161 New York

FYI. The first half of 2014 exam schedule is out (until June 2014). http://www.mta.info/nyct/hr/appexam.htm I'm tempted to drop an application for Revenue Equipment Maintainer, most of my IT experience has been in an analyst and administrator role - not exactly what they're looking for methinks, I am now getting more into the technical/infrastructure "technician" role. Hmmm.. If it wasn't $81 bucks.

The MTA recently added at 16:05 departure from Woodrow/Huguenot Avenue, with the last stop leaving Staten Island at 16:55. It would be great if ridership is picking up and they need more runs. The one hour headways on the x1 during the weekdays still perplexes me. When working third shift I was dependent on the 21:00 departure from Eltingville Transit Center. A few of my fellow riders connected via the s78 at Hylan/Richmond. LUCKILY for them, the B/O's knew this and if the s78 was at the light he'd wait a few moments. Otherwise we knew the s79, (86th St, Bay Ridge) to Midtown routine. I think that :30 minute headways would help in that situation and attract ridership too. In addition, into my nightmare commute at night to lower Bergen County at night from Staten Island, I would use the 21:00 x1 then get to PABT at 22:05 and wait nearly an hour for the 23:00 161 (which was usually late and often-times standing room only). A 21:30 x1 would have helped out a lot.

We'll have to await the vacancy announcement. As of today 12/15/2013 MTA has not yet posted the 2014 Examination Schedule: http://www.mta.info/nyct/hr/

Yes, I think it is going to be a HUGE list. My math says 12,000 candidates alone passed through James Madison High School this weekend. Four sessions 8:30, 13:30 on Saturday/Sunday, enrollment/capacity of the school 3,000 (per NYCDOE), 4 x 3,000 = up to 12,000 potential candidates from that school alone.

Good Evening! I must say that I was pleasantly surprised with today's exam! I had to take a five hour "nap" after the whole ordeal. My experience: - I took my time using the whole two hours to double check my work; I wish I could have marked up the test booklet just for that added assurance. - There were two answers that I was unsure about, a tip I used was to use all uppercase on the take-home answer sheet for the questions I was positive on and lower case on the one's I wasn't 100% on. Thoughts: - As discussed, we can anticipate a lot of high scores, which is good, but we can anticipate that getting hired will take a bit longer than exam 2613 due to the larger pool of candidates. - Let's keep in shape, get medical check-ups and keep our licenses clean. I have been practicing checking my mirrors a lot more often when driving and it will take some practice. Best of Luck to everyone!

Best of Luck to my fellow 4600's... If you're still awake - Get some sleep! Come in with a positive attitude... We will be blessed!

Many thanks! They cleaned the update up a little, but the BOSS heading remains. Gotta start hitting the books soon

Quick questions and clarification: There is an update on the MTA Website regarding the 4600 exam below: BUS OPERATOR SELECTION SURVEY: The multiple-choice test is scheduled to take place on December 14, 2013. This test date is subject to change. Please check back for an update in October 2013. Source: http://www.mta.info/nyct/hr/4600.htm (Sept 6, '13) From my research on past posts; for NYCTA there are two exams before medical/drug "testing"; the multiple choice (knowledge-exam) and the BOSS (psychological). Questions: Will a knowledge exam be administered before the "BOSS" exam which appears to be given on December 14, 2013? or is the MTA website incorrectly calling the exam on December 14, 2013 a BOSS exam? Or was I mistaken and there aren't two separate exams? Thanks.

NYC is full of landmarks, looking through the threads, it seems far reaching and anything seems game. I'm going to use bus maps for this portion and may even may visit some of them

Many thanks. Thankfully I didn't blow the dust off my resume Best of luck to all.

Just out of curiosity; Was I supposed to fill in other information besides my name, address, DOB and SSN when submitting the application? I'm kinda surprised that there were no fields to add in work history, education, etc.. Did I do something wrong? Thanks..

I applied! Time to grab some coffee and read the CDL manual in the next few months.

Finally! I will submit my application when I receive my next paycheck.. Thankfully, they have the examination date on the announcement and luckily it falls on a Saturday. Commentary for those who might be interested: Currenty I am in the IT business, while my company is Fortune 500 and mainly stable and I do enjoy the fast-paced nature of the job, I find the work interesting and have mostly great co-workers I never thought that I would want to become a bus operator. The MTA (Staten Island) would be a good fit, as I know nearly all the lines and have thick enough skin to maintain a good relationship with the public. I am still going give serious thought about the P/T BO position with NJ Transit in the meanwhile, but I am hesitant due to the drastic pay cut though I think it would be an even better fit because of the longer distance New York routes (from preferred garages) ie 161/19*-series routes (Wayne) or the 130*-routes (Howell) and nearly all the BO's on the 161 have been friendly and professional. Greyhound would be awesome but I have no idea about the route preferences (I would love to do US-Canada runs), but the pay/benefits aren't the greatest..

