An MTA Help Point is seen at the 23rd Street Station on the Lexington Avenue line – New York, NY – Apr 5, 2011 – Photo: Marla Diamond / WCBS 880
Reporting Marla Diamond
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) - There’s something new and blue lighting up subway platforms in New York City.
WCBS 880′s Marla Diamond: $300,000 Per Station
The new MTA “help points” are call boxes for information and emergencies that have been placed all along the platforms at the 23rd Street Station as part of a pilot program.
Rider Shamin Mennen was instantly attracted to the bright blue light.
“I think it’s very good. It’s about time since things happened because in the rest of the world such things are in place and we desperately need it,” she told WCBS 880 reporter Marla Diamond.
MTA Chairman Jay Walder got a response within seconds when he tried out the system.
If the pilot project on the Lexington Avenue line goes well, the help points will begin replacing old call boxes, which were often hard to find and difficult to operate.
It will cost about $300,000 per station to install the new call boxes.
Rider Robert Fontinelli thought that price was too steep, saying “this looks like it’s easy to find, but I think it’s a little unnecessary.”
The help points are also currently in use at the Brooklyn Bridge station.
