Jamall Hayden

1.) I just wish more people looked at Grand Central Madison from the operational aspect in terms of flexibility. The current Amtrak owned east river tunnels are due for repairs and would drastically reduce Lirr’s service to Penn station, riders can still have direct Manhattan service via East side access! The current unfortunate East Bronx residents would also indirectly benefit from East side access via the Penn station access a project that would bring Metro North to Penn station via Amtrak’s Hell Gate Line. 2.) Is it possible for Metro North to Access Grand Central Madison from the Hell Gate Line once Penn station access opens? I know it would kinda defeat the purpose of Penn station Access but it still gives East Bronx residents quick and direct service into Midtown. If Grand Central Madison continues to be as underutilized as people say it is then maybe the M.T.A (if it’s possible) could send some Metro North trains to G.C.M and reroute more Lirr trains to Penn Station that way G.C.M gets utilized more and L.I residents can get more service to Penn station.

Why did the M.T.A discontinue the 30 day unlimited express bus plus MetroCard? This would be a great help to areas with little or no subway service like (Staten island, Yonkers, Lake Success, Southeast Queens, East Bronx, e.t.c) providing a comfortable one seat ride to Manhattan. It would also provide a good alternative (cost wise) to the commuter rail (Lirr, Metro North) in certain overlapping service areas outside the city terminal zone (Yonkers, Floral Park and Bellrose). The price for a Weekly ticket from Floral Park/Bellrose to Manhattan costs $86.50 and the Weekly ticket from Yonkers to Manhattan costs $79.25 vs the 7 day unlimited express bus plus MetroCard which costs $62. Correct me if I’m wrong but I think the Bee line bus Bxm4c used to accept the 7 day unlimited express bus plus Metro Card route if Bee line bus never raised the fare to $7.50 the overlapping areas would also include (White plains,Greensburg, Hartsdale, Scarsdale)!

The Bxm4c used to have Commuter Coaches, a fare on par with MTA Express routes, 7 day service, serve lower Manhattan and (correct if I’m wrong) used to serve the White Plains Trans-Center. They strip all this away and wonder why it’s not performing as well as it used too? 😂

Why not?

Septa’s Silverline V rolling stock is an E.M.U capable of serving non high level station future orders of M8s can be designed in a similar way which eliminates that issue of not being able to serve low boarding stations.

There has been a lot of talk recently about through service in the NY region some designers suggest that the new Penn station should be designed with this service pattern in mind. 1 major obstacle people are pointing out is that all 3 transit agencies (Lirr, Metro North, Nj transit) all use different power systems Lirr (over running 3rd rail) Metro North (under running 3rd rail) Nj transit (overhead catenary). Metro North’s m8 railcars are capable of running on all 3 different power systems (above running 3rd rail, under running 3rd rail, overhead catenary) the real issue is that it can’t use the overhead catenary past the hell gate bridge running into NJ or probably any of the overhead catenary in NJ. Should All 3 agencies study the feasibility of modifying the current M8s to be able to use the overhead catenary past the gate interlocking in Queens and NJ or having future orders of m8s designed specifically with that ability in mind? What are some other obstacles preventing through service? What are some ways through service can better ingrate with other services (i.e NYC subways/buses, suburban buses, NJ transit buses/light rail, path e.t.c)?

I’m not completely against adopting some battery electric buses and I understand it’s still an evolving technology but at the same time I don’t think it’s a good idea to put all your eggs in 1 basket. What if there’s a power outage and you can’t power the battery electric buses? I think the future M.T.A fleet should also include some Low emission vehicles like C.N.G and other no emission vehicles like Hydrogen fuel cell. Sunil Nair, chief officer of the MTA’s zero emissions fleet transformation addresses some of the issues with implementing large scale all battery electric powered fleet, “You have stop-and-go traffic, you have cold weather conditions of the Northeast, you have elevation changes,” https://www.thecity.nyc/platform/amp/environment/2022/4/27/23045575/mta-surging-ahead-with-electric-bus-plans Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have a longer range (up to 350 miles), are better suited to handle extreme weather and hilly areas and have faster refueling times. https://www.newflyer.com/bus/xcelsior-charge-h2/ The M.T.A could gradually replace some it’s current C.N.G equipment with hydrogen ones. Have all battery electric E.V handle short to mid distance routes and use hydrogen and C.N.G for longer commuter routes or just keep some as spares just in case!

What is the stigma surrounding express routes? How would you suggest getting rid of the stigma?

I’m not against subway expansions they’re good for the long term. The improvement of express bus service is a great solution for the near term. My solutions would be to have a cheap off peak fare $3.75, create park and rides in select areas and create more H.O.V lanes catering towards M.T.A buses on local streets and strictly enforcing it! A lot of money is going towards fixing/upgrading roads bridges e.t.c due to recent infrastructure funding the M.T.A could use this as an opportunity to work with the NY D.O.T to find a ways to make them more transit friendly. On highways have current h.o.v lanes cater towards M.T.A buses and or potentially find new areas to do so like Hylan boulevard (Staten Island) and Union turnpike and Merrick boulevard (Queens) make sure it’s STRICTLY enforced. Be creative make more “Super Express” routes like the Sim 8x which originate from park and rides and make even fewer or no stops to Manhattan with certain S.B.S features like off board fare payment and the new strictly enforced bus lanes for a faster one seat commute!