Some B Service to Go All-Local for 2 Years

Starting in September B train service north of Kings Highway in Brooklyn will go strictly local for two years. MTA says this is needed for a major overhaul of five stations on the line, and will add no more than seven minutes to commutes. Shuttle buses will be availed on the weekends at some stations. Ned Berke of Sheepshead Bites is pissed: "Couldn't they divide the work up and do it station by station, or a couple of stations at a time -- instead of the whole stretch?" He says "Thirty-minute service to midtown Manhattan makes our area a great selling point," which the delay will blemish. A commenter disagrees: "An additional seven minutes is not going to make most people go ballistic... at the end of all this, the enhanced stations will only be a continued enticement..." Second Avenue Sagas shrugs: "Since I get on at Seventh Ave., I won't be too impacted by the change. My B train in the morning can't really be more crowded than it already is."