UPDATE: Kent Pierce from Connecticut’s WTNH CH-8 will be interviewing me regarding my legal battle with MTA on Thursday, August 13. The interview should appear at noon and perhaps the 6 PM news as well.
Thanks to my readers and app users for all the comments & emails of support.
If you want to show your support, feel free to leave a comment letting MTA know how you feel.
I know they are reading them.
I love you guys!
Chris
Last week, MTA legal quite laughably accused me of presenting StationStops as an ‘Official MTA Site’.
StationStops is not an MTA site, and definitely does not want to be confused with MTA in any way!
It’s an MTA PASSENGER ADVOCACY and LIFESTYLE blog – and frequently posts blog articles CRITICAL OF MTA SERVICE.
We also have Metro-North schedule pages. Why? Because the MTA webform is awkward, and we knew we could present the schedules in a more usable, bookmarkable format. Metro-North schedules are not copyrightable by MTA.
(in the past year, StationStops has really devolved into a very general-purpose blog, which unapologetically also covers gadgets, politics, and literally any damn thing I feel like writing about – and will continue to do so!)
When I explicitly asked the MTA lawyer to forward me language to add to my site he would find acceptable for visitors to avoid confusion, he stated ‘There is no such language!’
Um, OK.
So, basically, this MTA lawyer wants StationStops to go away.
Not gonna happen!
I say ‘this MTA lawyer’ because over the years, I have worked with lots of MTA employees, and like any big organization, there are good ones and bad ones. More than one MTA employee has honestly admitted to me “often the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing” when the history of my discussions with them has been institutionally ‘forgotten’.
I don’t harbor any bad will against MTA for this one lawyer’s accusations.
I have been working with MTA on an agreement to work together for over six months – an agreement we both have agreed is in our mutual interest. Its been a frustrating process, and people I work with come and go, and its often like starting all over again. This lawyer has been the latest wrench in the works.
If anyone higher up at MTA wants to help me cut through the BS and get my agreement worked out, feel free to contact me using the contact form. I’d love to talk with you.
28 responses so far ↓
1 Bethie // Aug 9, 2009 at 7:09 pm
As a daily Metro North commuter, I am not surprised by your description or their operations…it is reflected in the service I experience every day: decrepit, stinky, leaky trains and a frustrating inability to provide enough seats/cars during peak hour operations. As for Station Stops, I exclusively use the blog and IPHONE app to access schedules. It is convenient and easy to access….perfect for commuters on the go. The opposite is true of the MTA site/schedules. Why wouldn’t they want to support something that provides such a great service for their customers? I guess it goes against everything else they do…maybe that’s why.
2 Dane // Aug 9, 2009 at 7:32 pm
This is classic bureaucratic red tape. Our public employees often seem to forget that they’re employed by the public, and should help us, not hinder.
Why they’d have issues with your application and website displaying schedules is beyond me. It’s public information, paid for by my taxes, fees and fares. Hiding it away serves no one.
3 David Schoenfeld // Aug 9, 2009 at 8:15 pm
Ditto on Dane’s comment. The city employees forget that it is the taxpayers taxes that pay their paycheck.
4 Tim M. // Aug 9, 2009 at 8:39 pm
Dear StationStops.com,
It does seem like legal counsel for the MTA is wasting tax payer time and money. Given all of the recent budget belt tightening you would think that they would prioritize their focus on subjects that would improve the public’s experience with the MTA. Keep up the good works!
5 Manager Mom // Aug 9, 2009 at 8:41 pm
I wish they spent as much time improving their services as they do hassling supporters. sorry for your trouble…
6 rldixon // Aug 9, 2009 at 8:50 pm
Are you serious? Of course you are, nothing is as ludicrous as the MTA. StationStops is certainly a highly valuable service that plugs one of the *many* gaps between what the ridership reasonably expects from the MTA and what the MTA actually provides. The MTA should be glad StationStops exists to provide some of the information required by its paying customers.
7 Ludmilla // Aug 9, 2009 at 8:54 pm
Well, clearly their business is run so well they have time and money to spend on things like this. Completely ridiculous.
8 Chris (Admin) // Aug 9, 2009 at 8:55 pm
Just to clarify a common misperception – MTA is a private company, not a government service.
This fact has become the bane of the NYC Transit System, and I have argued before that it must be disposed of.
A lot of people will argue that a private company will always do a better job than govenment – but the fact is, if the private company has no oversight it can be much worse.
This is why Mayor Bloomberg has been campaigning against MTA to get into shape as part of his re-election campaign, but the extent of his power is the bully pulpit.
If a company is not effectively and efficiently serving the people of NYC’s transit needs, the people must have the power to dismiss them.
9 Karen Cavanaugh // Aug 9, 2009 at 8:59 pm
I always use Station Stops to check the train schedule when I visit my daughter in Hoboken, NJ. I never think of it as an “OFFICIAL” website. I’ve been to the official website and it awkward. Typical of a laywer to want you to conform to language that doesn’t exist! That’s probably a 4 semister course in law school.
k
10 David Lombard // Aug 9, 2009 at 10:24 pm
It’s nice to know that this site is on the MTA radar though which can only mean that they actively seek out valuable supplemental transportation resources…. and squash them. Clearly they want to bogart the i-phone app dollars. I say Boo MTA!
