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Here Are The Best And Worst Subway Lines In NYC
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Dec 29, 2016
Modified Dec 29, 2016
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Billy Devine
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Dec 29, 2016
Modified Dec 29, 2016
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The Straphangers Campaign has released its annual ranking of the best subway lines in the city, and they say there's an UNPRECEDENTED TIE for first place between the 1, 7 and L, so enjoy it while you can, L train riders! The report also found that the 5 and A trains are the worst, and also that subway cars broke down far more often this year than last, which should be unsurprising to literally anyone who rode the subway this year.
The report, which is available online, compared service on 20 subway lines. You can play around with it to see every line's individual scorecard, but here's a summary: The B got a reprieve from its Worst status last year (it tied, then, with the 5, which still sucks), and the A got knocked down a peg for its repeated irregular service. The 7 maintained its top spot, but it was joined by a couple of friends—the 1 is much less crowded and cleaner than the average subway line, the 7 is the cleanest line, and the L had the most understandable subway car announcements of any line.
The report also found that the Q broke down the least and the C broke down the most; the Q is also the dirtiest line, the 4 is the most crowded (the R is the least), and the 6 and 7 lines have the shortest intervals in the morning rush hour. The C had the least scheduled service during rush hour, with straphangers waiting upwards of nine minutes between trains in peak commuting periods (as a morning C rider, I can confirm this!) The G, which I maintain is secretly the best line in the city, had the greatest regularity of service, where the 5 was the most irregular.
As for the system as a whole: subway cars break down about 7 percent more than they did last year, trains are 1.8 percent less regular, and announcements are about as understandable (91 percent) as they were last year, according to the report. The good news is, they're slightly cleaner than they were in 2015—the report saw a 1 percent uptick, but the 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, F, G, L, N, and R lines have improved.
Still, the Straphangers Campaign says the state of the subway certainly doesn't warrant a $2.75 MetroCard swipe—even the best lines got a "MetroCard Rating" of $2.05, and the worst clocked in at just $1.50. "Passengers on the top lines—such as the 1, 7, and L—hands down get a much better ride for their MetroCard than those on its worst, such as the 5 or A," Gene Russianoff, Straphangers Campaign Senior Attorney, said in a statement, adding, “Disparities abound throughout the system.”
The MTA has not responded to request for comment.
Tagged
MTA
straphangers campaign
subway
original
Rebecca Fishbein
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