It's probably where the sewer-gator lives.

[flaxxxen]

Now I can't imagine that many people who either aren't native to NYC or haven't ever visited would know anything about this, or care, but something irked me tonight coming home on the N (aside from the fact that the train was making all the local stops when it is an express train, but whatev it was 2 AM so FML).
Below the World Trade Center site, the N/R/W train (yellow line on the map) runs through a station called Cordlandt Street.

So, what's your point, Flax?

To which I reply: it is August of 2009, and the September 11th attacks happened eight (yes, count them, EIGHT) years ago. Why is this station still not repaired?

Why are the tracks functioning, so that my train can pass through and get a first-rate glimpse of all that hasn't been fixed in damn-near a decade, while the remainder of the structure is still in shambles? This is all common knowledge to subway riders, and goes without mention of the giant gaping hole in Manhattan known as Ground Zero, where the word "progress" has no meaning.

All the same, we can't blame the economy, as the city can blow a shiny $4 million on renaming the Triboro Bridge after RFK, the MTA can go on strike for three days with a $1 million-per-day fine and STILL raise fares, but we can't plaster some walls and stabilize some floors in eight years? Even with the level of corruption and private contractors on rotation at every construction site across town? What is that?

Perhaps more importantly, at least to the psyche of a lifelong New Yorker, must we continue to live in that era, and be forever reminded of how, no, the city is not and will never be the same?

Comments

[citizenjess.livejournal.com]

It's not on the same level, of course, but it flooded in Iowa really badly last year. The downtown area in Cedar Rapids still smells like wet cardboard, and the dilapidated houses have been gutted, but you can still drive through the area and see the destruction. It's depressing.

[flaxenescapee.livejournal.com]

Same level or not, it really sucks for people's morale to have to live with that. Might I ask how the flooding occurred? I recall hearing about it, but not extensively. =(

[citizenjess.livejournal.com]

Honestly, it rained a lot, and the river overflowed. It's still weird to go by it and see it so calm now - also, one of the bridges over it was completely decimated, and it took them the better part of the year to remove all of it.

[flaxenescapee.livejournal.com]

Now that is upsetting. That's something that so easily could have been prevented.

[helenquest.livejournal.com]

I think it's similar to some parts of New Orleans as well. Even now, a couple of years after Katrina, parts of the city and counties are abandoned and utterly destroyed. I agree with you that progress is really the only way of moving forward, but it seems that urban development itself has been mired in the mud and rubble.

[flaxenescapee.livejournal.com]

Ugh, New Orleans is worse! That shouldn't even have happened, and the government's complete lack of involvement is still disturbing. At the time I wanted to volunteer myself to aid the relief effort, but was too pussy.
It's just purely insane that there is so little action taken to repair an immense tourist attraction like New Orleans. I'm sure instances like these are another reason this country's economy is in the shitter.

[specimen-47.livejournal.com]

The MTA is in a whole mess of BS, and they aren't readily held accountable by the city, aside from the fines. What the top heads say goes, and it won't be changing for a while. But even aside from 9/11, the subways have been in a state of constant... disorder, to put it nicely. They shell out a ton of cash to pretty up the main tourist points, while everything else gets pushed to the wayside.

It's also possible that they simply won't hurry to fix it because the tourists want their pilgrimage to the city to be rather rewarding in its partly destroyed glory.

Can you tell I'm cynical? :P

In all honestly, the only thing that can motivate MTA is publicity. But we're too busy with our own lives to really kick up some noise about how MTA isn't doing their job. And what's the point, anyway? It's nothing new.

I mean, why do you think they banned cameras in the subway? It's not because of any terrorist BS. Any to-scale map of the entire subway system, tunnels both in-use and not, can be found at a library. Full sets of blue prints, for free. The camera ban was so that people can't put out pictures of how shit dirty everything is.

[flaxenescapee.livejournal.com]

You're not cynical at all, it's true. Since 2001 I've encountered probably hundreds of people who've visited specifically to see Ground Zero. I mean, I'm from here and it took me about 5 or 6 years to even want to head down to that area again. These people were going purely out of morbid curiosity, and I really can't blame them. But there comes a time when enough's enough. I personally have reached my limit and I think every poor di'kut who relies on mass transit feels the same.

You know, I never even knew about the camera ban. I won't even comment on that, and "If You See Something, Say Something" and how frighteningly close this comes to fascism.

And can you believe that we just had a fare hike? The service is getting accountably worse by the week and we're paying more than ever? To quote someone we all know and love, this is outrageous!