TRANSIT NEWS
The Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority teamed up with Sugar City on October 12^th for Ride the Metro Round and Round, an unprecedented artistic event taking place along Metro’s 6.4 mile track.  The excursion began at University Station around 7 p.m. and continued all the way to Erie Canal Harbor Station and then back again. After boarding the train and paying their fare, riders were able to get out at various stops along the way to experience a variety of music, art, and other performances. There was an estimated over 300 participants in tow for this novel event.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced last week that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority will expand its participation in the Taste NY initiative by adding a new TasteNY store in Grand Central Terminal specifically offering food and beverages produced in New York. Taste NY is part of a concentrated effort by the Governor to boost the sales and heighten the profiles of New York State’s food and beverages.

STATE NEWS
The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) announced a partnership with several state and local agencies to improve pedestrian safety along the 14-mile Central Avenue-State Street (Route 5) corridor between the City of Albany, Albany County, and the City of Schenectady, Schenectady County. “Pedestrian safety is everyone’s responsibility,” NYSDOT Commissioner Joan McDonald said. “At some point each day, we are all pedestrians. The Department of Transportation is excited to join with the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, State Department of Health and our many other partners in making the Central Avenue and State Street corridor safer for pedestrians and motorists alike.”

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST
Officials with Metro and Virginia Railway Express say ridership on subway and commuter trains appears to be back to normal now that the federal government is open. Metrorail experienced about a 20 percent drop in ridership during the shutdown. Metro spokesman Dan Stessel says ridership through 11 a.m. last Thursday was up 19 percent from the same time Thursday of last week, suggesting that ridership was on target to return to pre-shutdown levels.

Public transit goes on-demand in Helsinki, Finland. The capital city of Finland has an on-demand minibus service run by the city’s transit agency. Kutsuplus, as the service is called, lets you choose where you want tobe picked up by the bus and if you want a private trip (like using Uber) or a shared ride. The minibuses can accommodate up to nine passengers.

China’s first trans-­provincial metro line started operation last week, connecting Shanghai and neighboring Jiangsu Province in East China, which will likely boost the region's economy. The total distance of Line 11 has now reached 72 kilometers, making it the country's longest subway line.  It takes passengers about 70 minutes to get from Huaqiao Station to downtown Shanghai's Xujiahui Station and costs only 7 yuan ($1.15).