Lex

That's my biggest gripe with this whole mess. The contract was for less than half of what Kawasaki was ultimately awarded for the R160s, and Bombardier still managed to screw it up.

So "nice"... Seriously, Flatbush is no joke. That depot may get a lot of shit, but the people there can really make the best of a bad situation.

I mean by following a similar route up there...

In all honesty, if they want the Q50 to stay on its current route up there, then I won't miss it. That part of the route is ridiculously ass-backward. I'd rather they take some inspiration from the BxM7, but if not, then just chuck it in the bin.

Here's hoping those will be better than the R179s (doubly so in relation to BYD's buses).

Hence the stipulations in that contract...

Wrong thread...

I'm pretty sure that's confidential for a reason.

I mean, I did say "substantial" for a reason...

Hate to break it to you both, but Dutchess is no Westchester. Pretty much anything of note (and where people are looking to go) exists well south of this near-abandoned rail line (itself pretty far south within the county), and not much has changed since passenger service ended in 1927. At this point, any reactivation for passenger service requires concerted efforts by developers, businesses, communities, and the county government to justify it. Seeing that no such efforts exist, we'd be better off perishing the thought.

And what part of the Beacon Line warrants keeping the rails intact?

I see that one having an easier time coming to fruition. That said, we'd need substantial work to accommodate anything of the sort. The earliest I can see that happening is in 2030, which will be around the time replacements for the R142/As will be in the works. (Many of the R188 C cars could probably simply be shuffled into the 5-car sets, making them 6-car sets until they're actually ready to retire.) I'd go with 12-car trains both for the even number of cars and to have a notably easier time accommodating passengers (even the has difficulty while using 11 cars).

The Bx27 is the next artic route. That's a really interesting choice.

That's not an extension.

Pin that on Hylan's IND...

Well, that's just it. Ideally, we'd find ways to bring down all costs without cutting service. For that matter, it would be great to have a more integrated system (OMNY's a step, but it's far from the only necessary thing). And yes, if we need to reduce the ferry subsidy (if I'm being honest, a $6.75 fare is too much if the plan is to transport more than the wealthy) to put more money into other transit modes, then so be it. The reason I take issue with the express buses in particular is because those routes physically have the fewest restrictions and use the same medium as the local buses and subway, yet they're still well out of reach for much of the population simply because the inherent costs of operation negatively impact the price. (A neighborhood such as Brownsville could probably benefit from express bus service to the point of helping to lift the neighborhood out of poverty if planned correctly, but because of how damn expensive it is, it simply wouldn't make sense to run one through there.)

For future reference, never invoke his name. You'll be eaten alive if you do. Look, I'm not exactly a fan of the express buses (mostly because of the inherently higher costs of operation and, as a consequence, the affordability for anyone that lacks deep pockets), but am I glad that I never bothered to click the link. This guy's far more out of touch than the MTA...

No clue, though if there's any good about that setup, it's the fact that it also provides access to the clockwise loop, which is confined to the airport. Federal Circle doesn't do that.

Nope.

What.

Trust me, even as someone who doesn't use the express routes, I'm definitely not agreeing to it. What I actually suspect is that it's less about Williamsburg -> Downtown and more Glendale/Middle Village (removed from the existing Q54) -> Williamsburg, but that doesn't make it better.

I feel like those express routes passing through Williamsburg are really for the sake of Williamsburg connections.

I'm not sure if I've already said this somewhere on the forums, but Newport Avenue has the better catchment area, not to mention that it provides decent access to the businesses on Beach 129th Street...

They're there. They're simply easy to miss, as they're in a sea of similar-looking routes, and they don't appear alongside the locals on any map.

I can't help but wonder how that happened. Clearly, someone wasn't paying attention, but damn.