BM5 via Woodhaven

IRTs been having quite a week. Didn't mention it yesterday, but the and were out twice between Manhattan and Brooklyn because of incidents at Borough Hall (1st instance because someone got struck by a train, 2nd for a track fire(?)). Then this from earlier: Multiple Changes The last stop on southbound trains will be Bowling Green or Brooklyn Bridge. The last stop on southbound will be Chambers St or Times Square. What's Happening? We are investigating why a train's emergency brakes activated near Franklin Av-Medgar Evers College. Expect delays for southbound service. Posted: 12/28/2022 04:57PM --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also not the first time issues happened during the week 53rd Street is closed: Multiple Changes trains are running with delays in both directions due to planned electrical maintenance in Queens. See below for additional service changes. Planned Work Reminder: trains are running on the line in both directions between Jackson Hts-Roosevelt Av and W 4 St-Wash Sq. There is no train service between Delancey St-Essex St and Forest Hills-71 Av. trains are running between Chambers St ( line) and Middle Village-Metropolitan Av. Additional Service Updates: The last stop on some southbound trains is 2 Av on the line. Some trains are running on the line between Court Sq and Bergen St. Some northbound trains are running express from Canal St to 59 St-Columbus Circle. Boarding Change: Board rerouted trains on the express platform at 34 St-Penn Station. You may experience a longer wait time for an train while rerouted trains share tracks. Listen for announcements to hear if your train will be rerouted. Service Alternatives: For service to/from Spring St, 23 St and 50 St take a southbound train. Posted: 12/28/2022 03:25PM --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Multiple Changes trains are running with delays in both directions after we addressed a signal problem near Lexington Av/59 St. Some southbound trains are running via the line from 34 St-Herald Sq to DeKalb Av to alleviate track congestion. You may wait longer for a train while rerouted trains share tracks. Posted: 12/28/2022 05:50PM --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part Suspended There is no service between Manhattan and Brooklyn while we investigate why a train's brakes activated on the Williamsburg Bridge. The last stop on Manhattan-bound trains is Marcy Av or Hewes St. The last stop on Jamaica-bound and Metropolitan Av-bound trains is Delancey St-Essex St. Expect delays in both directions. For alternate service between Manhattan and Brooklyn, consider nearby trains. Posted: 12/28/2022 06:29PM

Seems like this might be due to crew shortages. Some Reroutes Some trains are running along the in both directions between Times Sq-42 St and South Ferry. We're performing urgent track repair on the line between 137 St-City College and Dyckman St. Reminder: No service between 137 St-City College and Dyckman St until 5 AM for tonight's planned work. You can check out all of our planned work here: https://new.mta.info/alerts . Posted: 12/27/2022 11:12PM

Here's footage of the newer 2022 New Flyer Xcelsior XD40s operating in Brooklyn over the past few months. The XD40s are at FP, ENY, UP, and Flatbush Depots, and have pushed out many Orion VII NG Hybrids from Brooklyn. With ENY and GA also having received XDE40s (along with the fleet at other depots), Brooklyn's local fleet is now even more solidly Xcelsior. After all the NG Hybrids are pushed out, there will be still be a few non-Xcelsior holdouts, with less than 10 units in service not manufactured by New Flyer. Also It's been a while since I've regularly went out to Southern Brooklyn as well. The last time that was the case was when the Orion VII CNGs were being retired and the XN40s were new, which was years back. Since there's a lot of footage, there will be a second part coming out soon, but below is some of it. Enjoy! 2021 New Flyer XDE40 9577 on the at Ocean Avenue & Lincoln Road by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7931 on the B41 LIMITED at Flatbush Avenue & Avenue H by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7906 on the B25 at Cadman Plaza West & Tillary Street by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2021 New Flyer XDE40 9549 on the B48 at Lincoln Road & Flatbush Avenue by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7932 on the B41 LIMITED at Veterans Avenue & East 71st Street by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7877 on the Q54 at Williamsburg Bridge Plaza by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7906 on the B25 at Cadman Plaza West & Tillary Street by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7986 on the B1 at Brighton Beach & Coney Island Avenues by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7978 on the B74 at Mermaid Avenue Bus Loop by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7972 on the B6 LIMITED at the Canarsie - Rockaway Parkway Station by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7858 on the B26 at Palmetto Street & Wyckoff Avenue by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7943 on the B41 LIMITED at Kings Plaza by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7948 on the B44 Local at Williamsburg Bridge Plaza by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7981 on the B64 at Stilwell Avenue & Mermaid Avenue by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7943 on the B49 at Avenue Z & East 15th Street by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7982 on the B1 at Brighton Beach & Coney Island Avenues by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr 2022 New Flyer XD40 7930 on the B41 at Flatbush Avenue & Avenue H by BM5 Photos 2022, on Flickr

