(rshsdepot) No more free, recycled newspapers at Grand Central Terminal

["Jim Dent" <james.dent_@_itochu.com>]

News is light today,
=46rom the Westchester County, NY Journal News...

No more free, recycled newspapers at Grand Central

By CAREN HALBFINGER
THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: Aug. 09, 2001)

NEW YORK =97 Heather Lacrosse reached through a four-inch-square hole in =
the
side of a newspaper recycling bin at Grand Central Terminal yesterday,
scraping her arm as she plucked out a free, but used copy of The New York
Times.

Had she been on a different platform, rescuing a discarded newspaper woul=
d
have been easier. But over the next few weeks, it's going to get even
harder.

The New York Times has started replacing 70 open-framework newspaper
recycling bins on Grand Central's platforms and in the terminal with cage=
s
intended to make it difficult to retrieve free papers, presumably sending
readers to the newsstand.

Fifty new bins have been installed with metal mesh sides and tall, covere=
d
tops capped by a narrow chimney slot where newspapers can be tossed in, b=
ut
not easily pulled out. Other bins will be retrofitted.

The cages have sparked 10 formal complaints from Metro-North Railroad
riders, much more informal grousing and a fair amount of ingenuity to thw=
art
their intended effect. Riders wishing to pass along their papers leave th=
em
folded on the cages' top. Those papers are quickly snapped up by thrifty
fellow commuters.

"I think that's a shame,'' said Christian Daviron of Rye. "If somebody wa=
nts
to read my newspaper, they're welcome to it. I have three newspapers a da=
y
delivered to my home. I'm only too happy for somebody else to benefit fro=
m
it.''

The Times first asked Metro-North to adapt its bins several year ago, but
the railroad didn't want to pay for the work, railroad spokesman Dan Bruc=
ker
said. Now that the Times is footing the bill for the retrofit and upkeep,
Metro-North agreed to the change. The Times would not release the cost, b=
ut
Brucker estimated it would exceed $50,000.

"How many papers do you have to sell to make up the cost?'' Brucker said.
"They have to not have them stolen and sell 80,000 papers at 75 cents api=
ece
to break even, the way I figure it.''

Toby Usnik, director of public relations for The New York Times Co., said
the purpose of the project "was to keep people from picking through the
recycle bins.'' He declined to provide information about the paper's
hoped-for financial gain.

Brucker conceded that the new bins held some advantages for the railroad,
even though they run the risk of alienating riders.

"We're replacing bins that were very difficult to empty with bins that wi=
ll
be much easier to empty,'' Brucker said. "The maintenance of them will be
completely covered, and they're always in need of some constant repair. T=
he
people who are selling newspapers in Grand Central are our tenants, and t=
hey
are paying rent that supports the transportation system, so it is logical=
 to
allow the Times, with definite perks for us, to limit the free papers.''

The railroad first started recycling papers in 1991, saving $413,000 in
garbage hauling fees. Almost immediately, it became the nation's largest
newsprint recycler, Brucker said, collecting five tons a day. That figure
quickly dropped to four tons, as riders took newspapers, and recycling, i=
nto
their own hands. The four-ton figure has held steady ever since, Brucker
said.

Vincent Macchia, a lawyer from Scarsdale, said he took a Wall Street Jour=
nal
=66rom one of the older, friendlier bins inside the terminal because he w=
as
too rushed to grab his usual two papers.

"I think most people don't do it as a regular thing,'' Macchia said. "I
don't know anyone who's bragged about how much they've saved by doing thi=
s.
I think it's a little chintzy of them to change these bins. I don't think=
 it
makes a difference to their bottom line.''

At least one rider thought the change was an improvement. Dan Lowe, who w=
as
heading to Mamaroneck from Philadelphia, said he thought the new bins hel=
ped
reduce litter. That didn't stop him, however, from helping himself to a U=
SA
Today, the New York Post and The New York Times.

"If I see one,'' he said, "I'll get it.''

------------------------------