WNYC News

New York, NY —

Things were tense just before yesterday's City Council meeting as the former Chief of Staff for Councilman Charles Barron was escorted out of council chambers by police.

REPORTER: Council Speaker Christine Quinn says Viola Plummer had no right to be there since she was fired for ...

New York, NY —

The MTA may automatically raise subway and bus fares, and some tolls every two years, starting next year. That's when the agency wants to increase fare and toll revenues by 6.5%.

REPORTER: Though the MTA says it has the money this year to plug an $800 ...

New York, NY —

Hundreds of residents of a Manhattan apartment building are waiting to find out when they can go back home. They were forced to evacuate after a retaining wall at a neighboring construction site collapsed last night. No injuries have been reported.

REPORTER: A city Office of ...

New York, NY —

New York Senator Joe Bruno wants another investigation into the possible misuse of state police by Governor Spitzer. Bruno says because two of the governor's top aides have refused to testify under oath, greater doubt has been cast on a possible conspiracy against him.

BRUNO: This ...

New York, NY —

The creation of a city ID card has the support of twenty council members. The legislation was officially introduced yesterday. The card would make it possible for illegal immigrants to open bank accounts and access certain services, since they don't qualify for state issued ID's ...

New York, NY —

Con Edison crews have been working around the clock since last week's steam pipe explosion in midtown. Cleanup efforts include washing and vacuuming the water around the affected area. A spokesperson for the utility says it's unclear when the site will be safe enough for ...

New York, NY —

Rumors of another subway and bus fare hike are heating up. Today, the MTA board will discuss its preliminary budget for the next 4 years. An increase is widely expected due to an anticipated deficit of $800 million in 2008.

REPORTER: The base fare of $2 ...

New York, NY —

New York City's controversial ban of cell phones in schools might be changed. The City Council is expected to vote today on new legislation that would prevent schools from taking away the phones as long as they are only used while the student is going ...

New York, NY —

A group representing more than 8,000 taxi drivers has threatened to strike if the city moves forward with the installation of GPS systems in cabs.

REPORTER: The Taxi Workers Alliance has opposed the plan since its inception. Now, it says it will strike by September if ...

New York, NY —

While some businesses in the area around last week's steam pipe explosion have reopened their doors still others remain closed. They're dealing with broken windows, water damage, and lost foot traffic.

REPORTER: The 56-story Chanin Building was closed off to tenants yesterday and will be closed ...

New York, NY —

Governor Eliot Spitzer is in Buffalo this morning, one day after a major shake-up within his own office. The governor has suspended one top aide and demoted another after Attorney General Cuomo said they had used the state police to gather information on trips taken ...

New York, NY —

The city's 1,400 principals are getting new booklets explaining the state requirements for arts education. These reminders come as principals switch to a new budget system, which no longer earmarks about $65 for arts education for each child but instead gives them more flexibility to ...

New York, NY —

Experts predict that the economic damage from last week's steam pipe explosion in midtown Manhattan could reach into the tens of millions of dollars. The blast closed about 125 street-level shops and sent debris through the windows of some of the city's most expensive real ...

New York, NY —

Governor Spitzer suspended a top aide and will reassign another following a state attorney general's report that said staff members conspired to release politically damaging information about Republican Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno's use of state aircraft.

Spitzer suspended indefinitely without pay his communications director, Darren ...

New York, NY —

Conductor James Levine canceled his weekend appearances at the Verbier Festival, citing health problems. In a statement on the festival's website, he said his doctors have advised him not to travel, but to "stay calm and collect my energies."

REPORTER: Levine is the music director of ...

New York, NY —

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority says weekday subway ridership is up 4.5% from the same time last year and the number of people taking the subway on the weekends has jumped up over 6%.

In May, 138 million trips were taken on the subway which is the ...

New York, NY —

The city's Department of Small Business Services will be offering loans of up to $10,000 to business affected by last week's steam pipe explosion. The loans will be zero interest loans, and the city will not require repayment for the first six months.

REPORTER: Robert Walsh ...

New York, NY —

One in four New Yorkers, and nearly half of Asian New Yorkers, have elevated mercury levels in their blood and the city's Health Department says its survey shows the higher levels are closely related to fish consumption.

REPORTER: Health Department official Dan Kass says the levels ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Bloomberg says it will take at least the rest of this week for Con Edison to repair the crater and fix the pavement, following last week's steam pipe explosion.

REPORTER: The city has reopened most of the area by now, except for about a block ...

New York, NY —

The police department's newest recruits are learning about some of the NYPD's lowest moments. The hope is that history won't repeat itself. A four day multicultural immersion course includes case studies of Amadou Diallo's death and the torture of Abner Louima.

REPORTER: Yesterday at the Apollo ...