Between September and December 2008, the Straphanger’s Campaign sent 29 trained surveyors out to rate 100 subway cars on each of the 22 lines. Cars were judged based on the cleanliness of their floors and seats, following the Metropolitan Transit Authority-New York City Transit’s official standards for measuring subway cleanliness.
   If a car was “basically dirt free” or had the occasional ground-in spots but was relatively clean, it was rated clean. Cars were rated unclean if they had a “dingy floor” and “one or two sticky dry spots.” And those that received dunce caps were caught having “heavy dirt, opened or spilled food, hazardous conditions, sticky wet spots and seats unusable due to unclean conditions.” The survey did not rate litter.
   Overall, the number of clean subway cars improved since 2007, according to the survey, but there were some clear-cut winners and losers in the mix. The 7 train, with 84 percent of its cars rated clean, proved immaculate compared to the R train line, the worst-ranked with only 25 percent of its cars rated clean. The third best performing line, the J train, earned the most-improved award, leaping from 33 percent clean in 2007 to 78 percent in 2008. Meanwhile, the L train’s record worsened, from 88 percent clean last year to 32 percent this year.
   Could it be 7 train passengers are simply so smitten with all things Queens they don’t have time to consider creating a mess? While the elevated line gives riders front row access to everything from Five Pointz’ eye-popping graffiti murals to Flushing Meadows Corona Park, snow-covered rooftops in an Elmhurst winterscape and, of course, Citi Field, its success could also be attributed to it boasting its very own superintendent this year: a new line general manager named Lou Brusati.
   The MTA’s line general manager program was tested this year on two pilot lines, the 7 and L trains. The managers were in charge of overseeing every aspect of their line, from cleanliness to keeping on schedule, according to NYC Transit spokesperson Charles Seaton. Despite the L train’s declining rating, the transit authority considers the program a success.
   “Overall, they’ve had a tremendous impact,” Seaton said of the line managers.
   NYC Transit found the program so effective, it plans to add more managers to the letter lines this summer.
   The Straphangers Campaign lauded the use of line managers, but worried about next year’s results. The MTA’s 2010 budget contains cuts in cleaning staff, with car cleaners decreasing from 1,181 with 155 supervisors in 2009 to 1,138 in 2010 with 146 supervisors.
   “It is encouraging to find an increase in clean cars,” said Gene Russianoff, campaign attorney. “But we are very concerned that cuts in cleaners will result in dirtier cars.”