Status of the NYC Safe Zone

The NYC Safe Zone is the first resettlement foothold in the New York City metro area. While smaller settlements in the ruins and remnants of cities and towns across the coast still exist, many places remain abandoned. Albany New York is the next nearest metropolitan city in New York State, with the majority of outlying cities possessing skeleton populations or considered uninhabitable or abandoned entirely.

This page covers the current situation of New York City, including major geographical changes and simple information that any citizen of NYC would know at any given time. Mind you that the information here is presented in an In-Character manner as to what the general populace of NYC would know — some of it may not be the actual facts but generally perceived 'truths'.

Major Figures

Mayor
short_icon.gif Mayor Caroline Short, currently serving her first term. Short was appointed by emergency mandate in 2015. The first Safe Zone election will be held in 2020.
Military Police Major
olson_icon.gif Major Matthew Olson is the commander of the 91st Military Police Battalion based out of Miller Airfield on Staten Island.
Police Commissioner
donovan_icon.gif Marcus Donovan is the Commissioner of the NYPD, which is now based out of The Watchtower.

Current Events

There are no ongoing events at this time.

Law Enforcement

NYPD

Law in the NYC Safe Zone is now performed by the newly-reinstated NYPD. The NYPD has multiple precincts across the Safe Zone and one global crime-solving task force called SCOUT that operates in all jurisdictions, but whose authority does not extend beyond the perimeter of the Safe Zone. The NYPD response to all criminal activity and is much better equipped to handle the day-to-day crime and offenses of Safe Zone life. They are supported by Wolfhound whose membership acts as a replacement for SWAT during dangerous engagements. For more information, see the NYPD's page.

Military Police

Law Enforcement in the NYC Safe Zone was once handled by a division of the 91st Military Police Battalion from Fort Drum in western New York State. Now the Military Police patrol the fringes beyond the Safe Zone including Manhattan Exclusion Zone, the Ruins of the Bronx, the Ruins of Queens as well as their main operation target Staten Island. The military police primarily respond to major crimes only; assault, large destruction of property, murder. The Military Police are also attempting to crack down on smuggling and trafficking, and since they are no longer spread so thin they are performing additional searches on vehicles entering and exiting the Safe Zone. Furthermore, the scrutiny the Military police are under from UN Human Rights observers means they tend to police with a light touch. Suspects are given numerous warnings and rarely are minor infractions filed.

News and Media

Newspaper

  • Safe Zone Siren: The Safe Zone Siren is currently the only physical newspaper written and published in the Safe Zone. It is little more than a gossip rag, though Editor-in-Chief Quentin Frady insists it is a reputable magazine. The Safe Zone Siren's offices are located in Ferrymen's Bay.
  • New York Times: Following the Civil War, the office of the New York Times moved to Albany and is still in printed circulation. It is the only newspaper that receives delivery to the Safe Zone, as most print media outlets are struggling in the post-war economy.

Television Broadcasting

  • None: The Safe Zone does not have a dedicated television broadcasting center. The infrastructure for television broadcasts was largely destroyed during the Civil War, including ground communications and cable network infrastructure. Broadcast transmissions over analog airwaves (there was never a switch from analog to digital broadcasting in the String-Theory universe) also is largely barren. Satellite television is exceedingly expensive in areas where available and primary access to television is via the internet, where possible.
  • Regional News: Regional television from Albany and surrounding cities like Rochester can be received on analog broadcast frequencies. (In the String Theory universe there was never a national adoption of digital television broadcast standards).
  • Internet Streaming: Most international or national news is instead received through streaming services available through the growing proliferation of internet within the Safe Zone.

Radio Broadcasting

  • WSZR: The WSZR station is the only local radio station in the NYC Safe Zone. Radio broadcasts from neighboring cities such as Rochester and Albany can be received with the normal limitations for analog radio broadcasts. Though may major radio stations and affiliates were knocked off the air during the war.
  • Pirate Radio: Pirate radio stations are common across the Safe Zone, popping up for a few days and then disappearing. Some suspect that these radio stations may relay coded messages for unknown groups.

Supplies and Transportation

Entry and Exit

Entry and Exit into the Safe Zone is currently normal. Please see here for detailed information.

Public Transportation

Bus Routes

Yamagato Industries donated a fleet of 12 electric busses to the Safe Zone in 2016. These vehicles are able to recharge within Yamagato Park and are owned by the State of New York, but are permitted to travel in and out of Yamagato Park as part of a public transportation initiative. Bus fare is subsidized by Yamagato Industries, and travelers who can show a Residency card for the Safe Zone may ride for free. Non-resident fare rates are $3 per mile of route.

All 12 bus routes begin and end in Yamagato Park at 2630 Benson Ave, site of the Yamagato Industries Public Transit building, formerly the Lafayette Education Campus.

The routes spread out through the Safe Zone, with service to all regions except Park Slope.

Ride Share

The Safe Zone has a handful of ride share businesses which function like taxi service, though each vehicle is privately owned and operated and must be registered as a private business with the city. These ride share businesses rely little on phone call order, and instead congregate in high-traffic areas of the Safe Zone where bus routes do not frequently travel. These services typically charge $10 per mile, but offer door-to-door service. Some ride share operators will charge more for delivery to certain neighborhoods in off hours, like Jackson Heights at night, due to safety concerns. None of these businesses operate outside of the protective perimeter of the Safe Zone.

Train

The Safe Zone has a newly revitalized rail infrastructure. The largest train station in the Safe Zone is the Bay Ridge Terminal, while multiple smaller stations exist throughout the city.

