Angry New Yorkers Demand Accountability For Broken Subway Escalators, Elevators

May 6, 2008 2:49 p.m. EST

New York, NY (AHN) - Poorly maintained facilities at New York City's train and subway stations continue to irk the Big Apple's millions of daily commuters.

Now, the Straphangers Campaign is calling on the the New York City Transit Authority to account for exactly how many elevators are broken, and is hoping to put pressure on real estate developers to properly maintain their facilities.

Straphangers senior lawyer Gene Russianoff identified Union Square, 53rd and Third Avenue stations as stopovers where the escalators have remained broken over the years with no apparent effort by developers to have them repaired.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority received criticism Tuesday for issuing free dashboard placards to board members granting them free parking privileges at train stations. According to the New York Daily News, the privilege has been extended to people like Virgil Conway, who hasn't sat on the board since 2001.

Critics of the free parking privilege add that it also goes against the spirit of conservation by encouraging board members to use their own transportation.