I didn't know the subway system doubled as a makeshift sewage drain. Apparently, due to this morning's rain flooding the tracks, roughly half of all subway lines were shut down today. Of course, that half afflicted included all my possible routes from home to work.
Now, I normally take the 1 (red line) to Times Square, where I switch to the 2/3 and ride all the way to Burrough Hall in Brooklyn, where the office is located. That's it.
When I stepped out of the 1 into the Times Square stop, I find out that the 2/3 is not fully operational as a result of the rain.
"Well, fuck."
The next best option for me is to take the 4 (green line) directly to Burrough Hall, so as I'm walking, I ask a random and he tells me that, no, the 4 is not running either.
"Well, fuck."
So then I make my way over to the N/R/W/Q (yellow line), my last possible option, and ... NICE! I finally find a train that has its shit right.
Or does it?
I take the express Q for a couple stops and switch to the R. As we roll into another stop, I see a frenzied mob (and by frenzied mob, I mean about a thousand white-collars tapping their feet, BlackBerries and Wall Street Journals in hand) rush the car. As they clamber in, the voice over the PA:
"THIS TRAIN IS GOING TO WHITEHALL, WE'RE GOING TO WHITEHALL"
And the frenzied mob, presumably trying to get to Whitehall, collectively sighs, presumably in relief.
Beat.
"THIS TRAIN IS NOT GOING TO WHITEHALL, I REPEAT, WE ARE NOT GOING TO WHITEHALL."
Frenzied mob, collectively: "FUCK!!"
So most of the frenzied mob clambers off the car, and the remaining stragglers (who I soon would realize were trying to get to Canal St) have a good laugh. But we don't start moving. The doors don't even close. We just sit there for a minute.
"THE NEXT STOP IS CANAL ST, DOORS CLOSING"
Good, that makes sense.
Beat.
"THE NEXT STOP IS DEKALB AVE DOORS CLOSING"
Everyone: "WTF?!"
Now everyone is scrambling to get off the train. As they're doing so...
"THE NEXT STOP IS CANAL ST. THE LAST STOP IS DEKALB AVE DOORS CLOSING"
Again: "WTF?!" And they scramble back on.
(I should interject here and give some background. For those who don't know, the yellow [or gold?] line splits at Canal St, half of the trains going down to Whitehall St, then Burrough Hall in Brooklyn, and then to DeKalb Ave, and the other half going straight to DeKalb Ave in Brooklyn. The plan for me was to go to DeKalb Ave and take the uptown R back to Burrough Hall.)
So ultimately, I get to DeKalb St (the time now being around 10AM). I make my way to the uptown R stop and wait. And wait.
Luckily, after waiting for five minutes or so, I decide to just walk to the office. I say luckily there because, on my way out, I ask a random and find out that the uptown R isn't even running. Good call, self.
Finally, I walk about seven blocks and get to work. At 10:30AM. Approximately two and a half hours after I left home this morning.
And, apparently, my story isn't even half bad compared to some others. Some loud-mouthed woman at the uptown R stop was raving about how she began her commute at 6:30 in the morning and still hadn't gotten to where she wanted to go. She's probably still standing there right now waiting for a non-operational train.
Man, what a ridiculous morning.
Bye Bye Bawston
12 years ago
