Lex

1 hour ago, B35 via Church said:

Yeah, and you can thank the MetroTech project for that.....

Fulton Mall strip being less patronized than it used to be, has nothing to do with anything transit related.

Not to mention that Fulton Street's width over there would make mixed traffic more of a nightmare than further east on the same street...

24 minutes ago, bobtehpanda said:

Closing Main St to cars is beyond idiotic. The next continuous road to the east from the LIE to Northern Blvd is 1.5 miles away. Running a new road between the two would be a ridiculous amount of money in eminent domain alone, and would also probably end up killing the neighborhood.

I never said I would close Main Street for this.

14 minutes ago, bobtehpanda said:

I don't think a dedicated bus terminal would work. Where would you put it?

The two most commonly suggested sites are somewhere in what the city likes to call "Flushing West" or where the old muni garage is. Both sites have major issues, starting with the fact that most buses in Flushing are coming from the south and east. If the buses are coming from the south and east, routing them to a bus terminal north of the LIRR will lead to the same problem as today; that Main St is really the only continuous road from the south to the north. 

Unless the space between the two stations is one of the places you mentioned, it would seem the implication went way over your head.

4 hours ago, bobtehpanda said:

Kissena ending at Main right before the LIRR is really the whole problem. If Kissena was a through street in the Flushing street grid then it would just be another Jamaica.

If you ask me, we have a bigger issue with the utter lack of a facility to handle the sheer number of buses terminating in Flushing, and establishing one would require eminent domain and the possible closure of a couple of streets.

Obviously, that wouldn't fly over well with anyone.

44 minutes ago, paulrivera said:

24 minute headways between 3 Av and 125 St on the  tomorrow... Man, y’all are hysterical 😭

Next time maybe run a bus between the 3rd Avenue stops instead of putting in a 10mph speed restriction on a tube you’re already single tracking on.

How, exactly, did you arrive at that number?

Just now, BreeddekalbL said:

Hopefully stadler comes out of no where, just won the ATL contract 

Don't get your hopes up.

26 minutes ago, LaGuardia Link N Tra said:

Someone already Proposed this before but ima propose it again mainly for the benefit of decongesting Flushing and Redesigning the Queens Bus Network.

 Train: One Stop extension to Murray Hill-149th Street. 

The station will be an Island Platform with an Interlocking just before the station itself. The Middle track in Flushing will now be used as a Short turn Track, but will connect to the 2 outer tracks (Tracks 1 and 2 if I’m not mistaken) after leaving Main Street. 

There will be 2 Stairways and Elevators to connect to the Mezzanine Level. Then 4-8 exits on each end of the Station. At least 2 Stairways and One Elevators. 

(If I could draw it out to show all of you then I would) 

Any thoughts?

If the goal is to reduce bus traffic in Flushing, forget it.

14 minutes ago, B35 via Church said:

Oh good lord, not this decongest Flushing & shift a crapton of bus routes to Mets-Willets point again....

 

Honestly, I can't see any plan that sees some notable reduction in bus traffic in Flushing working out. (To make matters worse, all of those proposals ignore the impact from cars, which make up the bulk of street traffic.)

34 minutes ago, Bay Ridge Express said:

Sorry but I have to disagree. The Q48 is the airport bus from Flushing. As @bobtehpandasaid, no one is going to want to get off the bus and take the AirTrain at Mets to have their own ride be less convenient for themselves and make it a two-seat ride.

That's not even getting into it being more expensive than the Q48...

5 hours ago, EphraimB said:

They need to pick up my idea.

Yes, the  totally needs to meander over to Reads Lane just to serve a grand total of one person.

There are useful proposals, but that's definitely not one of them.

6 hours ago, Fredrick Wells 3 said:

In order to "break up longer routes" to improve reliability, there must be a usefulness in its replacement so that the general public can benefit. This means, the there would be no more than 5 long routes (one in each Borough) that would qualify to split into two. They are, along with their reasons, as follows:

1. Q65 - because it duplicates the Q20A/Q20B and Q25 as a College Point to Jamaica link. The extended Q40 can take over the Flushing to Jamaica portion while the Q65 out of College Point could be diverted to replace your Eliot Avenue Q38 idea as a new College Point to Ridgewood route (this would have the Juniper Valley Q38 extended to Bushwick).

2. B6 - the B82 LOCAL and SBS is there as the Network Coverage route as the B6 could be split into a B5/B6 combo (but only after a new route to JFK is put in place to assist the B15). The B5 would take over the Canarsie - Rockaway Parkway  to Bensonhurst portion of the B6, while the B6 would run between Coney Island Avenue and New Lots Avenue  Station (this eliminates SBS talks for the B6). Both the B5 and B6 would operate a LIMITED-STOP SERVICE throughout the day along each segment.

