Below the bustling intersection of Broadway and Union Street the G train, long considered the forgotten stepchild of the subway system, drops off passengers who ascend to street level to find themselves staring up at the elevated tracks of the J and M lines. Two blocks away sits the Hewes Street entrance to those trains, tantalizing close but still separated by a MetroCard swipe and with it another $2.

But the Tri-State Transportation Campaign is urging the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) to make a transfer from the G train to the J/M train at the Hewes Street entrance free. Riders hopping off the G line would simply swipe their card again, and enter the J/M line without being charged.

"This would provide a level of flexibility and mobility for everyone in the area," argued Teresa Toro of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign at a press conference last Friday at the Hewes Street entrance. "It's an option."

The MTA currently offers a similar service for riders transferring between the G and the 7 trains at Long Island City's Court Square station. Additionally, MetroCard transfers are also available for F train riders at Manhattan's 53rd Street/Lexington station.

The MTA has stated in the past that street transfers are unnecessary because most riders use weekly or monthly unlimited MetroCards. But according to NYC Transit estimates released in February, nearly half of all subway riders still use the system on a pay-per-ride basis.

"That means that just under half of all subway riders would have to pay two fares to make the change. Let's give everyone more subway options," counters State Senator Martin Malave Dilan.

Proponents of the street transfer further argue that the plan provides a way to link subway lines without capital investment. Since the machines used to read MetroCards are already equipped with the necessary technology, costlier alternatives, such as tunnels, could be disregarded. Kate Slevin of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign explains the street transfers would provide quick benefits without adding to the MTA's very public financial woes.

"A permanent MetroCard transfer would offer a valuable service enhancement for straphangers who want more routing options, and who may need to navigate service outages in the short term," Slevin said.

North Brooklyn is already facing service outages on the L train, a line that has seen a huge boom in ridership as the population along its route soars. Those outages are expected to reach a peak in 2005, leaving many riders stranded on the weekends. Naturally the transfer between the J and the G would work in reverse as well, giving Manhattanites access to various parts of Brooklyn, as well as giving Brooklyn residents options for reaching the city. In fact, a J/G transfer could have ramification in Queens as well, giving riders quick access to the Lower East Side and Downtown Manhattan, as well as a way to skirt track work on the 7 line.

Currently the MTA offers paper transfer between the L and the G during service disruptions, a system that requires a person on one end to hand out transfers and an employee on the other to collect them. The MTA also mitigates disruptions in the area by providing shuttle bus service, a move Assemblyman Joe Lentol argues has been less than successful.

"The shuttle buses are unpredictable," he said. "Street transfers can help when there's no L service by getting us in and out of the neighborhood using other subway lines." In February, Dilan sent a letter to the president of the MTA, Lawrence G. Reuter, urging the agency to consider street transfers, especially during track shutdowns. He later wrote that leaving the transfers in place after work was completed would show a commitment to customer service on the part of the MTA. According to Dilan, he received a verbal commitment that street transfers would be implemented. But Charles Seaton, a spokesperson for MTA New York City Transit says free street transfers are not in the agency's future plans.

While it is unclear how many people would actually use a street transfer between the J and G lines, G riders exiting the Broadway stop early Friday afternoon were excited about the prospect of stretching their $2 a little further.

"Why not? The other train is so close," said Victor Gavela. "It's not fair that we should have to get off and pay again."

Copyright 2004 Greenpoint Star/Queens Ledger. All rights reserved.

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