If I haven’t said it before, I think it is pretty cool that MTA has been embracing social media, and the various agencies have twitter accounts. There’s MTA, Metro-North, Long Island Rail Road, New York City Buses, New York City Subways, MetroCard Promotions, and the NY Transit Museum. The Transit Museum seems to be the newest of the bunch. A little less than a month ago, the museum sent a tweet, giving a little sneak preview of the new exhibit opening in the Annex in Grand Central, which has been closed since January:

How long does it take to make exhibit mounts for 100 ceramic sherds? Our preparators will know soon.

Why exactly were they making exhibit mounts for ceramic sherds? It doesn’t much sound like something transit-related. But in fact, all of the objects on display in the new exhibit do in fact relate to public transit… they were all excavated from under the South Ferry subway station. I’ll let the museum take it from here:

Construction in New York City is always complex, but it raises particular concerns when it cuts through the most archeologically rich section of town. In February 2009 a new South Ferry subway station opened on the southernmost tip of Manhattan, a place where environmental, historical, and commercial interests collide. In order to build the station, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) was required to conduct an archeological review and excavation. This provided an extraordinary glimpse into the very place that the modern city has its roots, and the basis of an exciting new exhibit at the New York Transit Museum. Where New York Began: Archeology at the South Ferry Terminal will be on view at the New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex and Store from March 18 – July 5, 2010.

In addition to unearthing portions of the city’s early infrastructure, excavations yielded over 65,000 artifacts, including ceramic sherds, shells, coins, tobacco pipes, and architectural materials. These pieces document 400 years of city life and embody the cycle of building, razing, and rebuilding that is a hallmark of New York City. Over 100 of these objects will be on view along with historic maps and photographs, and field images and video of the archeologists at work.

This also marks the grand reopening of the museum’s retail store, which features a dynamic new design, new fixtures and lighting to better showcase the Museum’s unique product mix.

The museum is going to have an opening for members on the 18th, which I will be attending. I’ll be sure to take lots of photographs, and post them up!

By now you’ve probably heard of the awesome little utility called Metro-North Train Time. If you are unfamiliar with it, Train Time allows you to view in real time selected train stations, with their current train status and delays. It launched a few weeks ago with MTA’s redesigned website. In order to spread the word out and provide demonstrations, representatives from Metro North will be visiting stations on all three lines to show off Train Time this month. The dates are as follows:

Hudson Line: Hastings on Tuesday, February 9th, 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m
Harlem Line: Brewster on Tuesday, February 16th, 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m
New Haven Line: Port Chester on Tuesday, February 23rd, 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m

You can find out more information about the demonstrations on MTA’s site.

Starting on January 19th, and continuing into March, the Transit Museum’s Annex in Grand Central Terminal will be closed for renovations. New fixtures and lights will be added in that time, a redesigned store, as well as a new exhibit. The reopening date in March has not been announced yet. When I hear anything about the reopening of the Annex, I will let you all know.

If you need to purchase any transportation items or gifts from the museum, you can either visit the museum’s main location in Brooklyn, or purchase items online at transitmuseumstore.com.

Anyone who normally uses the museum to redeem a TransitChek, or a Commuter Check for a MetroCard, there are several alternate locations you can use during this time period:

TransitChek

Commuter Check

In regards to TransitCheks for Metro-North, some people have written in saying that the additional ticket window closures will make it difficult to cash their TransitCheks. Now I have never done this, but a few friends of mine have, and claim this is acceptable. Use your monthly ticket from the previous month on the morning of the first day of the new month. Tell the Conductor that when you arrive at your destination (Grand Central) you will be purchasing a new monthly ticket, since you need to purchase the ticket from an actual person. My friends insist that you are able to use your old monthly on the first day of the new month, only for the morning ride. Has anyone else done this before? Is doing that considered acceptable?

This evening several folks braved the cold and stood outside White Plains Train Station in support of the Gaza Freedom March. Some held banners and signs, while others passed out leaflets. The event was set up by WESPAC. Their site briefly explains the purpose of the event:

One year after Operation Cast Lead, under the horrific Blockade/Siege imposed by Israel, Palestinians in Gaza continue to be killed — farmers working in their fields near the borders, fishermen trying to pull some food out of the sea, and people in the smuggling tunnels struggling to bring cooking gas, food, and other of life’s necessities into Gaza. And now we hear that babies are being born half dead from their mothers’ exposure to the only water available, contaminated water.

