BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP JUNE 16 – JUNE 22, 2017 15 GET SOUTH BROOKLYN MOVING AGAIN From the growing wage gap between the rich and poor to systemic prejudices, inequality is a thorny but very real issue that needs to be tackled. Here in South Brooklyn, I’ve seen a di erent kind of inequality that’s harming our communities: a lack of fast and reliable transportation. My constituents, residents of Coney Island and surrounding neighborhoods, face some of the longest commutes in New York City. This goes well beyond inconvenience. Poor train service prevents residents from getting and keeping good jobs, and it halts our neighborhoods’ ability to attract business. Just as New York began to tackle income inequality by passing minimum wage and paid family leave last year, now we must address the transportation inequality that’s holding back residents in the outer boroughs. Restoring express service on the F train line would be an important fi rst step. In May of 2016, the Metropolitan Transit Authority released a feasibility study that called for the restoration of express service on the F line in Brooklyn, which was suspended in 1987 due to construction. Over the next 30 years, our neighborhoods have continuously grown while transportation options have failed to keep up. Thousands of riders now endure a daily commute that has “some of the longest trips in the system without an express or skip-stop option” according to the MTA. Restored F express service would save South Brooklyn riders signifi cant time in both directions. With so many of the people I represent struggling to get by on low-wage jobs with long hours, precious minutes saved on their already lengthy commutes would make a world of di erence. Countless studies have shown the negative e ects of long commutes, particularly on people with rigid work hours and lower incomes. Along with higher stress and decreased happiness, there are physical side e ects to all that lost time. One study in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine found that long commutes were linked with poor cardiovascular and metabolic health. Another 2011 study found that lengthy commutes decreased energy and resulted in higher illness-related work absences. Meanwhile, the benefi ts of a reasonable commute include more time spent exercising or with loved ones. New York City has always been a hub of activity and progress, and it’s time we reclaimed that. The MTA’s study makes a careful and thorough case for restoring F express service. Considerations of the overall impact – including hundreds of thousands of hours saved annually – and of the impact on the individual neighborhoods inform the ultimate conclusion. As the study notes, current F service is so slow in South Brooklyn that many residents walk to distant lines such as the N, D, B and Q for service into Manhattan. This is simply unacceptable and adds yet another hurdle for residents with physical disabilities. The least we can do is accommodate these residents with reliable train service. Express F train service would shorten commutes and connect South Brooklyn with the rest of our great city, allowing the growing workforce here to thrive. I stand with South Brooklyn’s residents and call on the MTA to restore F express service as soon as possible so we can get Brooklyn moving again. Assemblymember Pamela Harris represents the 46th A.D. BK SNAP S VIEW FROM THE NEW FERRY. Photo by Anthony Cozzolino Send us your photos of Brooklyn and you could see them online or in our paper. Submit them to us via Instagram, Twitter and Facebook by using the hashtag #HRPix; or email them to [email protected]. GUEST OPED THE HOT TOPIC STORY: Driver smashes through two Bensonhurst storefronts while allegedly under the infl uence SUMMARY: Cops say a driver who was allegedly under the infl uence and going northbound on 20th Avenue swerved off the road, sideswiped two cars and smashed through the storefronts of a pediatric occupational therapy offi ce and a dog groomer that also housed rescues after work hours in Bensonhurst earlier this month. Readers were quick to react to news of the incident. REACH: 15,811 (as of 6/8/17) BY ASSEMBLYMEMBER PAMELA HARRIS
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