Monday Morning L-Train Madness:Caught on Video

OK, so this isn't actually video from the Bedford Avenue platform. But following a complete shutdown of service between Broadway Junction and Eight Avenue just prior to today's normal morning rush insanity, the Japanese "pushers" in this YouTube clip might have been welcomed.

We stood at platform's edge for nearly a half-hour, trying in vain to insert our relatively lithe body onto not one but three overstuffed L's before successful injection (hands above head, crammed between a baby stroller and several visibly annoyed hipsters) onto the fourth.

The MTA has been responsive to the growing commuter crisis, maxing out the frequency of rush hour trains and pushing forward a computer-controlled switching system (affectionately dubbed 'robo-trains' by neighborhood Luddites) that will allow even more closely-spaced lemming-haulers sometime this century.

But given the massive influx of commuters to the L-corridor in Brooklyn (ridership on the line nearly doubled between 1994 and 2005), demand will almost certainly outstrip these improvements over the coming years. That's why we'll continue to beat the drum for year-round ferry service between Williamsburg's North Side and (ideally) East Side destinations between Wall Street and 34th. We realize the Water Taxi isn't a panacea: compared to the subway, its expensive; and waterside landings often mean transferring to a bus or taxi. But for some, it would be a pleasant alternative to the morning madness that's becoming an unpleasant way of life in Williamsburg.

Thanks to Megan for forwarding the hilarious YouTube clip!