Food

Food shortages are thankfully rare in the contemporary Safe Zone, thanks to numerous improvements in light of the 2018 shortages.

Fuel

  • Gasoline: Gasoline is at a premium in the Safe Zone due to national shortages. Privately-owned gas stations are not operational in the Safe Zone, at-present, and fuel is sold directly through government-owned suppliers at the Red Hook Market and Floyd Bennet Airfield. Gasoline is currently priced at $13.22 per gallon.
  • Oil: Oil is currently priced at $337.04 per barrel, making oil heat prohibitively expensive in the Safe Zone. Yamagato Industries has softened the blow on private consumers by paying some of the cost for locally-used heating oil, lowering the price to reasonable levels for residences found within the Safe Zone.

Infrastructure Status

Infrastructure Advisories
Reconstruction Yamagato Industries is laboring across the Safe Zone via contracted construction workers. Buildings are being demolished and refurbished, streets are being torn up and repaved, new buildings are being constructed. If you're in the Safe Zone, there's likely construction happening somewhere nearby.

Power

Thanks to the completion of the Ravenswood Generating Station there are no longer rolling blackouts throughout the Safe Zone and much of the city's electrical infrastructure has been dramatically improved over the years. However, some underdeveloped regions still suffer from power difficulties as noted below.

Power Availability Notes
Neighborhood Blackout Schedules Notes
Manhattan Exclusion Zone No Power Grid
Ruins of Staten Island No Power Grid
Ruins of Queens No Power Grid

Water

Water in the Safe Zone is currently supplied by means of groundwater wells, relying upon a system that dates back to the late 1800s. There is some concern that demand is becoming greater than the underlying aquifers can support; as of yet, no adverse effects have been reported.

Running water is only pervasively available in the neighborhoods that are furthest along in renovation. Many others are patchworks in terms of water supply, with some blocks having water piped in and others not. In areas where pipe infrastructure has not been restored, there is typically a quarter-mile grid of communal pump stations, all of which are fitted with unpowered hand pumps. Several entrepreneurs have established water delivery services and do very well for themselves on providing that convenience to others.

Water Supply Status
Neighborhood Water Availability Notes
Bay Ridge Running Water
Brighton Beach Running Water
Elmhurst Some Running Water Running water in western half; pumps elsewhere.
Ferrymen's Bay Some Running Water Running water in the south; pumps elsewhere.
Jackson Heights Running Water
Park Slope No Water
Phoenix Heights Some Running Water Running water in western half; pumps elsewhere.
Red Hook Running Water
Roosevelt Island Running Water
Sheepshead Bay Running Water
Staten Island Some Running Water Running water in northern half; pumps elsewhere.
Williamsburg Running Water
Yamagato Park Running Water
Additional Areas
Governor's Island Running Water
Liberty Island Running Water
Manhattan Exclusion Zone No Water
Ruins of Queens No Water

Natural Gas

Gas service is available only in the most fully-restored neighborhoods (cf. Bay Ridge, Red Hook, Williamsburg, and the developed portions of Jackson Heights). It is partially implemented elsewhere.

Phone and Internet Service

Traditional coverage

Landline connectivity (telephone and DSL internet) is currently available in Bay Ridge, Red Hook, Elmhurst, Roosevelt Island, Sheepshead Bay, Yamagato Park and within the developed regions of Jackson Heights (primarily western Jackson Heights) and Rikers Island.

Traditional cell service is extremely limited within the Safe Zone. Due to demand being greater than the local towers can service, calls frequently fail to connect, or are dropped. Text messages are often preferred as they demand few system resources and thus are quickly processed, slipping through between others' calls. By the same token, data services provided through the cell tower are extremely limited. Web browsing and map queries are feasible, streaming audio or video requires the files be small, and anything that depends on a continuous connection is likely to be dropped after a short period.

Certain public facilities have local cell service within the building and on the sidewalk immediately outside. These include:

Yamagato Park has its own cell tower with more consistent coverage, but its service is only accessible by Yamagato employees and residents. Access may be extended to guests during public events as a courtesy.

Additionally, residents in better-restored neighborhoods (Bay Ridge, Red Hook, Williamsburg) may contract with Yamagato to have local cell service installed for their block. The feasibility of such a deal depends on how well-restored the infrastructure is on their specific street, and all residents on the block must agree to an ongoing service contract, which is not cheap.

Unique offerings

As of November 2018, two types of unique cell coverage are available for purchase by Safe Zone residents.

Yamagato Industries lead with the introduction of GhostNet, a drone-provided service network that currently consistently services most of the Safe Zone. With a large fleet meticulously maintained by the Yamagato providers, the GhostNet regularly shifts to accommodate the needs of the many. This being said, the fleet does not cover all areas of the Safe Zone at any given point. Areas that are population-dense with other GhostNet users are the most likely to receive service, leaving lesser-occupied zones with unreliable (and sometimes no) coverage.

Alcatel-Lucent once offered the lightRadio internet service as an alternative, but following the collapse of their parent company Praxis Heavy Industries patents and rights were sold to moved to Yamagato Industries who ceased production in favor of broader GhostNet support.

Ongoing Construction

Every region of the Safe Zone is undergoing major reconstruction and renovation. The majority of reconstruction is handled by the Kajima Corporation, a subsidiary of Yamagato Industries. The areas of Jackson Heights, Phoenix Heights, and Ferrymen's Bay have the most prolific construction efforts currently ongoing. Construction vehicles and worksites are a constant presence, roads are often torn up to access sewage, power, and water lines.

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