However, with ridership soaring, the Transit Authority has no doubt heard complaints about bikes aboard subways. The agency deserves credit for sticking by its common-sense bike access policy. That policy allows cyclists 24-hour use of the subway but discourages rush hour use, and allows transit workers or police to keep bikes off crowded trains. The MTA also seems to have dropped a brief requirement that passengers with strollers and bicycles wait in line at the token booth to get through the service gate. The fine record of transit achievement would be better still if the MTA provided secure parking of any kind at suburban rail and major NYC transit hubs like Union Square and Queensboro Plaza.
Cyclists have a huge stake in the health of the transit system.
A strong transit system is a prerequisite for reducing car use and creating better conditions for bikes. In the developed world's best cycling cities, one of the main reasons for cycling is to get to the train station. Cyclists continue to enjoy the immense benefits of unrestricted legal access to the NYC subways. Neither rain nor mechanical failure can stop a cyclist equipped with a MetroCard. A recent blot is the insistence by the Transit Authority that passengers with strollers and bicycles wait in line at the token booth to get through the service gate.