Trains Rerouted Northbound trains will end at 3 Av-149 St . Some northbound trains will end at 3 Av-149 St. Some northbound trains will end at Harlem-148 St. Our crews are addressing a switch problem at E 180 St trains are delayed in both directions. Posted: 12/26/2022 01:53PM

Delays Southbound trains are running with delays after our crews addressed a signal problem at W 4 St-Wash Sq. Some southbound trains will end at Whitehall St-South Ferry on the line. Planned Work Reminder: runs via the between W 4 St-Wash Sq and Jackson Hts-Roosevelt Av while we make electrical improvements. Posted: 12/26/2022 12:26PM

Merry Christmas! Part Suspended is severely disrupted in both directions. No train service between South Ferry and 137 St-City College in both directions. trains are running via line in both directions between Nevins St and 149 St-Grand Concourse. No train service between Wall St and 135 St. We are addressing a signal and network communication problem near 96 St. The last stop on southbound trains will be 137 St-City College, where they will turn for service to Van Cortlandt Park-242 St. The last stop on northbound trains will be Wall St, where they will turn for service to New Lots Av. For service along 7 Av in Manhattan, consider using nearby trains. For service between Brooklyn and Manhattan, consider using trains. For service between Manhattan and the Bronx, consider using trains. For service to Harlem-148 St, consider using nearby M1, M7, and M102 buses. Get a courtesy pass from a station agent to continue your trip. Posted: 12/25/2022 10:19PM

For some reason, LGAs entire article fleet is off the road at this moment. Did something happen? All the other depot's seem to have their artic's out (save for CS).

