Maurice Carroll, Director

Quinnipiac University Polling Institute

Rubenstein Associates, Inc.,

Public Relations
Pat Smith (212) 843-8026

FOR RELEASE: JULY 29, 2009

NEW YORK CITY VOTERS LIKE CAR-FREE TIMES SQUARE,

QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY POLL FINDS;
BLOOMBERG GETS ALMOST 2-1 BACKING TO RUN SCHOOLS
Banning cars on Broadway, creating a pedestrian mall from Times Square to Herald Square is a
good idea, New York City voters say 58 – 34 percent in a Quinnipiac University poll released
today. Support ranges from 66 – 27 percent among Manhattan voters to 50 – 44 percent among
Bronx voters.
By a smaller 48 – 46 percent margin, voters say the city should create more pedestrian
malls. But voters say 57 – 38 percent that they don’t want such a mall in their neighborhood, the
independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. The two-month experiment
has attracted 44 percent of New Yorkers, who say they’ve spent time on Times Square.
Looking at other transit issues:
• 52 percent of New York City voters say subway service is “excellent” or “good;”
• 56 percent say bus service is “excellent” or “good.”
Mass transit has gotten better in the last five years, 25 percent of voters say, while 20
percent say it has gotten worse and 50 percent see no change. The Metropolitan Transportation
Authority does an “excellent” or “good” job notifying riders of service interruptions, 41 percent
of voters say, while 54 percent say “not so good” or “poor.”
“Times Square with lawn chairs instead of cars is a nice idea, most New Yorkers say, but
NIMBY,” said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
“Metropolitan Transportation Authority subway and bus service gets passing grades from
most New Yorkers. Ever listen to a public announcement in a subway station? Ever understand
it? Most New Yorkers think the MTA should do better telling us about service delays.”
-more-
 

Quinnipiac University Poll/July 29, 2009 – page 2

 New York City voters say 70 – 26 percent that recent MTA fare hikes are not justified.
But voters oppose two possible ways to limit future fare hikes:
• 67 – 27 percent against placing tolls on free East River bridges;
• 55 – 40 percent against congestion pricing. Opposition among mass transit users is
50 – 46 percent
Getting to work, 23 percent of New Yorkers drive; 25 percent use subways; 11 percent
take the bus; 14 percent use a subway/bus combination and 6 percent take a commuter train.
Even as the MTA announced that the 2nd Avenue Subway would be delayed, 78 percent of
New Yorkers are “not too confident” or “not confident at all” that it will be built on time.
And 64 percent of voters are “not too confident” or “not confident” at all that the
extension of the Number 7 subway line to the West Side will be built on time.
“When we started this poll, it seemed a good idea to ask if New Yorkers were confident
the 2nd Avenue subway would be built on time. Then the MTA gave us the official answer: No,”
Carroll said. “We haven't heard from the MTA yet, but we have the public judgment on the
Number 7 extension’s chance of finishing on time. Again: No.”
Control of the Schools
New York City voters approve 57 – 30 percent of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s handling
of public schools and say 56 – 24 percent that the Mayor’s takeover of the schools has been a
success. These are Bloomberg’s highest scores on both questions.
Voters say 57 – 30 percent that the Mayor should maintain control of the public schools,
also the strongest support so far. Support ranges from 50 – 33 percent in Brooklyn to 65 – 24
percent in Manhattan. Black voters back mayoral control 48 – 39 percent, while white voters
back Bloomberg’s bid 63 – 25 percent and Hispanic voters back the Mayor 61 – 30 percent.
“The biggest opponents of mayoral control of the schools are state senators from
Manhattan and Brooklyn, but two-thirds of Manhattan voters and more than 50 percent of
Brooklyn voters say let the Mayor do it,” Carroll said.
From July 21 – 27, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,290 New York City registered
voters, with a margin of error of +/- 2.7 percentage points.
The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public
opinion surveys in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio and
nationwide as a public service and for research.
For more data or RSS feed – http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml,
or call (203) 582-5201.

