of three times in seventeen years – 2000, 2003 and 2015. The B rated worst in 1997, 1999 and 2015.
In a separate study, the CBC ranked the No. 7 train has having the worst stations–structurally–in the system.
Its study, released Tuesday, noted that 37 percent of the 618 structural components — such as stairs, platform edges and ventilators — in its 21 stations failed to meet the MTA’s safety and performance standards in August.
In contrast, the 6 is in the best condition, according to the report; its 38 stations have only 15 percent of their 1,288 components are not in good repair.
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