3. Bx8 - you have this "network coverage" route in Eastern Bronx which does not cross the Throgs Neck Bridge to enter Queens (to service Bay Terrace). It would be useful if it was split into a new Bx8/Bx48 combo. The Bx8 would begin at Locust Point (with a potential to extend to Queens terminating at Bay Terrace) as a connector route to the  at Buhre Avenue and continue North to Pelham Parkway via Williamsbridge Road before turning West to Fordham Plaza via the Bx12 route. The Bx48, however, would begin at Wakefield - East 241st Street  Station, and travel South via Baychester Avenue to East 233rd Street, turn West to Bronxwood Avenue, then via the current Bx8 routing to Westchester Square  Station where it (will) terminate.

4. M101 - route does not need to end in the East Village as Grand Central Terminal is an appropriate terminal. The M102 and M103 can increase service due to the shortening of the M101 and the M102 can become a true LIMITED-STOP SERVICE due to operating along the M7 route via Lenox Avenue between Lenox Terminal and West 116th Street as well as a 3rd Avenue/Lexington Avenue LIMITED. The M101 would remain as a LIMITED-STOP SERVICE along Lexington Avenue and 3rd Avenue and extend LIMITED-STOP SERVICE via Amsterdam Avenue as the M100 would become the LOCAL segment. You can pretty much say that each route would operate at a 7 minute headway throughout the day, 7 days a week along Lexington Avenue/3rd Avenue.

5. S78 - From the St. George Ferry, the S74/S84 is sufficient for service to Bricktown Mall. The S78 should be broken up into a S77/S78 combo with the S77 operating from Bricktown Mall to Bay Ridge - 86th Street  Station as a LOCAL variant to the S79 SBS, while the S78 could either begin at Eltingville Transit Center or in Tottenville (its old terminal) as travel its current route to the St. George Ferry.

Also, the M35 is useless for a different reason (it no longer services Astoria because the M60 SBS is there and there's no Bronx route extension to Randalls Island [suggested the Bx21 or Bx17]).

What did I just read?

1 hour ago, JeremiahC99 said:

Another way to serve Liberty Avenue is to extend the B65 to Broadway Junction. A very ingenious proposal, the extended route would head east on St. John’s Place, then onto East NY Avenue where a connection to the B12 is present. From there, it would take East New York Av to Mother Gaston Blvd. At M. Gaston, the route would shift onto Liberty Avenue to Pennsylvania Avenue, the operate to Penn Avenue to Broadway Junction. The loop at Broadway Junction would be the same as the B83.

 

A similar proposal was made in 2004, a decade after the elimination of the B40. The concept is the same, but the difference is in that proposal, Liberty Avenue was served in only one direction and westbound buses took Van Sindern Avenue to go directly to East NY Avenue, a routing that is impossible due to the LIRR line blocking thru traffic on Van Sinderen. This proposal would

• give B65 passengers a direct ride to Brownsville
• give B45 and B47 an Bus route to an area not served by the B14 and inadequately served by the B12 (the B12 and the  skirts this area).
• give Liberty Avenue residents a direct bus ride to the Broadway Jct   station complex instead of the Alabama Avenue  stop (where the B12 goes), providing multiple subway options in case the  are impacted by service changes west of Broadway Junction.

Eliminating the B40 without replacement was a complete mistake as it made travel through Ocean Hill and Brownsville much more difficult. By restoring service on this portion on Liberty Avenue, East-west travel would be easier thanks to reduced dependence on the already-overburdened B12 route.

Yes, and run the risk of backing up Broadway Junction itself. Since we're talking about sending a route that's already serving Downtown Brooklyn over there (and without its counterpart, to boot), we're also talking about having more buses run behind, and all to stroke someone's ego.

While we're at it, let's talk about just how far away Broadway Junction is from the relevant parts of Liberty Avenue. It's not. Yes, it can be difficult to reach (thanks, planners!), but there are already several access points to that area from Liberty Avenue itself. In addition, Alabama Avenue is a short walk away from Broadway Junction itself.

I also want to point out that the last sentence in my previous response was meant as a warning to watch what you say regarding what you propose, but it's rather obvious that it didn't register, as "god" was more clearly referenced.

1 minute ago, JeremiahC99 said:

Ever since the B40, which once served that section, was discontinued, riders going from east of Ralph Avenue have no great way to head further east. By putting a bus route back there like god intended, B45, B47, and B65 passengers can have a bus to take that goes further east, improving access to the Howard Houses and reliving crowding (and consequently) providing a connection to the B12, B20, and B83 routes.

You literally don't need a bus on Liberty Avenue just to serve Howard Houses, and there are better ways to connect with the B20 and B83 than having a route that's alreay serving Downtown Brooklyn via an unspecified route north/west of Grand Army Plaza (and that's assuming there's even a significant number of people clamoring for that connection in the first place).

I also don't think I need to tell you about how your statement reads.

