NEWS YOU CAN USE
No. 7 subway weekend work scheduled
Due to switch replacement work, the No. 7 line will be out of service between the Mets-Willets Point and Flushing-Main Street stations during four weekends over the next two months, the MTA announced.
The No. 7 line will not be running between the times of 4 a.m. Saturday and 10 p.m. Sunday on the weekends of March 26 – 27, April 2 – 3, April 16 – 17 and May 14 – 15.
Free shuttle buses will be available to carry passengers between the Mets-Willets Point and Flushing-Main Street stations on these weekends.
Also, from March 23 to May 13, the last Manhattan-bound express train will leave Flushing-Main Street at 9 a.m. rather 9:55 a.m.
Transit personnel will be on hand during the weekends to provide assistance for those using the shuttle buses.
The No.7 line was also out of service on the weekend of March 11 due to heavy rains on the night before that damaged the signal system in the tunnel.
For more information, visit www.mta.info and click on “Planned Service Changes.”
Register for bone marrow registry; help save a life
A bone marrow registry is being held at the Flushing Library on Monday, March 28.
Queens Library HealthLink Flushing Cancer Action Council and the New York Blood Center are inviting healthy adults to register for the BE THE MATCH marrow registry.
Thousands of people need life-saving marrow transplants and because tissue types are inherited patients are most likely to match someone of their own race and ethnicity.
Most patients – about 70 percent – do not find a match in their family.
For this reason a donors representing diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds are needed so that each patient has a chance finding a match. A patient’s likelihood of having a suitable donor in the registry who is willing and able to donate on their ranges from 66 to 93 percent.
The registration is quick, safe, painless and free. Registration only means that the volunteer will be in a database for possible contact at a later date; not committing to donate.
Volunteers must be between the ages of 18 and 60, meet the health guidelines and be willing to donate to any patient in need.
For more information about The National Marrow Donor Program, please call 1-800-MARROW-2 or visit BeTheMatch.org.
Light change for bikers
Local politicians plan to issued a bill Thursday, March 24 changing the red traffic light to a flashing yellow light at certain public parks when the park is closed to vehicular traffic.
This “flashing yellow” would allow cyclists to proceed through the intersection “with caution.”
New York City cycling groups have requested the bill due to an increase in tickets – which costs $270 – for failing to stop at red lights in public parks.
Schedule changes on Metro-North
The Metro-North Railroad will implement minor changes to certain train schedule beginning Sunday, April 3.
Changes to the schedules are planned for Hudson, Harlem and New Haven line customers to accommodate various construction projects, to better reflect actual running times and to improve operational reliability.
A new Friday-only train will also be added to the New Haven line.
For more information and the schedule adjustments visit https://mta.info/mnr/html/serviceupdates.htm?story=685 and pick up a new timetable at Info Booths or ticket windows.
Schumer calls for bus license audit
Senator Charles Schumer recently called on the New York Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to conduct an audit of licenses issued to drivers of low-cost tour buses.
Schumer called for this audit after evidence emerged that the driver of Saturday’s deadly crash on I-95 may have provided false statements and documents in order to continue operating as a driver.
To help protect customers of these buses Schumer wants to make sure drivers have safe driving records and valid licenses.
“Only a complete vetting of the licenses and driving records of drivers operating these low-cost carriers will prevent people who have no business behind the wheel of a vehicle that carries dozens of passengers from getting there,” said Schumer.
There are over one hundred tour bus companies registered with the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration (FMCSA) operating in New York that transport tens of thousands of travelers a month.
Start of Maple Syrup Season
Get out the pancake mix – it’s maple syrup season.
From late winter until early spring is prime time for collecting sap for sugar maple trees that will be turned into delicious syrup.
To celebrate the season the 16th Annual Maple Weekend on March 19-20 and March 26-27. This celebration will take place at over 100 sugarhouses throughout New York, where visitors can see the syrup process first hand and take part in free tours.
New York maple syrup accounts for nearly 20 percent of the nation’s maple production, ranking New York third behind Vermont and Maine, respectively
The tours will take place between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Some sugarhouses are also offering pancake breakfasts, gift shops and horse-drawn sleigh rides.
For more information and for a list of participating sugar houses, visit www.mapleweekend.com.
Get 10 free trees for spring
With spring about to bloom, the Arbor Day Foundation is offering ten free trees for you to plant.
The dogwoods will be sent to you between March 1 and 31, the optimal time for planting these trees, with instructions on how to plant the them enclosed. These white-flowering trees that will grow to between 6-12 inches are guaranteed to grow or they will be replaced for free.
It is just $10 to become a member of the foundation and receive trees that “have showy spring flowers, scarlet autumn foliage, and red berries which attract songbirds all winter,” according to John Rosenow, chief executive and founder of the Arbor Day Foundation
This is part of the non-profit foundation’s Trees for America campaign.
To become a member and receive your ten trees join online at www.arborday.org/March or send a $10 contribution to TEN FREE DOGWOOD TREES, Arbor Day Foundation, 100 Arbor Avenue, Nebraska City, NE 68410, by March 31, 2011