Looked at the changes, took some time to think about it. If that is indeed the final draft of the network, there's still a lot to be desired there, although they have made some improvements in certain areas. Here's what I have to say regarding this final draft: Central Suffolk S51: I'm not exactly sure whether having 30 minute service between Patchogue and Ronkonkoma will necessarily catch on, especially since at one point they were running minibuses on the existing 7A route IINM (before the ARBOCs showed up). I also don't like how service between Ronkonkoma and Sayville was cut altogether. There should have been a branch of the S51 to Sayville (whether a whole new number or something, IDK). Each branch would have had hourly service. Yeah the S57 and S59 ridership isn't all that hot but I don't think that entire area should be left without any north-south service. S52: I still don't believe that the S52 should have been one of those frequent routes, especially considering the changes they made. I would have had it operate hourly on its original alignment. Also the half-hourly service to SCCC bit is misleading, because even though all buses serve SCCC, if you're on the 52B, you're gonna have to go through Farmingville, Gordon Heights, and Coram before you get to SCCC. There's no indication looking at the S52B route map that it'll head up to SCCC first, so effectively you'll arrive there on a S52B -> 52A bus at around the same time as if you wait for the next 52A bus. After thinking about it, I would actually take a different approach with this, while trying to use a similar amount of buses. The proposed S52 would have to have a 3 hour cycle, so for the proposed 30 minute headway, there would be a need for 6 buses. What I have in mind is taking care of those segments with a shortened S52, in addition to bringing back a modified version of the S71, as follows: S52: Ronkonkoma LIRR to Gordon Heights - every 60 minutes (2 buses) S71: Central Islip LIRR to Shirley (Montauk Hwy/William Floyd Pkwy), via Motor Parkway, Portion Road, Horseblock Road, CR 101, LIE, William Floyd Parkway, and the following: via SCCC (Weekdays only) Brookhaven Town Hall (8:30 AM - 3:30 PM Weekdays Only) Yaphank Offices (6 AM - 6 PM Weekdays Only) Yaphank Walmart Supercenter Weekday daytime runtimes would be from around 90-100 minutes (requiring 4 buses), weekday evening and weekend runtimes would be around 72-80 minutes (requiring 3 buses). S58: I guess they're still hellbent on sending this route to Brentwood. While I personally don't care too much about that (especially since they have the S5 also doing something similar to/from Smith Haven Mall), I can't agree with leaving that part of Jericho Turnpike between Commack Plaza and Old Willets without service, nor Jericho Turnpike without continuous service. Whatever they decide to do with the S58 west of Smith Haven is what it is I suppose. However I would have tried my hand at running an inter-county route here along Jericho Turnpike, operating to Walt Whitman Mall, and then via Syosset towards Hicksville. You would be able to connect to various NICE routes on the Nassau end, and SCT routes on the Smith Haven end, and then other SCT + HART routes at intermediate locations. Here's basically what I had in mind. I do think that this type of route (which I labeled 'S56' as a placeholder) would be able to catch on, and I think hourly would be okay for this type of service (maybe even half hourly could work). Also worth considering, that if SCT wanted to, they could also look into an operating agreement with NICE and HART, kinda like how the Coastal Link bus is operated in CT. The hourly service would require three buses at a time, and about a third of the route falls under one of the three agencies' operating jurisdiction. If HART was considered, then the H40 could get axed and those resources would be used on that S56 route. NICE also seems to be experimenting with new services as of recent, and I personally think that if it partially operated the S56, it would be worth it (also it would serve areas not covered by NICE currently). The main issue which may throw a wrench to all of this is the fare system structure. The S5 would have doing something different as a result, and the S58 would also be affected as well (see the S5 comments in the western Suffolk section below). S66: I still don't think that service along South Country Road should be eliminated, it's not that close from Montauk Highway at all. If they really want they can branch the service out there, at roughly the same frequencies as they currently are. S77/S77Y: Yeah I agree with having it go further down to Bellport, still there's enough runtime to operate hourly with one bus and I think it would be a more useful rendition of the S68. I suppose if the S77 & 77Y are spaced out, then they can be useful. However i don't think it's enough to leave Bellport Village with just the 77 (see my S66 comments) East End (Riverhead & Both Forks) 10C/S80: They eliminated the 10C presumably due to low overall ridership (by bus though is a different story), meanwhile they're basically adding a route (S80) which is effectively a de-facto shuttle to/from the Wesley Village Apartments, that will garner even less ridership than the existing 8A, SMH. There's no reason why East Hampton and Montauk should be part of the same microtransit zone to begin with, because there isn't much flexibility in getting between Montauk and Amangansett, which takes a while to get between points. The 10C ridership isn't anything to ignore either. What I would do is get rid of that microtransit zone, and run the 10C as a flexi route, with a fixed route between East Hampton LIRR and Montauk Village, with flexi stops along its current loop & the lighthouse (seasonal). During the summer, since Hampton Hopper does a very similar loop in Montauk (for free), I would just have 10C buses go to the lighthouse when Hampton Hopper is running. For the one bus on the S80, you can have the 10C as an actual loop route on a bi-hourly headway, timed with the S92. Whether a microtransit zone should exist for East Hampton, Springs, and areas further to the west (Wainscot, Bridgehampton, etc) instead of having the 10B around, I guess is debatable. Alternatively if you run the 10C between Bridgehampton (from Montauk Highway & Hull Lane, not the Commons) to Montauk, it is possible to run the service on a three hour headway (like it currently is), and then have a microtransit option out there covering some of the areas around East Hampton. Personally I'm not all that big on microtransit outright replacing fixed routes though. It just doesn't make sense in the case of the 10C. S58: They have this route operating on NYS-25 in Riverhead IINM? There's a lot more on Old Country Road, even if it will take longer. IDK their reasons for changing it to that were, but if it was because of the S62, I don't find that to be a compelling reason. S62: Glad to see that they're keeping the S62, and they honestly kept more than what I would have anticipated. The only change I would make though, is that this route should be the one serving Wesley Village, instead of creating a whole new route for that purpose. That'll provide service to basically the same locations as the S80, plus more. S92: They show this route as blue (running every 60 minutes), so I'm wondering are they actually gonna cut the service down to hourly all day? I recall somewhere that there would still be pockets of more frequent service during the day, but curious if any of these additions came from there. Western Suffolk S2: Given what I would do the S3 and S10 (see comments below), I would have the S2 branching between Montauk Highway and Albin Ave / East John Street between Wellwood Avenue and Babylon LIRR. The S3/S5 (either one) and the modified S25 should connect to/from the S2 via Montauk Highway at Babylon LIRR, for service to/from Great South Bay. S3/S5: I find it absurd how there's no north-south service on Udall Road, but the areas along the existing S25 will now have TWO routes (the proposed S3 and S10) running not too far from each other. This S3 is also a more indirect version of the S3 they had on their initial coverage proposal, which should have been part of both proposals IMO. If they really wanted direct service from Babylon to Wyandanch, they could have had a modified version of the S25 running between Babylon and Wyandanch LIRR Stations on hourly headways using one bus, running via Little E. Neck Road, and maybe some of the existing areas S25 serves north of the Southern State there for coverage purposes. The S3 should operate every 60 minutes like they mention along the full route, however it should operate solely along Deer Park Avenue between the LIE and Babylon LIRR. In the past I have thought that there should be a short-turn of the S3 on weekdays, however since I would have the S5 running hourly, I would actually keep the S5 as is between Babylon and Brentwood (see below for more). Instead I would have a Udall Road bus between Tanger Outlets and Babylon run hourly, with the savings from having the S5 operate hourly would be used to run the Udall Road service. As far as the S5 between Brentwood and Lake Grove (Smith Haven) goes, to me I kinda don't see the point. Between Brentwood and Hauppauge there's the S11 and S58. The S11 is not as direct as the S58, but still, there's fairly frequent service from Brentwood, which is a transfer point. I'd just have it run between Babylon and Brentwood (with some changes), and either have the S58 or a whole new route (replacing both the S5 and S58) between Brentwood and Lake Grove, on hourly headways. I would have to map it out, but it would be like a mix of the two routes (basically the proposed final S5 between Brentwood and Hauppague, then via Smithtown, then along Middle Country Road to/from Smith Haven). Whatever resources are saved over with all these changes together, I would use to allocate for that Hicksville - Lake Grove service I was mentioning earlier (see my S58 comments in the central Suffolk section for more details). To see more details on these comments, check out this map here. S10: The fact that this route made it this far is kinda mind-boggling, because it's like the most indirect thing ever. Who exactly is benefitting from this? You have to go out all the way to Lindenhurst then back to go along Little East Neck Road from Babylon? Whatever S25 riders use the service now (of which there aren't many) would likely not even bother with this. Also, this route would require 2 buses on hourly headways (which I'm putting out as context for what I'm about to mention). Given that I would have the S3 cover part of the proposed S10, I would basically blow up the S10 and split it into two hourly routes, each using one bus each. Here are the routes as follows S10 - Amityville RR to Airport Plaza and back, via Albany Avenue and East Farmingdale Loop S19 - Babylon to Farmingdale (Airport Plaza), via Route 109 See Map Here

