Thoughtful Thursday – Parking and the Economy

parkI’m usually at the train station between 5:40 and 5:50 so I can catch a train to work. Ungodly hours, I know, but even at that hour, there would only be a few spots left to park.

Not so anymore. In the past few months, I and the rest of my fellow train pals have noticed an ever-increasing number of empty spots. In addition, the one train which was always packed now regularly has empty seats.

What should I think about that? There’s always a drop-off in early June as schools have let out and students and teachers take the summer off. But it’s not early June and this trend has been growing for some time.

My train pals are saying that it’s on account of layoffs and sadly I don’t think that they are mistaken. With many New York businesses feeling the impact of the financial sector meltdown, retail store closings and the economy lagging, I suspect that there are people who are either being furloughed or laid off.

Have you noticed any such signs in your neighborhood?