New Yorkers waited for hours in south Brooklyn to buy old subway signs, plastic seats and other items removed from the city's transit system at an annual sale organised by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) on Sunday.
asserted
Yorkers → wait → Sunday
The two-day sale connected to New York's subway system offered station signs, seats and MetroCards, many of which had once been part of everyday journeys across the city.
asserted
many → connect → city
According to a report by news agency AFP, around 4,000 people attend the event each year.
uncertain
people → accord → event
While some signs were priced at more than $1,000, the familiar orange subway seats were sold for around $900 each.
asserted
seats → price → 900
Among the shoppers was also filmmaker Spike Lee, who bought a metal sign bearing the name of Penn Station.
asserted
who → buy → Station
The sale took place at an open-air market in south Brooklyn, where visitors queued for hours before being allowed inside.
asserted
visitors → take → hours
To give everyone an opportunity to look through the available items, organisers limited each shopper to 45 minutes.
asserted
organisers → give → minutes
Once their time was over, other visitors could enter and search for what they wanted.
uncertain
they → enter → what
Although New York's subway is often criticised for being noisy, dirty and sometimes affected by flooding, many residents still have a strong connection with it.
asserted
residents → criticise → it
Old subway signs fetch hundreds
Among those searching for a particular item was 61-year-old Nori Juba, who managed to find a large sign displaying the name of Grand Central station.
asserted
who → fetch → station
The sign also carried the numbers of the subway lines he uses every day.
asserted
he → carry → lines
Juba acknowledged that the city's subway system has its problems.
asserted
system → acknowledge → problems
He described it as "old and creaky and it's outdated," but said those qualities were also part of its appeal.
asserted
qualities → describe → appeal
"But I think that's what makes it interesting.
asserted
it → think → ?
It smells like a subway station, but there's something about it that makes it real New York, one of a kind in the world," he said.
asserted
he → smell → world
Such items do not come cheaply.
asserted
items → come → ?
A medium-sized subway sign was priced at around $500, while larger signs could cost more than $1,000.
uncertain
signs → price → 1,000
The orange plastic seats commonly seen inside New York subway trains were selling for approximately $900 each.
asserted
seats → see → 900
Despite the prices, shoppers continued to turn up, hoping to find something associated with their favourite stations or daily journeys.
asserted
shoppers → continue → stations
Spike Lee buys Penn Station sign
The sale attracted filmmaker and New York resident Spike Lee, who was seen meeting shoppers and posing for photographs.
asserted
who → buy → photographs
Lee bought a metal sign marked Penn Station, a subway stop associated with Madison Square Garden, where his favourite basketball team, the New York Knicks, plays its home games.
asserted
team → buy → games
Filmmaker Spike Lee was among the shoppers, purchasing a Penn Station sign
Speaking to reporters, Lee recalled using the subway regularly while growing up in New York.
asserted
Lee → purchase → York
Although he no longer takes the train to major basketball games, he said he had always paid for his journeys.
asserted
he → take → journeys
He also joked about his record as a passenger, saying, "I never jumped the turnstile either.
asserted
I → joke → turnstile
Let the record state!"
asserted
record → let → ?
The story behind the MTA sale
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has sold old subway signs to collectors for years.
asserted
Authority → sell → years
However, the decision to allow members of the public to browse and purchase the items in person came more recently.
asserted
members → allow → person
Paul Dvoskin, the director responsible for the programme, said the idea developed around five years ago.
asserted
idea → say → programme
"Five years ago, an idea was born to hold a garage sale of sorts, and to let people just come in and purchase these items" in person, he explained.
asserted
he → bear → person
The organisers initially called the event a grab-and-go sale, but the response exceeded their expectations.
asserted
response → call → expectations
"We called it a grab-and-go back then, and it just ended up being significantly more popular than we ever thought it would be."
asserted
it → call → it
According to the organisers, the orange plastic subway seats have become particularly popular since they were introduced for sale last year.
uncertain
they → accord → sale
Another item attracting attention is the MetroCard, the small yellow magnetic card long associated with travel on New York's public transport system.
asserted
item → attract → system
The cards have recently been retired from use and were available at the sale for $6 each.
asserted
cards → retire → 6
Not everyone arrived with hundreds of dollars to spend.
asserted
everyone → arrive → dollars
Trinyce and Ijeoma, two women in their twenties, came with a combined budget of $70 and hoped to find something suitable for decorating their apartment.
asserted
Trinyce → come → apartment
For Ijeoma, the purpose was to bring something connected to the city into her home.
asserted
purpose → bring → home
"I'd like a piece of New York to represent my living space, like as a representation of me," she said.
asserted
she → like → me
The Aporia