From NJ Transit Webpage Good to see the increases on the 119 in particular. However, with regards to the 67X, I wonder what this means for the seasonal service to Seaside Park. Will they extend the local trips out there, will they actually run 67X buses for the summer only, will they even run it at all? I would think they would have made a distinction if seasonal service was the case. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New NJ TRANSIT Bus Schedules – Effective Saturday, January 14, 2023 New NJ TRANSIT bus schedules will take effect on Saturday, January 14 on several bus routes. Please visit the Bus Point-to-Point page to carefully review bus timetables before starting your trip. If your bus route has an upcoming timetable change, a link will be available stating "Upcoming Schedule - Effective January 14, 2023" in the “Download PDF Schedules” area. New timetables will be posted for the following NJ TRANSIT Bus Routes: 1/361, 10, 13, 27, go28, 30, 37, 40, 48, 58, 59, 62, 65/66, 67, 76, 79, 90, 92, 107, 111, 113, 115, 116, 119, 122/190, 123, 125, 126, 128, 133, 144/145/148/164, 153/159, 154, 155/168, 157/167/177, 158, 160, 162/163/164, 165, 166, 191/195, 193/194/197/198/324, 313/315, 317, 319, 400, 401, 402, 404, 406, 408, 409, 410, 412, 414/417/555, 453, 455, 551, 601, 606, 611, 613, 703, & 712. Please note the following service changes: On bus routes mentioned above, trip times and service levels have been adjusted to reflect current travel experience and improve reliability, below are some of the major highlights. No. 10 Weekdays: Two additional AM trips have been added to Journal Square. Nos. 13/27/90/92 Daily: Trip times throughout the day may have changed as part of efforts to improve on-time performance. Nos. go28/37/62/67/107 Daily: Schedules have been revised to serve the new Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport. No. 67: The 67X trips have been eliminated due to low ridership. No. 113/115 Weekdays: The 113 X will see one additional outbound trip between 5:15 and 6:16 PM; the 115 will see one additional trip in the 8:00 AM hour to New York – all trips between 6:00 AM – 8:00 AM have shifted as a result. 116 Daily: All trips after 10:00 PM will depart Gate 317 at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York. No. 119 Weekdays: Six AM peak trips and two trips after the AM rush hours have been added heading to New York along with two more trips departing New York in the evening hours. Saturday service has been increased from every 60 minutes to 30 minutes and Sunday service has been increased from every 60 minutes to 45 minutes throughout most of the day. No. 125 Daily: Gate change after 10:00 PM to gate 302. No. 126 Weekdays: 10 trips will be added to New York between 7:30 AM and 9:00 AM, with seven of these trips serving Clinton Street. No. 128 Weekdays: Five AM peak trips have been added to New York between 7:40 AM – 8:40 AM. Departing New York, a 4:45 PM trip and five trips between 9:00 PM – midnight have also been added. No. 133: The 1:30 PM Friday Only trip to Old Bridge has been eliminated due to low ridership. No. 158 Weekdays: Four AM trips to New York have been added to the schedule between 7:00 AM – 9:00 AM. No. 190 Weekdays: Two AM “X” trips, two PM “X” trips and two PM “R” trips have been added to the schedule. No. 319 Weekdays: The 4:25AM trip to Journal Square and the 4:15PM trip to Atlantic City will now operate via Brick and Dorado Park and Rides. Holiday notes: On Martin Luther King Day (Monday, January 17) and Presidents' Day (Monday, February 21), most routes will operate on either a Holiday, Saturday or Sunday schedule. See Bus Schedules or the Holiday Service Guide for further details. Customers are encouraged to monitor Travel Alerts & Advisories, sign up for My Transit Alerts, download the NJ TRANSIT app and follow us on Social Media for the latest service information. For more information and language assistance, please call NJ TRANSIT Customer Service at (973) 275-5555 between the hours of 8:30AM and 5PM daily.