2 hours ago, JeremiahC99 said:

That could work, but instead of full length eastern Parkway, I suggest having the route start at Broadway Jct, head south on Pennsylvania Avenue with the B20 and B83, and take Liberty Avenue and East NY Avenue to Ralph Avenue, then south on Ralph Avenue to Eastern Pkwy, where it would continue on Eastern Pkwy. This would fill in the gap on Liberty Avenue that has existed after the B40 was discontinued haphazardly without replacement. At least this would serve a new market than fully duplicating the B12 route.

What is the obsession with that part of Liberty Avenue?

1 hour ago, YankeesPwnMets said:

Flew into the city last night, came into Manhattan and saw a bunch of M14's wrapped with SBS wrapper

Did the MTA finally set a start day for the 14 SBS or are they just borrowing fleet from somewhere else?

It's in the works. (It was actually supposed to start in a different form, but Cuomo suddenly decided that he and a bunch of deans with little field experience knew better.)

55 minutes ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

Northbound trains have resumed making local stops from Sheepshead Bay to Kings Hwy after our crews removed a soccer ball from the roadbed that caused the train's brakes to activate at Kings Hwy.

I can't help but wonder how someone managed that.

2 minutes ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

There's already airport express bus service in Midtown to JFK and LGA.  The fares are almost three times the price of the express bus though for obvious reasons.

https://www.nycairporter.com/

I was actually talking about attracting more ridership south/east of Forest Hills. Derp.

I actually want to shift gears and talk about some of the maintenance and dispatching issues (since I'm obviously not an express bus rider, I'd rather not go to the thread you started). Since both tenets seem to suffer especially badly at certain depots with both local and express routes (Yukon, College Point, Ulmer Park), do you think it would be worth looking into getting depots dedicated to express service (with substantial storage space and maintenance facilities, unlike present-day Meredith) built so those depots with local routes can focus on supporting just those routes?

10 minutes ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

The QM18 as it is gets most of its ridership up in Forest Hills. It was cut back a bit from South Ozone Park because at the end of the line there wasn't any real ridership to justify the delays with the traffic etc.  Additionally, the trips are already an hour and twenty minutes as it is, and a good 45 minutes of that is spent doing pick-ups.  You would have to bank on that line getting enough ridership south of Forest Hills to make it somewhat profitable.  

Perhaps more could be attracted with a fare closer to the local bus and subway fare. Of course, given the expense of operating the service (getting the buses moving will help, but that alone is insufficient) and the possibility of some feeling like they may stick out too much (they may perceive the express routes as being for elites, even though that's not actually the case)...

34 minutes ago, 2Line1291 said:

I read Lenox Yard was a maintenance yard previously so I dont know if it will be any costly trouble of converting it back to a maintenance facility almost similar to Jerome Yard on the  .

That was before the area was developed. When most of the land was sold, the yard shrank to its current size.

It's bad enough that Coney Island is prone to flooding. Lenox isn't even open-air anymore, and it's closer to the Harlem River than Jerome is to a reservoir. Moreover, I can't even be certain that there's enough space to even perform maintenance, to say nothing of being able to make service and provide spares. Bear in mind that there are only 22 tracks left for the yard itself, not to mention that a train going to the yard would have to end at 135th Street (northbound only) in order to avoid potential conflicts between northbound and southbound trains, as well as allowing people in the rear half of the train to disembark. That runs the risk of delaying 2 trains in both directions, as northbound 2 trains would need the train to move before entering the station, whereas southbound trains need to cross the northbound track.

Of course Dyre Avenue riders get shafted...

27 minutes ago, Cait Sith said:

It appears that some Novas have been sent back....8508 and a few others are back upstate at the plant.

I hope there's nothing wrong with them. The last thing we need at this point is to have more delayed deliveries.

48 minutes ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

When you say "rethink", what do you mean by that?

Basically, what I'm wondering is if the current policy of mutual closed-door service and bus platforms with little to nothing in common with the local fleet's platforms is actually sustainable. Based on the fact that people have been talking about the MTA trying to cut it, I can't help but suspect it actually isn't. (I really don't want to believe that, but even with better ridership numbers, it would still be rather expensive to operate.)

I'm no fan of the current setup of the Eastern Parkway Line between Franklin Avenue and Utica Avenue. I would honestly prefer reconfiguring that entire stretch into a more traditional setup. Aside from facilitating a better connection with the Nostrand Avenue Line, it would also come with a larger relay area that directly connects to both the express and local tracks. By doing this, we would be able to avoid trying to reinstate bad practices (awkward deadheads to yards that run the risk of significantly crippling operations of other routes) and make short-turning at Utica Avenue easier for local trains.

1 minute ago, ibroketheprinter said:

Crazy idea, eliminate A division and rework all stations to at least be up to B division and upgrade tech so that trains can go 60+ on express runs

 

=

Even if we were to try to do that, the expense wouldn't be worth it.

I'm on the fence about this, but with the complications of running the service, cases of improper use (irrespective of documentation), and how the routes may be the only ones (or close to the only ones) available in certain areas, we may need to rethink our express buses.