Metro North, LIRR, and NJ Transit ban alcohol for Santacon weekend

It’s the most horrible time of the year: Santacon is coming this weekend. On the plus side, Santacon won’t haunt many Brooklyn residents this weekend – the event will mostly stick to Midtown and the East Village. So no, this Saturday December 8 isn’t a good time to spend time above near, around, above, or below 14th Street. Consider yourselves warned.

But maybe, the dreaded and rowdy Santacon won’t be completely horrid this year. Or will it? As reported in Gothamist, Metro North, Long Island Railroad, and New Jersey Transit decided to issue alcohol bans for Saturday December 8 and Sunday December 9. NJ Transit took the ban a step further – “NJ Transit went so far as to ban all beverages across all transportation modes, buses and light rails included, because there is no better mask for Jaeger shots than a can of Red Bull.” In short, they’re not messing around.

In addition to this bans, the MTA has also banned alcohol for the past five years. As noted in Gothamist: “…the MTA has banned alcohol consumption on the train lines that ferry the Santa squalls in and out of Manhattan. Whether or not the hordes of blasted yuletide bar crawlers can be reined in remains a point of contention, but the MTA promises to meet force with force.” There will also be police force stationed near and around the Santacon locations, such as Penn Station, Grand Central Terminal and other spots.

As for your plans on December 8? We recommended staying in Brooklyn and supporting local businesses and avoiding anything Santacon-related because it’s just terrible and tacky as hell. And if you do get stuck at Santacon in the wild, here’s how to survive the ordeal. Those years of watching zombie flicks might serve you well.

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