It is now anticipated that there will be limited shuttle service between Jamaica and Grand Central before the end of the year, before a full roll out of service. That is, if everything goes well. I guess we'll have to wait and see, although there isn't much time left if that's the goal. https://www.newsday.com/amp/long-island/transportation/lirr-east-side-access-vgcvbq8m

In my case yesterday, I had the site ready to load but he checked his employee device (IDK what that's called) instead and he was able to confirm it.

trains via White Plains Road (?) Part Suspended There is no train service between 96 St and 137 St-City College. Southbound trains will end at 137 St-City College. Emergency teams are responding to a person who was struck by a train at 103 St. Additional Service Changes: Some northbound trains are running along the line from 96 St to 3 Av-149 St. Some northbound trains are running via the line from 96 St to Harlem-148 St. For service between 96 St and 137 St-City College, consider taking M5/M11 buses. For service along the line, consider taking an or train. See a station agent to receive a courtesy pass for continuing train or bus service. Posted: 12/08/2022 10:42PM

Train: *Ends* Part Suspended No southbound service between Church Av and Coney Island-Stillwell Av. The last stop on southbound trains will be Jay St-MetroTech or Church Av. Southbound and trains are delayed while we work to address a switch malfunction at Church Av. Additional Service Changes: Southbound trains are running via the line from Broadway-Lafayette St to Coney Island-Stillwell Av. The last stop on some northbound trains will be Kings Hwy. Travel Alternatives: Consider taking a train for service between Bergen St and Church Av. Consider taking a or train for service between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Consider taking the or train at W 4 St-Wash Sq. Posted: 12/08/2022 09:06PM

That's exactly what they're planning for the B10 & B12 (in bold). They list it in the draft plan, I think in both sections. It's gonna be about a 50-50 split in terms of service levels, so some B12 service is taken away. I presume that the B16 would then provide additional service on Clarkson Avenue in the process. I don't like that part of the B10/B12 plan, and personally I would just keep the B12 alone instead of the B10/12 split.