Hopefully its for NYCTA. I am going to apply once the filing period opens, unless NJ Transit (Northern) starts hiring F/T.

I am seriously scratching my head at this one and thinking about it will keep me up all night. I would like to see the 10 being extended one for one Staten Island stop at Richmond/Forest for starters.

CMC, that is a good map! I hadn't really thought about the route from Woodbridge Mall to Metropark. As for Elizabeth service. I don't know if anyone would want to take a bus to the ferry, ferry ride and subway unless cash is low and their destination is downtown or northern Brooklyn. This route would be good for folks living on the North Shore of SI to catch a bus to EWR. In Elizabeth train to NYC is available in two stations, the 115 and any bus to Newark for the 107/108. Fare is about $6 for the bus and $7 for the train . If the PA extends the PATH to Elizabeth via Newark Airport then it will be good.

NJT is powerless to stop anyone from running buses. The minibuses between NY and Paterson/JSQ/Bergeline are the best examples. The municipalities would have some power to regulate them ala strict enforcement of no parking/standing, blocking traffic laws. Additionally, their inability to "enroach" on Decamp's "territory" is evident of their prowess in control of state public transportation. Rail is a different story, as we know Amtrak owns the ROW between Metropark and NY Penn on the NEC/NJCL lines.

CMC, IMO, the s55 or any bus should not go into Perth Amboy downtown or to the rail station, it should stop along Route 35, at the QuickCheck (in Perth Amboy), stop at Main Street (Woodbridge) (5 minute walk to Woodbrige NJCL station) then go to Woodbridge Center (major shopping and office parks) and then end at Metropark (NEC, Amtrak, officeparks). Cheesequake should not be considered. Secondly, not many folks from NJ are going to take transportation to the Staten Island ferry. Off-peak and weekend service on the NEC and NJCL isn't that bad. Bus service on the 116 which duplicates the NJCL is pretty consistent. Personally, with the availability of express buses, I wont consider the SIRT/SI Ferry unless it is very late at night. Also, there is no way for a hypothetical North Shore SIR to connect with the NEC/NJCL lines. First there would have to be some massive eminent domain seizures in Elizabeth and the rail bridge going over the AR Kill connects with freight railroads, none to my knowledge connects with the Amtrak-owned lines which NJ Transit use for NEC and NJCL service, with a possible exception that there could a cross over in Kearny then onto Newark (essentially they would have to go east and then back west and east again at Newark Penn. Additionally, unless the MTA runs DMU, Diesel multiple unit rolling stock (the equipment used on River Line) OR they purchase or use hybrid diesel/electric trains that is compatible with the Amtrak/NJT/freight systems then along with the resolution of the logistical issues above then we could connect to the North Shore SIR system.

In Hudson County, I wish that NJT would consider putting TVM's at Bergenline & 31th Street in Union City.... Maybe the good folks who live there will purchase monthly passes and not hold up the buses with paying cash! There are outdoor TVM's at the 34st HBLR and elsewhere so it could work!

Manville is quite small and it doesn't look very well (abandoned storefronts etc).

I completely agree about extending the 10, in the NJT Thread, I suggested that a variant of the 10 terminate at Richmond Ave/ Forest Ave for connections to buses such as the s59, s44 and s48, all major cross-Island bus routes, no need to go to Port Richmond Bus Terminal. Thinking about that area, I think that the s53 should start at that point as well (Richmond/Forest Avenue).

The 10 goes from 1st & JFK in Bayonne to Journal Square Bergen & JFK in Jersey City, up one very long street. Two NJT buses along the JFK Blvd go to PABT, the 119 and 125. One bus is rush hour only, the other is infrequent and has been a contentious topic: - Passengers going to Newark have the options of the 1 and PATH - Passengers going to New York can take the PATH Today was a good example of the need to know alternatives when SHTF in the LT/PABT!!!

I honestly do not see the demand for anyone from Staten Island going to Newark Broad, much less Morristown. If anything, as I posted in the NJT proposals/ideas, I would use underutilized P&R's for service to EWR and select high-volume transit points to access EWR and NWK Penn. A Staten Island to SEC going through 440 is a terrible idea in my opinion. Traffic in both directions in Jersey City as well as Routes 1 & 9 during the day-time hours is a battle. Anyone wanting to connect to the Main, Bergen, Passack Valley etc, can take the s89 to HBLR, HOB OR the x1/x10/x17 to PATH at WTC and head on over to HOB. I A Bayonne/JC (Exchange Pl/ Newport/ Lincoln Harbor) to Middlesex County via Staten Island specifically Woodbridge & Menlo Park might work given all the train troubles lately. A variant of the 63 could do the trick.