Alon Levy
Recent Posts
Six-Minute Transit Headways Would Increase Ridership 15%: Expert
| | No Comments
The six-minute headways campaign is a good one — and our expert hopes more people in the region take notice and push for it until the state implements it in full.
That MIT Study About the Subway Causing COVID Spread is Crap
| | No Comments
Alon Levy analyzed the report fully and concluded that it was not "a serious argument."
Op-Ed: What America Gets Wrong about Fare Evasion
| | No Comments
Gov. Cuomo's plan to hire 500 cops to police fare evasion is utter foolishness, says a transportation writer with a global perspective.
Integrated Planning Can Help Free New York Transit From Dependence on Trump
| | 1 Comment
The New York region can’t count on Washington to fund its transit mega-projects.
How to Get New York Regional Rail Right
| | 39 Comments
A through-running regional rail system for greater New York can help hundreds of thousands of people each day. When mapping out how to deliver that with new infrastructure, we need to get the details right.
NY Can Save Billions on Rail Tunnels If LIRR Agrees to Share Track
| | 39 Comments
RPA proposes much-needed integration of regional rail in its Fourth Regional Plan, but doesn't push for the politically challenging reforms that will be necessary to build it efficiently.
A Whole Lhota Excuses About High MTA Construction Costs
| | 9 Comments
New York City's sky-high subway construction costs are finally getting some much-needed attention from elected officials. But with pressure mounting to reform MTA capital construction practices and bring costs down, the agency is falling back on familiar excuses.
Will NYC’s Next-Gen Fare System Come With Saner Fare Enforcement?
| | 18 Comments
As with other aspects of fare collection, New York should look to cities that have refined their proof-of-payment systems for guidance on how to handle enforcement.
Boston’s Fairmount Line Could Be a National Model for Commuter Rail, But It’s Not There Yet
| | No Comments
For commuter rail to work in urban neighborhoods, transit agencies have to rethink fares, schedules, and integration with local transit. The MBTA still has work to do to get all these elements right on the Fairmount Line.
Step One Toward Fixing the Subway: Be Honest
| | 23 Comments
What would it look like if Cuomo and Lhota stopped making gestures and started exercising real leadership at the MTA? Here are three steps that could make a difference for subway service.
On Long Island, Transit Operates as Two Separate and Unequal Systems
| | 15 Comments
The Long Island Railroad is building some of the biggest infrastructure projects in the region -- even the world. The hugely expensive East Side Access tunnel and terminal at Grand Central and the construction of a third track for the LIRR Main Line will open up new possibilities for convenient, all-day transit that people can use for all types of trips. But not if Long Island continues to operate its rail and bus networks as a two-tiered transit system.
The Transit Riding Habit Can Last a Lifetime, But First You Need to Get People in the Habit
| | No Comments
While the habit formation effect is real, it is not, unfortunately, very large.