2
23. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Michael Bloomberg is handling the public
schools?

HvKids
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp PubSch

Approve 57% 62% 58% 58% 59% 55% 59% 55%

Disapprove 30 21 31 29 26 35 30 39
DK/NA 13 17 11 13 15 10 11 6

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Approve 62% 49% 65% 58% 50% 64% 52%

Disapprove 30 34 24 28 40 27 32
DK/NA 8 17 12 14 10 9 16

TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Michael Bloomberg is handling the public
schools?

APPROVE....... DIS..
High Low High
Jul 29 Jun 17 Mar 24 Feb 25 Jul 29 May 7 May 7
2009 2009 2009 2009 2008 2003 2003

Approve 57 51 47 50 57 35 35
Disapprove 30 37 40 39 30 52 52
DK/NA 13 12 13 11 13 12 12

24. Do you think Mayor Bloomberg's take-over of the public schools has been a success or
failure?

HvKids
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp PubSch

Success 56% 55% 57% 57% 58% 54% 57% 56%

Failure 24 22 24 24 21 27 25 33
DK/NA 20 24 19 19 21 20 18 11

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Success 58% 48% 62% 60% 49% 62% 51%

Failure 27 25 20 22 35 22 26
DK/NA 15 27 18 18 16 16 23

TREND: Do you think Mayor Bloomberg's take-over of the public schools has been a success
or failure?

SUCCESS.......
High Low
Jul 29 Jun 17 Mar 24 Feb 25 Jan 28 Jul 29 Mar 15
2009 2009 2009 2009 2009 2008 2007

Success 56 49 46 50 47 56 39
Failure 24 29 33 31 31 24 34
DK/NA 20 22 22 19 22 20 27

3
25. Mayoral control of the public schools expires this year, unless the state legislature
renews it. Do you think mayoral control of the public schools should continue or not?

HvKids
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp PubSch

Continue 57% 62% 56% 61% 63% 48% 61% 52%

Stop 30 24 32 29 25 39 30 38
DK/NA 12 14 12 10 12 13 9 10

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Continue 61% 50% 65% 57% 54% 64% 52%

Stop 33 33 24 30 36 28 32
DK/NA 6 16 11 13 10 8 16

TREND: Mayoral control of the public schools expires this year, unless the state
legislature renews it. Do you think mayoral control of the public schools should
continue or not?

Jul 29 Jun 17 Mar 24 Feb 25 Jan 28

2009 2009 2009 2009 2009

Continue 57 56 52 55 56
Stop 30 32 37 35 34
DK/NA 12 12 12 9 10

26. How would you rate the quality of subway service in New York City - excellent, good,
not so good, or poor?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Excellent 5% 8% 4% 5% 7% 3% 4% 5%
Good 47 46 47 51 55 41 37 48
Not so good 26 23 27 24 22 33 26 28
Poor 14 9 15 12 6 17 28 17
DK/NA 8 14 6 8 10 7 5 1

Sbway
Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom UsersQ31

Excellent 2% 6% 5% 5% 6% 5% 5% 6%
Good 41 45 52 51 47 53 43 47
Not so good 28 28 24 24 19 23 27 28
Poor 19 16 13 11 10 13 15 19
DK/NA 9 5 6 9 18 6 9 -

4
27. How would you rate the quality of bus service in New York City - excellent, good, not
so good, or poor?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Excellent 6% 4% 7% 6% 7% 6% 7% 7%
Good 50 53 51 50 52 48 44 49
Not so good 22 21 23 18 20 26 25 26
Poor 10 5 10 12 6 13 16 12
DK/NA 11 17 9 14 14 7 8 6

Bus
Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom UsersQ31

Excellent 7% 4% 9% 7% 4% 7% 6% 8%
Good 52 47 53 53 42 51 50 49
Not so good 20 25 22 18 28 19 24 28
Poor 13 11 8 10 10 10 10 13
DK/NA 8 14 8 11 17 13 10 1