On Dec. 31, over 1300 people from 42 countries around the world will join an expected 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza in a nonviolent march to the Israeli border to END THE SIEGE OF GAZA. A number of our friends from the Westchester and Rockland Peace and Justice Community and beyond will be part of this historic march… COME DEMONSTRATE YOUR SOLIDARITY WITH THE GAZA FREEDOM MARCH!

When I took a picture of this guy, he asked me if I had an opinion on the situation in Gaza. I partially lied saying that I’m not really sure, and said it is a politically tense subject that I tend to steer clear from. I think if I really had “no opinion” at all on the matter, it wouldn’t be nearly as hard to write this post. And I am certainly having difficulty, partially due to me attempting to write neutrally here.

My opinion aside, I think it is a good thing when people come together for a cause, and bring it to our attention. Especially at a place like a train station. We just run back and forth so consumed in our own lives. We worry about the train being late, MTA’s cuts in service, and what we plan on having for dinner… while there are others in the world that wonder if they will have dinner at all. And that is if they were lucky enough not to get killed that day. And perhaps it gave train riders something to think about on the ride home.

Riding along the Harlem Line this morning and yesterday, I still see a bit of snow all around. So in honor of our first real snowfall this year, I’ve changed the header image of the site to reflect the change in season. Gone are the following leaves, and big fat snowflakes are their replacements. Just to ask in general, but do you find that trains get more delayed in the fall, with the leaves on the track, than in the winter due to snow? I’ve taken the train in some of the biggest snowstorms with no delays. Anyone else have experience with this?

In other news, I am posting up my pictures that I took at the Holiday Fair in Grand Central’s Vanderbilt Hall. Not the highest quality, since they were taken with my cell phone, but you get the idea of what the fair looks like. It is certainly something cool to browse around if you have a minute waiting for your train, or are in Grand Central already. I’m not the most wealthy person on the planet, so a lot of the things are rather high priced for a person like me. But I must admit, last year I had been eyeing this hooded sweatshirt with a cat face and ears, but I couldn’t afford it. Conveniently the people selling the shirt last year are back again this year, and I bought it. What do you think?

The one thing really cool about the fair is how diverse it is. African art, prints of New York and other New York themed crafts, Christmas ornaments, Dog-themed items (the “Fleas Navidad” Dog bandana cracked me up), gorgeous hand-crafted books, jewelry, clothing, hand-blown glass, and lots of other interesting items. Plus, there may be entertainment as well. When I was there a trio of young women were playing strings, and they were pretty damn good. I filmed a brief portion of their performance, and will be posting that later on this week. For now, enjoy the pictures of the Holiday Fair!

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Celebrate the holiday season with the New York Transit Museum’s annual Holiday Train Show. On a two-level 34-foot long layout, Lionel trains travel through a miniature Manhattan to the North Pole. A new Long Island Rail Road train joins Metro-North, New York Central, and Pennsylvania Railroad cars on the elevated track, while New York City Transit’s R-27 subway cars run below. Vintage Lionel trains from the Museum’s collection are also on view.

If that description doesn’t give you a good idea of what this great show looks like, check out the video. The other day I did promise you all a video of the show, so on my lunch break today I stitched up a few of the clips I took. Enjoy the video, and be sure to check out the show in Grand Central. It runs until January 18th.

Here is a video in HD I took the other day when I was in Grand Central, a portion of the Laser Light Show that is going on for the holidays. It is pretty cool, but not much to rave about. Check it out on the way to do something more worthwhile, such as viewing the Holiday Train Show.

One of the many things I did yesterday in the city was to take photographs of the Holiday Train Show at the Transit Museum’s Grand Central Annex. I’ve always loved this show, and it is a major favorite for young children. The detail always amazes me… you definitely need to kneel down to see the “underneath” where the subways go by, and little people wait on the platform.

Anyways, enjoy the photos. The show will run through January 18, so there is still plenty of time to get down to Grand Central and take a look. It is a nice thing to see for the whole family, but I especially recommend it for all the little railfans.

Additional note: I’ll be posting video of this event soon! You can always subscribe to your new YouTube account!

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