B & Q Trains Have Both Gotten Much Dirtier Since 2011, Says Study


The NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign, experts on all things depressing (and okay, maybe sometimes uplifting depending on your train) about mass transit in New York City, has just released the results of its 2013 “Subway Schmutz” survey–and our local lines aren’t looking so good.

Although we didn’t get the dreaded title of dirtiest train (that honor goes to the D), a table with data from the survey shows that the B & Q were among nine lines that “experienced statistically significant deterioration between 2011 and 2013.”

While 59% of cars on each line were considered clean by Straphangers standards in 2011, the B dropped in 2013 to a 40% cleanliness rating while the Q dropped to 39%.

None of the city’s lines showed “significant improvement”–but then again, as long as that’s only a spilled soda and not a Nissan SUV messing up your morning commute, maybe you shouldn’t be so picky.

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