At last! Oculus mall is open for business

SRhia wrote:
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dtjcview wrote:
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SRhia wrote:
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how do they expect to evacuate people with those tiny stairs in case of an emergency???

Press emergency stop on the escalators?

Have you notice how narrow are those escalators? One-person width. How do you evacuate the place during rush hour is there's an emergency?

The whole thing is a trap!

Voyeur wrote:
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Voyeur wrote:
Given that today was the stated opening date for the hub, I was expecting the Oculus to be open this morning. Of course it wasn't.

The barriers have been taken down, but the area is still roped off. All they achieved was to create a huge glut of humanity as everyone slowed down to gawk. What are the chances it is open for the evening commute tonight?

Oculus opening at 3pm today, per the WTC Facebook page:

The World Trade Center Transportation Hub Oculus ? the iconic centerpiece of the sprawling transit facility ? will partially open at 3 p.m. on March 3, providing an enhanced commuter experience for PATH riders traveling to and from Wall Street and other New York City destinations, as well as those who live in and visit the downtown area.

This spring, the Port Authority?s Board of Commissioners is planning an opening ceremony as the Oculus becomes fully operational, including the eastern linkages to the Metropolitan Transit Authority?s Fulton Street Transit Center and the 11 New York City subway lines that the MTA facility serves.

The March 3 opening will provide the 100,000 riders that use the PATH facility daily with below-ground, climate-controlled access to a new entrance at the corner of Liberty and Church streets, a few blocks from Wall Street. In subsequent weeks, the eastern entrance to the Oculus will open, providing PATH riders with direct access to Church Street and to the Fulton Street Transit Center. In late spring, the new access from the Oculus to the corner of Vesey and Church streets will open.

The transportation hub and Oculus ? designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava ? will serve as a 21st century, state-of-the-art transit center and represents the most integrated network of underground pedestrian connections to mass transit lines in New York City.

Voyeur wrote:
Given that today was the stated opening date for the hub, I was expecting the Oculus to be open this morning. Of course it wasn't.

The barriers have been taken down, but the area is still roped off. All they achieved was to create a huge glut of humanity as everyone slowed down to gawk. What are the chances it is open for the evening commute tonight?

dtjcview wrote:
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SRhia wrote:
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how do they expect to evacuate people with those tiny stairs in case of an emergency???

Press emergency stop on the escalators?

CatDog wrote:
As a cellar-dwelling peon, I'm so glad that $4 billion were spent on an underground spaceship that brightens my miserable existence for 5 minutes.

SRhia wrote:
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how do they expect to evacuate people with those tiny stairs in case of an emergency???

bodhipooh wrote:
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asny10011 wrote:

Can they just mark arrows up or down to indicate directions?


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Fomite wrote:
I just want to add the WTC station is a shit show and everyone involved should be ashamed and fired.
They had a chance to build a station that could accommodate thousands of commuters, allowing for seamless entering and exiting of the cars. Instead it's a mess!
Ever seen the tube station in London? Those tiny staircases, with people going up and down...escalators going the wrong direction..and who picked white???? What a mess!

The way people behave around this area, the use of arrows to designate up and down stairs would be a waste of time.

They should have created wider stairwells, or done without the handrails in the middle of the existing stairwells. Also, they could/should have used more escalators, which they could then use to control the flow (up/down) to accommodate rush hour needs.

This station is a royal mess, and it WILL GET WORSE once it is fully operational and the shopping concourse opens to the public.

As for the comment someone else made about slippery marble when it rains, I already experienced that and I took a nasty slip about 4 months ago. I was (admittedly) rushing to catch the train (mind you, not running, just walking fast) and I slipped and landed on the yellow stripe, which left a major bruise on my left shin. Someone will likely get injured and the lawsuit will be paid by... US!

asny10011 wrote:

Can they just mark arrows up or down to indicate directions?


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Fomite wrote:
I just want to add the WTC station is a shit show and everyone involved should be ashamed and fired.
They had a chance to build a station that could accommodate thousands of commuters, allowing for seamless entering and exiting of the cars. Instead it's a mess!
Ever seen the tube station in London? Those tiny staircases, with people going up and down...escalators going the wrong direction..and who picked white???? What a mess!

Fomite wrote:
I just want to add the WTC station is a shit show and everyone involved should be ashamed and fired.
They had a chance to build a station that could accommodate thousands of commuters, allowing for seamless entering and exiting of the cars. Instead it's a mess!
Ever seen the tube station in London? Those tiny staircases, with people going up and down...escalators going the wrong direction..and who picked white???? What a mess!

WhoElseCouldIBe wrote:
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tommyc_37 wrote:
I agree.

The white will not age well. It just won't.

And yeah, you have a chance to build a new, super efficient station, a chance to SOLVE actual problems of increased ridership, etc.

And in the finished product you have these tiny narrow staircases going up to the mezzanine level. Complete bottleneck during rush hour. Just asinine and a complete failure.

Shame should be the least thing the designers and planners experience. They should be arrested. The Port Authority should be completely disbanded or removed from transportation entirely.

Agreed about the tiny escalators. Totally nonsensical. Not designed for anyone that would use a subway at all.

tommyc_37 wrote:
I agree.

The white will not age well. It just won't.

And yeah, you have a chance to build a new, super efficient station, a chance to SOLVE actual problems of increased ridership, etc.

And in the finished product you have these tiny narrow staircases going up to the mezzanine level. Complete bottleneck during rush hour. Just asinine and a complete failure.

Shame should be the least thing the designers and planners experience. They should be arrested. The Port Authority should be completely disbanded or removed from transportation entirely.

GlitterQueen wrote:


Yeah know what is a horrible material for public transport? WHITE MARBLE!!!! It's soft as hell, porous, slippery, and shows dirt in an instant! Yeah it looks pretty as long as no one walks on it. It also reminds me of a mausoleum. I'm not sure if this was done intentionally to respect the tragedy or if this guy has his head so far up his ass he didn't see that his finish choices create that feeling.

MDM wrote:
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GlitterQueen wrote:
starchitects are the worst. They are all ego and have no idea how to design constructable buildings. That is why his designs lead to lawsuits, look so different from their renderings, and go so over budget.

I noticed architects also tend to consider the mechanical systems of a building only as an afterthought. The mechanical rooms are often so tight space wise and so poorly laid out that you can't service anything.

GlitterQueen wrote:
starchitects are the worst. They are all ego and have no idea how to design constructable buildings. That is why his designs lead to lawsuits, look so different from their renderings, and go so over budget.