(The following story by Steve Ritea appeared on the Newsday website on February 21.)
NEW YORK — More trains seem to be on time, the cars are cleaner and the ride is more comfortable, Long Island Rail Road commuters report in a survey, but the bathrooms…
Oh man, those bathrooms.
“Who knows what kind of exotic diseases you’ll catch?” LIRR Commuter’s Council President Gerard Bringmann said. “I know the ladies I ride with, they make a point of just not using them.”
On the whole, results of the LIRR’s annual customer satisfaction survey were largely positive, with the railroad’s overall 2007 score at 6.7 on a scale of 0 to 10 – up from 6.6 in 2006, and the second-highest score ever since 1993’s score of 6.8.
But on bathroom cleanliness, the 11,400 riders who returned their forms were clearly less impressed, giving it a 4.9.
Morning peak commuters also reported some problems with bathrooms at stations such as West Hempstead, which rated 4.2.
LIRR President Helena Williams said she was most acutely aware of poorly ventilated restrooms at Penn Station, which ranked at 4.9 last year. Renovation of Penn’s bathrooms, including the ventilation, is scheduled to begin in July.
Elsewhere, morning peak commuters gave the Far Rockaway branch the highest overall rating, 7.1, while the Oyster Bay branch got the lowest, 6.4.
Overall, trip comfort jumped from 6.8 to 7.0 between 2006 and 2007, interior cleanliness increased from 6.2 to 6.5 and on-time performance – as it is perceived by customers – is up from 6.4 to 6.6.
While Williams told an MTA committee yesterday that she was hoping for “those Russian gymnast” Olympic-type scores, like “9.9,” LIRR Market Development Deputy General Manager Yannis Takos said even increases of .2 or .3 are “statistically significant.”
The LIRR, in fact, received record ratings, he said, in areas including trip comfort, heat and air conditioning, crew availability and clean cars – excluding bathrooms.
Track record
The train staff wins praise, but restrooms score low in the Long Island Rail Road’s annual rider satisfaction survey.
Ratings are based on a scale of 0 to 10, with 10 the best
2006 2007
Courtesy of crew 7.6 7.6
Trip comfort 6.8 7.0
Interior maintenance 6.8 7.0
On-time performance 6.4 6.6
Car cleanliness 6.4 6.5
Restroom cleanliness 4.9 4.9