Res. No. 1437
Resolution calling upon the Metropolitan Transportation Authority ("MTA") to rate stations on the basis of a grading system of A to F utilizing criteria such as cleanliness, standing water, litter, graffiti, rodents, and other pests.
By Council Members Koo, Vacca, Comrie, Dromm, Gentile, James, Koppell, Koslowitz, Palma, Rose, Williams, Wills and Ulrich
Whereas, Currently the MTA releases a monthly Passenger Environment Survey-Key Performance Indicator ("PES-KPI") to measure the overall quality of passenger environment in subway cars and stations; and
Whereas, The PES-KPI index is composed of three components: Appearance, Equipment and Information, which track the overall cleanliness of stations and subway cars, the working condition of elevators, escalators, and other station equipment, and the quality of the information that is conveyed to passengers; and
Whereas, While the PES-KPI measures the overall quality of service that straphangers would normally encounter, the index only provides a rating for individual subway lines and aggregate information for the five boroughs, but does not provide information about individual subway stations; and
Whereas, In 2012, the NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign published the "State of the Station Platforms" survey in which a sample of 28 percent of all subway platforms were evaluated on the "presence of garbage cans, overflowing garbage cans, large garbage bags, rats, graffiti, lighting, handrails and staircases, exposed wiring, peeling paint, water damage, floor cracks, and missing tiles;" and
Whereas, The survey divided the conditions observed at subway stations into assessments of either good, bad or ugly; and
Whereas, While the survey found no widespread issues with overflowing garbage cans or large garbage cans on platforms, the survey found that "ugly" conditions were observed on 50 percent of the platforms surveyed; and
Whereas, These "ugly" conditions included rats on subway platforms, staircases and handrails in disrepair, missing tiles, and graffiti; and
Whereas, Over the past year there have been a number of stories in the media about the problem of rats and the presence of garbage in subway stations, during the same period there were two reported instances of rats attacking customers, including the latest incident in which a passengers leg was clawed by a rat on the A train; and
Whereas, To improve service and to highlight the continuing problems that exist in subway stations across the City, the MTA should use a grading system of A to F to rate the stations and to better inform its customers about the cleanliness of platforms; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon Metropolitan Transportation Authority ("MTA") to rate stations on the basis of a grading system of A to F utilizing criteria such as cleanliness, standing water, litter, graffiti, rodents, and other pests.
LS# 3696
6/21/12
GZ