Feb. 26, 2015 By Michael Florio
Two thousand participants—and countless spectators—are not enough to sway the MTA to keep the No. 7 train running this Sunday for the ‘St Pats for All’ parade.
The MTA is doing track work this weekend and the No. 7 train will not be operating between Times Square-42nd Street and 74th Street, from 12:30 AM Saturday through 4:30 AM Mon.
Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer and parade organizers have been calling on the MTA to postpone the work and to keep to its regular weekend schedule.
The MTA, however, claims that the parade doesn’t draw enough riders for it to postpone its track work.
“We looked at ridership during the parade from the past few years and it does not draw enough to warrant postponing the work,” Kevin Ortiz, an MTA spokesman, said.
Brendan Fay and Kathleen Walsh D’Arcy, co-chairs of the parade, were very disappointed with the MTA’s decision since many participants rely on the 7-train to get to the event.
“There are groups from all over the city now trying to figure out how to get to the parade,” Fay said. “People are very frustrated.”
Photo: iStock
The pair was hoping the MTA would reschedule service as it had done so for the Lunar New Year parade in Flushing.
Walsh D’Arcy said that it might reduce the number of attendees. Nevertheless, “I think most people will find other ways to the parade,” she said. “But it will be an inconvenience and costly.”
Van Bramer was clearly upset with the MTA.
“I’ve asked the MTA to suspend their work this weekend and allow the thousands who want to participate in this very important event to do so,” Van Bramer told NY1 Wednesday. “And they’ve said ‘No.’”
“They [the MTA] have made exceptions for other parades and culture events–it makes no sense. The MTA consistently fails the people of Western Queens.”
However, Ortiz said the Lunar parade generates ridership that the St. Pat’s for All parade simply cannot match.
“The Lunar parade brings ridership in the thousands and this parade is a couple of hundred,” he said.
Ortiz said parade goers can use alternative routes such as the Q32 and Q60 bus to the start of the parade. They can also take the R-train to 46th Street and jump on the Q104 bus.
Fay said that several participants have told him they plan on taking the LIRR to 61st Street, while others will take shuttle buses.
Walsh D’Arcy said she thinks many people will now drive, taking up a lot of neighborhood parking spaces.
Details
Parade Date: Sunday, March 1
Time: Speeches at 1 p.m.; parade starts at 2 p.m.
Starts: Corner of 43rd Street/Skillman Avenue
Featured Events
32 Comments
Will pat dorfman show up? Inquiring minds want to know
“Probably be almost impossible”…guess you can take the dimwit honors!!!
DiBlasio may have to take a helicopter. With the snow and no 7 train it will probably be almost impossible to get here tomorrow by land.
Thanks MTA for hiring a bus driver on the 7 shuttle route who didn’t know where the subway stops were. He literally had to ask me where the next stop was as he’s driving down Queens Blvd., looking at a piece of paper and bypassing 33rd and 40th street leaving people in the dust. Really makes me excited to give them an extra 25 cents each time next month.
Since this is probably the one time Di Blasio and the NYC Democrat bigwigs will actually come into this neighborhood this year, I recommend all Sunnyside resident line the parade… and let them know how much we hate the idea of the Sunnyside Yards development idea.
Thank you for the English lesson..perhaps you might consider assisting our undocumented neighbors as they apply for their municipal ID cards
So says the German.
Thank you MTA. …Less heathens to line our streets and celebrate this disgrace they call a St. Patricks parade..Save this circus for October 31
“Fewer”, not “less” you homophobic dimwit.
The R is running. It’s just a little bit farther away. Also, buses.
Don’t get me wrong–the MTA still blows.
That mta work schedule has been available for quite a while. Also, anyone with a brain knows it will be freezing on March 1st. Why not schedule it later in the month? Poor planning by JVB
So JVB is planning parades now, too?
I have a notion; how about MTA finishing the job already!! Its gone 15 years and counting!
how about 25 and counting.
If the parade organizers want to draw millions of more spectators from all over the world, they would make our hometown hero, Assemblywoman Nolan, the grand marshal of the parade. She always adds a huge amount of gravitas to any event she attends.
You are joking, right? Cathy Nolan? sheldon Silver’s poodle?
Gravitas in the sense of girth , right?
They save the hot air balloons for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade.
MTA has too much power. It needs to be taken over.
You got that right my brother.
Most of the attendees are from the local area. It’s never really that crowded, barely spectators on some blocks. With the bad weather, I expect the crowds will be more sparse this year.
Who wrote that? Kevin Ortiz, an MTA spokesman?
No, I’ve lived in Sunnyside for 25 years. I certainly don’t love the MTA but they made the right call this time (even a broken clock is right twice a day).
The MTA deserves no praise. They do nothing right. Unless you are one of their uneducated overpaid employees no one likes them.
well its sunday and lots of spaces will be available on QB under the7 ….
The weather will probably keep more people away than the MTA.
Praise the lord
A few years ago the MTA refused to suspend work and the attendant service interruption on St. Pat’s for the real parade, which is of course far larger and would have far more 7 train riders. Why would this one get special consideration?
Parking? Where would they park? Haha!
JVB ” I have asked the MTA to run the 7and I will ask DeBlasio to stop Sunnyside Yards” Both replied “No”
Dead Sea Issues
Excellent! Less litter!
The MTA, which is a NY STATE entity NOT a NYC entity, collects MILLIONS from advertising on their cars. So much that the riders should be riding free.
Can someone start a protest already?!?!
I did not know this fact. Can you enlighten us as to the exact dollar amount of ad revenue?