As we’ve been reporting, the MTA will hold a public hearing in Manhattan tonight on its proposed service cuts. A similar event last night in Brooklyn got ugly when Police dragged several angry protesters out of the auditorium at the Brooklyn Museum, where the hearing was taking place.
The City Council is doing what it can to fight the service reductions. Here’s Dstrict 1 Councilmember Margaret Chin’s update to constituents:
I wanted to let you know a little bit about what is going on with the MTA and the proposed service cuts. As many of you know, the MTA is facing a budget crisis, and has proposed severe service cuts, including to many lines in Lower Manhattan. They are also talking about cutting the budgets for access-a-ride and some other services, such as student metrocards. The City Council has been working hard on this issue. My colleagues and I, with the help of our staff, have collected over 40,000 petition signatures calling on the MTA to rethink these cuts and to find other ways to fix its budget woes. These signatures, including over 2,000 collected by our office, were delivered to the MTA Board earlier this week by the Speaker and Transportation Chairman Jimmy Vacca… We will continue to fight as your representatives to reverse these service cuts and protect essential transportation infrastructure like the M9, M20, and M22 buses. I wanted to give you this update, and I look forward to hearing from you.
Chin is urging Lower Manhattan residents to attend tonight’s hearing. See our story earlier this week detailing the service cuts impacting the LES. The hearing will be held at the Fashion Institute of Technology (7th Avenue & 27th Street). It starts at 6pm. You can sign up to speak in person or pre-register online. You can also sign the City Council’s petition by going to their web site.
Before tonight’s meeting (4pm), there will be a rally at Governor Paterson’s office, 633 3rd Avenue.
