“Train Daddy” will be heading to Arverne next month to hear from some of the most frustrated straphangers in the entire city.
Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato will be hosting a Commuters Town Hall with MTA NYC Transit President Andy Byford on Feb. 6.
“The purpose of this meeting is to give our communities a voice,” said Pheffer Amato. “As I continue my #MassTransitMonday tours around my district, I hear about the numerous challenges, and journeys to and from work. My constituents’ daily commutes are some of the longest in the nation.”
The national average for commuting in the United States is 26 minutes, but according to the U.S. Census most Rockaway commuters face travel times of an hour or more, provided that all public transit and roads are operating without any obstacles.
“That’s why I’m so excited for them, and for us, to have this platform with President Byford,” said Pheffer Amato. “It is extremely important that our voices be heard, and challenges considered as the MTA moves forward with the modernization of our entire public transportation system. We must take full advantage of this opportunity.”
The MTA has conducted several town halls over the last two years, but this will be their first in Rockaway.
Byford was given the “Train Daddy” nickname based on a sticker campaign by a Brooklyn-based writer named Andrew Littlefield that became so popular the MTA referred to Byford as “Train Daddy” in a New Years Eve tweet.
“It totally made my night,” Littlefield told Brooklyn Patch.
The Commuters Town Hall will take place at the Rockaway YMCA at 207 Beach 73rd St. in Arverne on Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.
