NYC Subway Pens Excuses for Late Commuters

As Irene approaches, New York City warns transit may close

(NEWSER) - The governors of Maryland and Virginia have declared states of emergency as the East Coast readies for Hurricane Irene. Maryland’s governor has ordered an evacuation of Ocean City and encouraged others in low-lying coastal areas to depart and “stay with someone who loves them” this weekend, the Washington Post notes. Meanwhile, New York City officials are warning that mass transit may be shut down across the city if winds and rain require it, the New York Post reports. Amtrak is canceling some trains south of Washington, too. More»

Welcome to Gotham

(NEWSER) - Ew. When someone brags about improved quality of life in New York, pull out this video. One of the many rats who share space with the city's thousands of daily commuters frantically scurries about a subway car as another rider films him. Passengers watch, sometimes lifting their feet to avoid contact. One guy, dozing, isn't so lucky. The rat leaps onto his leg, then crawls up to his face and awakens him. The stunned traveler shoos him away and the little beast scurries off to gross out someone else. Just one reason why you should never fall asleep on the subway. More»

(NEWSER) - Starting May 31, New Yorkers will have to pony up $2.50 to ride the bus or subway—even as the city’s public-transit system sees cutbacks in routes and schedules, the Daily News reports. Today’s vote by the Metropolitan Transit Authority to enact its so-called “doomsday budget” was necessary, officials said, because the state government refused to help the cash-strapped system. More»

4 men killed in 24-hour period

(NEWSER) - Four men were killed in four separate New York City subway accidents in a single 24-hour period over the weekend. Two of the men were stuck by trains in Manhattan and Brooklyn, and a third was killed when he was crushed between a train and the platform in the Village, reports the New York Post . Another man was found dead on a elevated station platform in Queens. Police don't suspect criminal activity in any of the deaths. More»

He had two guns, including semiautomatic, say police

(NEWSER) - Cops busting a suspected fare beater at a midtown Manhattan subway station made an unusual discovery: The guy was packing a loaded semiautomatic pistol. South Carolina resident Reggie Allen, sporting a "me against the world tattoo" on his neck, had an Intratec Luger Tec-9 gun with 34 bullets, extra ammo in his backpack, plus a loaded .45-caliber Smith and Wesson tucked into his waistband, say cops. Allen has been slapped with an array of weapons charges, reports the New York Daily News . More»