Nov. 25, 2013 By Christian Murray
One man thought there was a monkey on the roof of the stairs leading up to the 52nd train station in Woodside.
Another thought he was in the middle of the Amazon rain forest, as he heard lots of loud birds chirping.
These thoughts came to mind last week when a pigeon mitigation system was installed at the 52nd Street station to ward off pigeons. Some pedestrians actually looked for birds and exotic animals when they went up the stairs–not realizing the sounds were coming out of speakers. Children were especially confused.
The 52nd Street station has had a chronic pigeon problem for years and the implementation of the owl/bird sounds is just one of the many mechanisms that have been put in place to combat the problem. The funding to get rid of the pigeons came from Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer’s office.
Julie Vinasco, from Woodside, didn’t know what to make of the loud noise originally but said that she was an advocate for it. “I hope it works,” she said, adding that the pigeon problem has always been a big concern of hers.
Meanwhile, John Perafan, who wondered what was causing the noise, laughed when he realized it was coming from the speakers.
The sounds could be heard from 51st Street and 43rd Avenue—a couple of blocks from the station.
Van Bramer said the sounds were just one way to get rid of the pesky birds. “If they are too loud, I’m sure they can adjust the volume but I haven’t heard any complaints about them.”
