Originally Posted by
PreparednessMan
....The real question is, does anyone know if there's such a thing as a place to rip the box apart & assemble the bike there? That will fly in a lot of places, but will it fly in the New York Port Authority bus Terminal? Will a transit cop or a Port Authority cop taser me, beat me down & throw me in jail for violating some obscure but necessary anti terrorism law? ....
There's no place where you'd "officially" be allowed to unpack and assemble your bike, but cops in NYC are very aware of practicalities. If they object, they will not arrest or even threaten arrest, but will tell you that you can't work on your bike there, and insist you take it outside.
Then it's a question of how smoothly you can explain the situation and charm your way into some grace for a few minutes while you quickly do the least necessary before taking it outside to finish the job.
IMO, the best place to try to do this would be at the Greyhound freight counter down on the lower level, where if chased off, you can finish just outside the door. The real problem may be how to properly dispose of the carton when finished, and you might ask Greyhound if you can break it down and dispose of it with them.
So, think about the practicalities, get the basic reassemble down to a few minutes, and pack your biggest smile, then go for it. Part of this will translate into where you're planning to go once you leave the terminal. If visiting a friend in the city, maybe you can take the subway out to them, or they can pick you up, or at least meet you and keep you company (stand guard) while you get the bike together, then you can take the subway together (bikes are allowed on NYC subways).