28. How would you rate the quality of Long Island Railroad and Metro North commuter train
service in New York City - excellent, good, not so good, or poor? (* n less than 75,
additional caution should be taken when interpreting the findings of this group because
of the large margin of error.)
PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Excellent 6% 5% 6% 7% 6% 7% 10% 7%
Good 38 37 43 33 37 40 40 42
Not so good 7 8 6 9 7 6 10 8
Poor 2 1 2 3 2 2 3 3
DK/NA 46 49 44 48 48 44 37 41

Rail*
Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom UsersQ31

Excellent 7% 6% 5% 9% 1% 7% 6% 17%
Good 39 28 48 44 28 38 39 40
Not so good 4 8 7 8 7 8 6 14
Poor 2 2 2 3 - 3 2 2
DK/NA 47 56 37 37 65 44 48 27

29. Compared to 5 years ago, do you think transit service in New York City has gotten
better, worse, or stayed about the same?
PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Better 25% 25% 24% 27% 25% 24% 27% 24%

Worse 20 13 21 21 16 23 22 24
Stayed about same 50 53 50 45 53 46 49 49
DK/NA 5 9 4 7 6 7 1 2

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Better 21% 19% 27% 32% 25% 26% 23%

Worse 24 21 19 19 14 19 21
Stayed about same 47 55 50 44 52 50 49
DK/NA 7 5 4 5 9 4 6

5
30. (If Worse q29) Who do you blame more - the MTA or the state legislature?

WORSE Q29......
PubTrnst
Tot UsersQ31

MTA 56% 59%

Legislature 21 19
BOTH EQUALLY(VOL) 17 16
DK/NA 6 7

31. How do you get to work? Do you take a subway, bus, commuter train or drive?

Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp

Subway 25% 15% 27% 22% 27% 18% 25%

Bus 11 9 12 10 7 12 20
Commuter train 6 3 7 5 3 7 10
Drive 23 40 18 27 23 28 16
SUBWAY&BUS(VOL) 14 8 17 14 11 19 15
DK/NA 21 25 20 23 29 16 13

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Subway 15% 31% 35% 19% 7% 28% 23%

Bus 14 8 13 9 12 10 11
Commuter train 4 6 6 6 6 6 5
Drive 32 20 10 31 38 27 20
SUBWAY&BUS(VOL) 17 15 13 14 11 12 16
DK/NA 18 21 23 21 27 18 24

32. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has raised fares for subways, buses and
commuter trains. Do you think this was justified or not justified?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Justified 26% 27% 26% 25% 38% 14% 13% 25%

Not justified 70 66 71 70 57 81 83 71
DK/NA 4 7 3 6 5 5 4 4

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Justified 18% 21% 33% 29% 28% 31% 22%

Not justified 77 74 61 69 70 66 73
DK/NA 6 5 6 2 2 4 5

33. In order to limit future fare increases, would you support or oppose placing tolls on
the free East River bridges?
PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Support 27% 19% 30% 26% 37% 16% 21% 32%

Oppose 67 78 63 68 58 76 73 62
DK/NA 6 4 7 6 4 8 6 7

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Support 19% 24% 43% 19% 36% 26% 28%

Oppose 77 69 53 74 56 70 64
DK/NA 4 7 4 7 9 4 8

6
34. In order to limit future fare increases, would you support or oppose congestion
pricing, where car and truck drivers are charged a fee for entering certain areas of
Manhattan?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Support 40% 23% 43% 44% 43% 31% 40% 46%

Oppose 55 72 52 53 52 62 56 50
DK/NA 5 5 5 4 5 7 3 4

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Support 29% 38% 55% 36% 37% 41% 39%

Oppose 67 56 42 59 55 56 54
DK/NA 4 5 3 5 8 3 7

35. How would you rate the job the MTA does in letting people know about service
interruptions - excellent, good, not so good, or poor?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Excellent 5% 8% 5% 3% 5% 5% 6% 6%
Good 36 40 36 31 37 35 35 39
Not so good 33 30 34 37 34 32 32 31
Poor 21 10 21 23 18 22 25 23
DK/NA 5 11 4 6 7 5 2 1