A lot of the redesign appears to be tinkering routes here and there, and then rerouting these unrelated routes to cover said missing portion (or in some cases nothing new replaces it). While not all of those type of changes are bad per se (like the B16 serving Church Avenue ), many of them leave a lot to be desired (like the B49). Overall I would say I have mixed feelings about this proposal at best, on the local side that is. Even that might be an overstatement. Some initial route comments: B2: So they eliminated this route, and then didn't even boost service on the B100 during the rush? The B100 can be crush loaded leaving Kings Highway subway station, and the B2 and B31 both carry. There's going to be crowding issues if they just keep that at combined B31/B100 intervals. B4: Rerouting it to (near) Coney Island as a replacement for the B64 is kinda wild, because the B4 and B64 are two complete different routes and serve different areas. Furthermore, it'll no longer serve Coney Island Hospital, so riders would now have to walk further to the B1 or B36, or transfer? This was completely unnecessary. B7: How strong is ridership on Saratoga Ave & Thomas S. Boyland St? If it's not all that, I think they could have just had it take ENY or Piktin Aves to Rockaway Ave (and vice-versa) to/from Cooper Street. B16: Sending it to KCH is interesting, and I agree with rerouting it via Church Avenue instead of the current route which avoids it and receives little ridership. However what I wanted to see that didn't get addressed here is the lack of service on Fort Hamilton Parkway and at least some coverage service on 13th & 14th Avenues. B25: Overnight service should be retained into Downtown Brooklyn. Trying to time and coordinate the B25 and B26 at Franklin Avenue (if that's what they're planning on doing, but I wouldn't be surprised if that's not the case) will be too much of a hassle. Running it to Jay Street would be ideal IMO, worst case scenario I guess run it to/from Flatbush Avenue, for both DeKalb Avenue , and Nevins Street. That would you can run the B25 and B26 on a combined 30 minute headway along Fulton Street at night. B40 Rush, B41 Local, and B41 SBS: Now, I had a feeling they were going to split up the Veterans Avenue branch of the B41 from the main route, however I had a total different thing in mind (I personally thought it was going to become a feeder to/from Kings Highway as part of modifying the B2/31/100 there). However, I question if this amount of service is necessary. Yes, I know the B40 isn't that frequent during off peak hours, however Flatbush Avenue from Empire to Nostrand can get pretty congested, especially when you have truck activity and deliveries ongoing. Even with it being a "rush" route of sorts, it's not going to matter because of the delays, and I doubt that many riders (if any) from Avenue N/Veterans Avenue will ride to Empire for the or . What perhaps could have been considered, is if they want to serve both, have the B40 feed into the Brighton line at Kings Highway, and then maybe either have some rush hour variant to Flatbush Avenue , or have some B41 locals serve that area during the day. I don't see there being sufficient ridership to/from Avenue N and Veterans Avenue for the B40 to be running effectively as a LTD. B46: Disagree with this, they should have kept it to Williamsburg Bridge Plaza. However with the B53 first coming out in the Queens redesign it was only anticipated I suppose. B49: Umm, lol. It looks like they tried to keep this route more useful but somehow managed to make it more indirect than the existing route. This could have been handled some other way, there was no reason to swap route segments with both the B44 local AND the B68 in order to make the B49 more efficient/useful. That is up there with one of my least favorite changes. B53: They seriously need to let this proposal die. This is a mash of several segments together but not really being compared to the services it's replacing. B60/B66/B76: I'm leaning more on the indifferent side with this split. However if they're going to split the existing B60 the way they did, and they're having the B76 (East 80th Street B17 branch split off) operating via Rockaway Avenue north of Rockaway Parkway as well, why don't they just make that routing THE Rockaway Avenue route. I don't recall getting riding B60s which had a significant amount of through-riding at Rockaway Parkway . Those riders would have the B5LTD, B6 LTD, B82 local, and B82 SBS to connect to the B60 from Breukelen Houses. B61, B81: What's the point of having both the B61 and the B81 overlapping for as much as they do between Red Hook and Park Slope. It's not even a corridor which warrants it, the heaviest portion of the B61 is between Red Hook and Downtown Brooklyn. The B61 as is can handle it, no need to add another route to it. They're eliminating like a few blocks off the B61 and adding this B81. Honestly a complete waste of resources. If this B81 is supposed to be a replacement of the B103 north of Flatbush & Nostrand, well this doesn't cut it at all. The ridership headed north of that point is overwhelmingly headed to Downtown.

Sure it's a proposal and all, I get that. I just don't think that for it to be an official draft / proposal submitted out to the public, that there shouldn't be such egregious changes to that effect. Through some of the wording that they use in the document along with what they're proposing, it makes it seem like much of nobody takes any those buses during those times. Yeah off-peak ridership it's not as high as peak service, and some routes generally have less than others, but they seriously should have approached that part/issue better than they did here IMO.

So much for most of the express bus network during off peak hours. Also, they're apparently having the overnight B25 run only between Franklin Avenue at Broadway Junction. Since they only use one bus, how much time are they actually saving by having it end there, if the goal is to get it to run on hourly headways so it can connect with the B26? Why not just run to Jay Street or someplace nearby in Downtown Brooklyn, turn back from there, and then space out the buses so that there's frequent enough bus service overnight.