11 Mrs. Saling // Aug 9, 2009 at 11:50 pm
This is a why didn’t we think of this site/app first scenario and we should (MTA), make our own exact same site/app since someone already did all the leg work and we (MTA) could then reap all the rewards and credit if we use are bull shit scare tactics. Maybe they need to invest in some innovative marketing themselves and not a lawyer??Would that be to difficult???
12 Bobby // Aug 10, 2009 at 1:03 am
If StationStops is official MTA website…then I guess “Derailed” is too. I can’t wait for that big overtime check (you know how we union guys are.)
13 CNR // Aug 10, 2009 at 9:20 am
Empty threats. There’s no way they can make you take down StationStops!
They better smarten up and work with you, and not against you.
14 Carol // Aug 10, 2009 at 9:59 am
Bad PR MTA, step up and do the right thing and
find a new attorney to negotiate this contract.
15 Lizzie // Aug 10, 2009 at 10:29 am
This is totally ridiculous. I agree with Manager Mom.
And please MTA, don’t take stationstops away from its loyal readers.
16 Mel Reyes // Aug 10, 2009 at 12:33 pm
MTA should be working with you to make sure that all news, good or bad can be reported instead of laying down the legal hammer. MTA, you obviously have issues, we know it and Stationstops just expresses them. If you stop Stationstops, I’ll pick up where it left off and if you try to stop me, then someone else will. This is going to get retwitted all across the tri-state area now, feel the wrath of social networking….
17 Maura // Aug 10, 2009 at 1:21 pm
I love station stops. I love the news articles related to commuting and the trains- a place to find up to date information regarding the last fare hikes.
StationStops on twitter is fabulous! It is a great service- ways to share information on when trains are delayed or even funny commuting observations. We are a community!
It’s sad instead of MTA recognizing their own shortcomings, they are trying to squash the resources. Hey MTA: Build better tools! It’s a 2.0 world- it’s about customization, mash-ups, sharing, user driven content.
However, Mr. StationStops– I am confused, and hope you can provide some more details about what is happening between MTA legal and your blog. Is it more related to the schedules and the iPhone app which you potentially make money on? I am willing to support you- but I’d like to know the issues more clearly.
18 T-Pot // Aug 10, 2009 at 4:07 pm
Don’t let the bastards grind you down, Shocka!
19 Lindsay // Aug 10, 2009 at 7:41 pm
This attorney was clearly hired for the sole purpose of wasting everyone’s time and money. Bloomberg said it best when he referred to the MTA as”bloated” and “a beast.” Stay strong, Station Stops.
20 Chris (Admin) // Aug 10, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Pam – the Marketing person I spoke with at MTA is film student who has only worked at MTA for a few months and never completed his BA.
He was the source of even more litigious and erroneous legal threats than the legal department was.
Gives you an idea of who I’m working with.
21 jan // Aug 10, 2009 at 9:39 pm
MTA needs to wake up to the 21st century! Station Stops has every legal right to exist as does any other blog out there. They should be thanking you for helping their customers grind through a thankless commute. Keep up the GREAT work!!
22 Amy // Aug 11, 2009 at 9:00 am
Sounds like this film student should keep going to school and learn about The First Amendment. Keep fighting Station Stops!
23 CGrubbs // Aug 11, 2009 at 8:52 pm
Mass transit is an essential service for the Metro area and therefore cannot and should not legitimately withheld. This is very public information which is vital to this essential service. Station Stops and Mayor Blumberg should pursue avenues to share and distribute this information,which is necessary to provide awareness to consumers. The result is increased ridership, which makes MTA more profitable. Station Stops disclosure, that the site is not part of MTA, should suffice the legal obligation to separate Station Stops from any inference of MTA association. Its very obvious that the only concern MTA truly has, is the not so kind publicity it may experience. Station stops obviously does a significant service to enough of the public that the MTA can find the time and money to allocate resources tasked to threaten and scare. BAADDD MTA!!
24 Jim Cameron // Aug 14, 2009 at 3:45 pm
How stupid of the MTA to create such a PR nightmare for itself.
Congrat’s for launching the app. Anything to give more info to commuters is a great idea, in my view.
If the CT Rail Commuter Council can be of any help, please let me know.
JIM CAMERON, Chairman
http://www.trainweb.org/ct
25 Omri // Aug 21, 2009 at 10:45 am
While the MTA may be a privately owned company it does receive a lot of taxpayer $$$$ and tax benefits. In addition, as a private business they should learn to deal with criticism and are even more obligated to their customers. The MTA has much to learn about their customers and we can all see the stories that are being done on all local news stations regarding the terrible scandals and decisions that they make. As paying customers we all have a right to voice our opinions on their services. Keep doing a good job!!!!
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