Ridership down at new WTC train station

NEW YORK, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- The World Trade Center train station rebuilt in New York City after it was destroyed on Sept. 11, 2001, has one-third of the riders it had before.

About 24,000 people a day passed through the turnstiles of the newly opened temporary station at Ground Zero this month compared to an average of 67,000 daily commuters that boarded at the old station before the attacks, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

The lower ridership is an indication that Lower Manhattan is still suffering from the job losses that occurred following the terrorist attacks, Port Authority spokesman Steve Coleman, told the New York Post.

"It reflects the 60,000 fewer jobs that are downtown," said Julie Menin, president of Wall Street Rising, a group that formed after Sept. 11, 2001, to help revitalize Lower Manhattan.

"That's certainly having an impact on ridership, but those numbers are going to increase as more businesses locate downtown."