Part Suspended trains are disrupted in both directions between Broadway Junction/ Myrtle Av and Delancey St-Essex St. Emergency teams are responding to someone struck by a train on the Williamsburg Bridge. Service Changes: There are no trains running between Myrtle Av and Delancey St-Essex St in either direction. trains are running in 2 sections: Between Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer and Broadway Junction or Myrtle Av. Between Broad St and Delancey St-Essex St. trains are running in 2 sections: Between Myrtle Av and Middle Village-Metropolitan Av. Between Forest Hills-71 Av and 2 Av on the line. Travel Alternatives: For service between Myrtle Av and Marcy Av, take B46 buses. Consider bus service to nearby trains for service between Brooklyn and Manhattan. Posted: 12/01/2022 12:01PM

From the New Haven Register Free bus fare extended through March 31, but New Haven, Hartford leaders want it permanent NEW HAVEN — Transit advocates are celebrating the General Assembly's overwhelming decision Monday to extend free bus fares in Connecticut through March 31, but that, like the original bill that eliminated bus fares on CT Transit buses through Dec. 1, is a temporary measure. Some urban leaders want more. The New Haven Board of Alders went on record recently calling for elimination of the bus fares to be permanent. The unanimous vote at the Alders' Nov. 21 meeting added the New Haven board's voice to that of the Hartford City Council, which previously went on record calling for bus fares to be eliminated permanently. "Eliminating fares has increased ridership and improved efficiency. This benefits everyone by lessening the number of cars on the road and reducing emissions," said East Rock Alder Anna Festa, D-10, chairwoman of the Board of Alders' City Service and Environmental Policy Committee, which put forward the measure and held a public hearing on it last month. "It's very costly to take the bus and some of (the people who testified at the public hearing) were spending about $1,000 a year to take the bus," Festa said. Making elimination of bus fares permanent "will allow them to afford more things and probably help the economy, as well. Wooster Square Alder Eli Sabin, D-7, who initiated the city legislation, said the state's initial free bus fare program "has led to a lot of benefits for our community" and "put money back in their pocketbooks Referring to the $800 to $1,000 some residents said they spend a year to ride the bus, Sabin said, "We know that for folks who make minimum wage ... that's an awful lot." In addition, "the more folks take the bus, the less cars are on the road," he said. State Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney, D-New Haven, said he would "certainly support at least starting the process" of contacting the federal government "to see if we could." But "it's a very different process from what we went through," Looney said. "In fact, the federal rules only allow for a temporary rate change ... and I understand that the federal administrator is not happy with the fact" that Connecticut's suspension of the fares was in place as long as it has been, he said. In addition, "There's a lot of pushback from regular bus riders who are complaining that the situation for them has become untenable," because of all the additional people riding the buses, including homeless people "essentially using the buses as mobile homeless shelters," Looney said. Mayor Justin Elicker hailed passage of the free bus fare extension, which Gov. Ned Lamont signed Tuesday. “Fare-free bus service has been very popular and a huge benefit to New Haven residents, and I applaud the state for extending it through April 1, 2023," Elicker said. "Nearly 30 percent of New Haveners do not have a car and public transit is an essential mode of transportation for so many residents who use it to commute to work and get around the city every day. "The fare-free pilot program has provided residents significant savings, reduced vehicular traffic on our streets, and restored bus ridership to beyond even pre-pandemic levels," he said. "As someone who takes the bus to work on occasion, I can personally attest to how easy and convenient fare-free bus service has been. "I am hopeful that this can be made permanent in the upcoming legislative session and I applaud the New Haven delegation and Gov. Lamont for their commitment to increasing access to public transit for our residents,” Elicker said. Free bus service costs the state about $2.7 million a month, while the gas tax holiday that the General Assembly also voted to extend through the end of the year costs the state about $20 million a month, with the figure reaching as high as $25 million in the summer, when people drive the most. Both measures were included in one broad, four-part bill that also included "hero" payments of between $100 and $1,000 for nearly 156,000 Connecticut nurses, day care and grocery store workers, delivery personnel and other essential employees in the private sector. The bill passed 134-7 in the House after more than four hours of debate and three failed Republican amendments. It was approved 33-0 by the state Senate shortly after 9 p.m., after an 80-minute debate. Over 66,000 people who make less than $50,000 a year will get the maximum $1,000 benefits, while those with higher incomes will received drastically smaller amounts in the $105-million program, which had an October 1 application deadline. The gas-tax holiday was extended through December, then gradually restores the tax by a nickel a month until the usual 25-cents-per-gallon tax is back in place next May 1, after a year-long holiday. State Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, co-chairman of the legislative Finance Committee, told Hearst Connecticut Media that in all, motorists and bus riders will save $330 million over the year. Neither Scanlon, House Transportation Committee Chairman Roland Lemar, D-New Haven, nor other area legislative leaders could immediately be reached for comment on the idea of making elimination of bus fares permanent.

