East Side Access / Grand Central Madison. It's been a dream for many people for years. However, it was not available when I needed it, nor was it in public use by year end 2022 as promised by the MTA. If East Side Access was available when I needed it, I might have used mass transit to reach the airport instead of staying at a hotel near the airport before my flight to Hawaii.
Unlike some lucky cities, two major railroads controlled access to Manhattan island by rail: The New York Central Railroad and the Pennsylvania Railroad. Although both of these railroads are long gone, the competing infrastructure they built still remains for commuter rail and for intercity rail. This legacy has created a system where I am unable to use Amtrak for trips to/from my home station, unless I pay for an expensive trip into Pennsylvania Station, NY (NYP) or use the NYC Subway to reach Pennsylvania Station from Grand Central Terminal (GCT). (Amtrak's fares actively discourage people from using Empire Service to reach NYC from the North, as it doesn't want to provide commuter service along this route.) Historical airport placement doesn't help either, as none of the 3 major NYC airports were designed for mass transit to deliver people people between Manhattan and the airports. As a result, I couldn't justify traveling into NYP, then using either New Jersey Transit (NJT) or Long Island Railroad (LIRR) to reach Newark (EWR) or Kennedy (JFK) airports. Even reaching La Guardia (LGA) airport is a pain, as one can only reach LGA (via mass transit) via the NYC Subway, then connecting to a bur to the airport.
At both JFK and EWR, special transit has been built to transport people between railroad stations and the airports. But this can result in awkward land based trips to reach the airport. For example, had East Side Access (ESA) been available to me, I'd still need to take Metro North (MNRR) into NYC, then transfer to a LIRR train to Jamaica, and finally a special "AirTrain" to JFK. EWR and LGA would still be unavailable to me.
Years ago, there were buses that (for a small fee) would transport people between the NYP and GCT railroad hubs and the 3 NYC area airports. Sadly, the last time I looked, these buses are no more. If I want to go to an airport, I either have to find cheap parking nearby, or use an expensive cab to reach the airport. I am worse off now than I was 30 years ago!
However, this problem isn't limited to air travel. With the exception of the Manhattan cruise terminal, cruise ships dock in either Brooklyn, NY or Bayonne, NJ. Neither is good for many people as one can only reach these terminals from Manhattan via an expensive cab or Uber ride. If one lives in the outer boroughs, the expense is even worse. Only if I'm traveling from RQS's place will I consider going to Red Hook, Brooklyn to go on a cruise. It would cost me way too much to reach Brooklyn from my home - I might as well fly somewhere where cheaper cruises are being offered. As for Bayonne, I doubt that I will ever cruise out of that port, as I can not justify the excessive cost of leaving my car in a unattended (or under attended) parking lot.
As you can guess, New York City is not a place that makes it easy for frugal travel. But I still find ways to do so, and will continue to write about my exploits as Marian and as Mario as they occur.