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Excellent 3% 5% 5% 6% 7% 7% 3%
Good 36 40 30 37 35 39 33
Not so good 34 29 38 32 31 29 36
Poor 22 22 23 19 14 20 22
DK/NA 5 5 4 6 13 5 6

36. How confident are you that the 2nd Avenue subway line will be completed on time -
very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident or not confident at all?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Very confident 2% 2% 2% 2% 1% 3% 3% 3%
Smwht confident 12 9 14 13 9 13 19 13
Not too confident 33 35 33 30 33 32 35 32
Not confident at all 45 43 44 48 51 41 39 46
DK/NA 8 11 6 8 6 11 4 6

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Very confident 2% 2% 2% 2% 4% 4% 1%
Smwht confident 15 13 11 10 12 12 12
Not too confident 29 34 31 35 32 30 35
Not confident at all 46 41 51 44 41 47 44
DK/NA 8 10 4 8 12 7 9

7
37. How confident are you that the Number 7 subway line extension will be completed on
time - very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident or not confident at all?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Very confident 3% 4% 3% 3% 2% 4% 5% 4%
Smwht confident 21 14 23 18 18 21 27 21
Not too confident 32 33 31 32 32 30 32 31
Not confident at all 32 31 32 32 35 30 27 33
DK/NA 13 18 11 13 14 15 9 11

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Very confident 3% 2% 3% 4% 3% 5% 1%
Smwht confident 20 21 17 23 23 20 21
Not too confident 33 33 30 31 29 32 31
Not confident at all 32 30 37 29 27 32 31
DK/NA 12 14 13 12 19 11 15

38. As you may know, New York City recently banned cars, trucks and buses on Broadway
from Times Square to Herald Square, making that section of Broadway a pedestrian mall.
Do you think this was a good idea or a bad idea?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Good idea 58% 43% 62% 58% 58% 57% 62% 62%
Bad idea 34 47 31 35 35 34 31 31
DK/NA 8 10 7 7 8 9 7 7

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Good idea 50% 58% 66% 56% 59% 60% 57%

Bad idea 44 32 27 35 36 34 33
DK/NA 6 9 8 9 6 6 10

39. Do you think New York City should create more such pedestrian malls around the city
or not?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Yes 48% 29% 52% 50% 49% 47% 49% 50%

No 46 63 43 43 45 47 46 46
DK/NA 6 8 5 7 6 6 5 5

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Yes 45% 47% 56% 43% 46% 49% 47%

No 48 45 39 52 48 44 48
DK/NA 6 8 5 5 6 7 6

8
40. Would you like a pedestrian mall in your neighborhood?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Yes 38% 28% 42% 36% 39% 35% 42% 42%

No 57 68 53 61 57 59 52 55
DK/NA 5 4 5 3 4 5 6 3

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Yes 38% 40% 46% 31% 29% 38% 38%

No 57 56 51 64 63 59 56
DK/NA 5 4 4 4 8 3 6

41. Have you spent any time on the Broadway pedestrian mall?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

Yes 44% 40% 45% 43% 42% 41% 48% 54%

No 55 60 54 56 57 58 50 45
DK/NA 1 1 1 - - 1 2 1

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

Yes 38% 41% 57% 41% 41% 47% 42%

No 62 58 43 58 57 53 57
DK/NA 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

42. Which comes closer to your point of view - closing Broadway was a good way to reduce
the number of cars in the area and give people more room to walk around, or, closing
Broadway was a waste of tax dollars and creates more traffic?

PubTrnst
Tot Rep Dem Ind Wht Blk Hisp UsersQ31

More room 58% 43% 63% 55% 58% 59% 56% 62%
Waste of taxes 35 49 31 37 36 34 35 33
DK/NA 7 8 6 7 7 7 9 6

Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl Men Wom

More room 51% 57% 65% 58% 58% 61% 56%

Waste of taxes 42 37 28 35 34 34 36
DK/NA 7 6 7 7 8 6 8