A lot of them were commuter routes yes, however routes the 9A, 11A, and 20 offered daily service between NYC, Bergen County, and Rockland County. They even had an 11X bus as a test (effectively more or less a 45 short-turn) on weekends from Spring Valley, which was made permanent shortly before the pandemic. However ever since COVID, off peak service has not come back, which is a shame. If they start up off peak service and maybe take the time to reconfigure their routes to make them more efficient, I think they'll be okay more or less. However with the few trips as is, it's not going to attract many new riders, and the existing riders will stop using the buses at some point. Also not everything's geared to a 9-5 lifestyle like it used to, so they will have to readjust their model. If they don't they're eventually going to eventually meet their demise. I think there's ridership there (at least the ridership to/from NYC), however I don't think Rockland Coaches wants to roll the dice and start back up again. Same thing with Academy and their lack of weekend and evening service. They've been cutting service before the pandemic in pieces, looks like COVID gave them enough of a justification to not bother running any service on evenings and weekends. I don't know how intermediate ridership levels on the 9A, 11A, or 20 were, however I don't get the sense that they were that high. However I do think there's potential to have weekend routes for those headed to/from NYC (and also offer local service in the process).

They're arriving and departing on the Manhattan-bound track.

Part Suspended No between Fulton St and 96 St. via between Nevins St and 149 St-Grand Concourse both directions. No between 14 St and South Ferry. Emergency services are responding to a water main break at Canal St. For travel alternatives between Brooklyn and Manhattan, consider using trains. Posted: 11/20/2022 11:59AM

Work trains are running up 4th Avenue to wherever they're headed, around that time (which are super slow). It wasn't always like that, that was changed a few years ago. They couldn't think of any other way to have the and trains run without massive delays on weekdays. Weekends, those work trains are usually already out there.

The free fare notice was also sent out in the transportation newsletter. ------------------------------------------------------ From Yonkers Times COUNTY EXECUTIVE LATIMER ANNOUNCES FREE BEE-LINE BUS-FARES FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON November 16, 2022 Just in time for the holiday season, free Bee-Line Bus fares return from November 19 through November 27, and December 7 through December 26. Latimer said: “This holiday season, we want people to visit with family and friends, and we want them to shop and go to work with ease. Leave the driving to us, and save some money this holiday season. From Yorktown to Yonkers, we have a robust system that can get you where you need to go. Now is a perfect time to try out the Bee-Line system if you haven’t already. We take great pride in the fact that our buses are safe, clean and accessible.” This past summer, the County offered free Bee-Line bus rides and the system experienced a 37% increase in ridership during the three-month period of June, July and August, compared to the prior three-month period in March, April and May. Latimer said: “The benefit we are providing to the traveling public is about $2.6 million if we see the same level of increase during Thanksgiving week, and the holiday shopping period in December.” The Bee-Line Bus System offers a cleaner, greener, more cost-effective way for residents to travel the County. The promotion is valid on all routes in the fixed route bus system, including the express route into Manhattan, the BxM4C. Free rides are also valid on the Bee-Line ParaTransit system. Commissioner of the Westchester County Department of Public Works & Transportation Hugh Greechan said: “We’ve made a lot of recent improvements to our Bee-Line bus fleet including the addition of 106 brand new 40-foot hybrid/electric buses. This is the perfect opportunity for Westchester residents to leave your cars at home, and take a free ride on one of our clean, comfortable state-of-the-art buses.” Director of the Office for People with Disabilities Evan Latainer said: “County Executive Latimer is once again providing our ParaTransit ridership the opportunity to travel the Bee Line ParaTransit system free of charge during this upcoming holiday season. This will once again provide our ridership with great savings during this time period to go out and about Westchester County at no cost. Riders should take pleasure in traveling for work, recreation and other needs during this time period.” For more information about the free rides program call (914) 813-7777. An information agent is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Bee-Line is Westchester County’s bus system, serving over 27 million passengers annually with convenient service connecting residents to jobs, recreation, shopping and other regional transportation services. It is the second largest transit bus fleet in New York State, operated by the County’s Department of Public Works and Transportation (DPW&T). Over 65 percent of all Westchester County residents are within walking distance of a Bee-Line bus route, making the bus both close and convenient. The system has over 3,300 bus stops and almost 60 routes. All Bee-Line buses are accessible, and designed with many accessibility features including “kneeling” buses, ramps and lifts.

I honestly wish they took the time to rebuild Mineola so that it had island platforms. That way you could reduce Oyster Bay Branch movements without having the existing setup and provide greater flexibility. It would help when something happens on the main line, as you could run service up to Mineola if you wanted to (instead of suspending all or most service). Yes it may have meant more time and money on the project, but this set up at Mineola I can see biting them in the ass.