(rshsdepot) Metro-North wages war on pigeons at stations

[Bernie Wagenblast <brwagenblast_@_comcast.net>]

Metro-North wages war on pigeons
By CAREN HALBFINGER
THE JOURNAL NEWS

To combat the perennial problem of pigeon waste, Metro-North Railroad plans
to spend the next year installing devices designed to prod the pesky birds
from their perches at various stations. The railroad's pigeon-proofing
program involves installing strips of metal spikes, low-voltage tinglers,
netting, tacky strips and whirling daddy longlegs-like contraptions. The
spikes line cornices and ledges where rows of pigeons make easy targets of
railroad passengers and the ground below. The spiderlike devices are
attached to the tops of light fixtures, also a favorite place for the birds
to roost, judging by the crusty white droppings that coat the fixtures'
sides at the New Rochelle train station. The whirling motion of the devices'
metal legs makes the fixtures less hospitable landing pads. Through trial
and error, Metro-North dropped one method - the sound of screeching diurnal
hawks. It was effective, but also disturbed customers and neighbors,
railroad spokesman Dan Brucker said. Now, it's used only infrequently in
places where no one is apt to be bothered. Passengers welcomed the
railroad's attempt to control the birds. "The pigeons are disgusting,''
Fordyce Pye said as he made his way onto the southbound platform at New
Rochelle, where at least a dozen pigeons guarded their turf. "They are all
over the station. You have to look up.'' The railroad first started using
pigeon-control methods in 1999, when it began trying to roust pigeons at the
Yonkers train station with low-voltage wires that deliver a jolt of 8.5
amperes. When the tingler proved to help keep the front of the building
clean, the railroad committed to spending up to $165,000 to pigeon-proof 25
stations. About $75,000 has been spent at the Botanical Gardens, White
Plains, Crestwood, Fleetwood, Yonkers and Scarsdale stations. After New
Rochelle, the railroad plans to shoo the pigeons away from the Mount Vernon
West, Hartsdale, Tuckahoe, Mount Kisco and Tarrytown stations, spending
$90,000 more. Of course, the pigeons don't actually disappear; they just
relocate. So the pigeon-proofing is really a form of urban renewal for
birds, encouraging the flock to settle for less valuable real estate. "All
they do is go to a different part of the station or onto a different
structure,'' Brucker said. "Our goal is to keep them out of bombing range.''
Rosa Figueroa of Yonkers said that after Metro-North finished relocating the
birds, she hoped the railroad would clean off the residue they left behind.
"In the summer, it smells,'' she said. Brucker said the railroad would send
crews to power-wash the stations. At New Rochelle, however, it appears that
the birds have already found a few loopholes. Signs left without spikes
provided a prime target, as did lights and one side of the station.
Pigeon-proofing will continue there, Brucker said, but the city of New
Rochelle is responsible for keeping the station house pigeon-free, he said.
Richard Haber, a Larchmont resident who was waiting for a train in New
Rochelle, said pigeons weren't a problem at the station where he lives.
"Larchmont wouldn't allow them,'' cracked Marjorie Madfis of White Plains,
who was seated beside Haber. "Sparrows, maybe.''
Send e-mail to Caren Halbfinger


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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org

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