Staten Island State Sen. Diane Savino Rips Subway Barrier Scheme

Published: Thursday, February 03, 2011, 8:04 AM

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Calling it a "waste of time, effort, energy and money," state Sen. Diane Savino yesterday thumped an MTA plan to erect barriers or sliding doors on subway platforms to prevent passengers from falling onto the tracks and to keep a lid on litter.

In a letter chastising Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Jay Walder, Ms. Savino called the plan, which would have portals open and shut in unison with subway doors, "overblown" and "nonsense."

Added Ms. Savino: "Life is precious and track fires are dangerous, but the risks of both are far too minuscule to justify all the expense and effort — especially when most South Brooklynites and Islanders have had their modes of commuting eliminated under auspices of fiscal restraint."