aemoreira81

Already had that elsewhere. What might need to be considered are automated fire extinguishers (why that wasn’t considered after 1391 was firebombed in the 1990s is beyond me) on all cars.

The TWU says it was the T/O.

The dead man is an MTA employee on duty at the time...likely the conductor.

Doing backdoor only? That’s what she said!

Not yet! That was on the Q53 today. That said, it seems odd that they're using the old LaGuardia Link livery over the blue and yellow scheme.

It even says Prevost on the dashboard!

Also, until COVID-19 hit, artics on the Q70 were actually a regular occurrence. As many as 3 would appear on the line in the PM.

For New Flyer artics. Nova LFS artics have the same turning radius as their rigid counterparts, as the forward wheelbase is 244 inches, same as the LFS rigid.

Depends on the route. I had to take a trip to the supermarket today, and the forward trip was still front-door boarding, but the return trip had the front sealed off.

I didn't argue for S40 service reductions, as the North Shore needs the service (although I would say there needs to be more even spacing, especially in the PM rush) with service to Matrix Park. I have to wonder if there might be justification for an S48 variation to Matrix Park as well (I'll call it the S49), operating along South Avenue and Edward Curry Avenue to Matrix Park. (I see the S46 as being too slow for a variation, plus it has a similar catchment area up to Castleton Depot.) Resurrecting the S62 branch to The Teleport doesn't sound too bad either, except rerouting it to Matrix Park.

I have to wonder if on some lesser-used lines, at least on evenings and weekends, it may be useful to run only half-length trains to save money, similar to the 2-car SIRT trains at night (and for the SIR, 3-car trains as the new normal might not be so bad right now). Can trains be broken up at terminals with half a train taken back to the yard, or can this only be done in the yard? (This issue also suddenly justifies the retirement of the 55-year-old R32 fleet, which was supposed to be retired about 15 years ago.) The frequency needs to be maintained, but I would argue for a capacity reduction depending on the line. Also, with the next mass shipment of N95 masks coming here, I would say that it should be mandated for all front-line personnel to wear them, either TA issued or their own if they have their own.

With NYC being the epicenter of COVID-19, might it be a good idea to run on local buses on a Saturday schedule or (for routes that don't run weekends, a supplemental?) (SBS would still run.) How a spring pick will be done will be interesting since ridership has collapsed. Some service changes I would propose in the interim (citywide - local service only): Brooklyn: B2: Service temporarily suspended; B100 service available 750 feet away on Fillmore Avenue B6, B35, B41 (Bergen Beach): No Limited service B8: No direct service into the VA Hospital (buses would stop on Poly Place) B8, B9, B11, B17, B46 (Local and SBS), B52, B63, B65, B82 (Local and SBS): One fewer bus per hour B15: Terminate alternate airport trips at Lefferts AirTrain B20: No short-turn trips (Broadway Junction to Louis Pink Houses) B41: Bergen Beach trips end at Empire Boulevard B44 SBS: No short turns B46 Local and SBS: alternate trips start and end at Fillmore Avenue (Avenue N for SBS) B49: alternate southbound buses bound for Manhattan Beach terminate at Sheepshead Bay B60: some Canarsie bound trips terminate at Rockaway Parkway Bronx: Bx1: No Limited Service Bx5: Eastbound service terminates at Pelham Bay Park , alternate trips terminate at White Plains Road, using West Farms buses Bx6 (Local): westbound service terminates at Yankee Stadium. Bx9, Bx11, Bx21, Bx35, Bx36: One fewer bus per hour Bx12 (Local): Alternate westbound trips terminate at Grand Concourse. Bx12 (SBS): Eastbound service terminates at Pelham Bay Park. Bx15: Short turns eliminated. Bx20: Service temporarily suspended Bx22: All northbound service terminates at Fordham Road Bx26: One fewer bus per hour. Bx27: Alternating trips on weekdays terminate at Morrison Avenue Bx28/38: Service combined, no service directly into Bay Plaza (buses stop on Bartow Avenue). Bx36: Alternating trips end at University Avenue and Washington Bridge. Bx41 (SBS): Temporarily suspended Bx46: Temporarily suspended Manhattan: M60 SBS: Reduce to 12 minute headways from 7-10 M98, M106: Temporarily suspended M102/M103: Temporarily combined. (M101 makes local stops north of 116 Street.) Queens: Q3: Most southbound trips end at Rockaway Boulevard. Trips into JFK Airport operate only every 30-36 minutes. Q4: AM limited stop from Jamaica Center suspended...local trips start and end at Springfield Boulevard. Q5: service to Green Acres on alternating trips only. Other trips terminate at Hook Creek Boulevard and Sunrise Highway (Green Acres Commons has essential stores, but in the mall proper, only Target would be considered essential). Q6: Alternating southbound trips terminate at JFK Depot. Q10: Alternating local trips terminate at North Conduit Avenue. Alternating Limited trips terminate at Lefferts AirTrain. Q20B, Q42: Supplemental schedule operates. Q25/34: Limited service suspended. Q34 only operates from Whitestone to Flushing on a supplemental schedule. Q27: No AM limited stop from Main Street , all service bypasses CUNY QCC; 8-minute headways all day instead of 5-7. Q30: No service to CUNY QCC; one fewer bus per hour. Q33: Service extended into LaGuardia Airport. Q35: Service every 15 minutes all day (instead of 10 during the rush hour). Q36: Supplemental Little Neck Parkway service Q37: All service bypasses Aqueduct Racetrack/Resorts World NYC; service every 8 minutes during the rush hour. Q44: Service every 6-10 minutes instead of every 4-8. Q47: Service runs to 80th and Myrtle (with The Shops at Atlas Park closed). Q58: Limited service suspended. Q64: AM trips starting at Parsons suspended, service every 8-12 minutes. Q65: Limited service suspended, alternate northbound service terminates at Main Street Q69: One fewer bus per hour. Q70: Temporarily suspended. Q83, Q84, Q85: Limited service suspended. Additionally, on the Q85, alternate Green Acres trips terminate at Hook Creek Boulevard. Q113: Temporarily suspended. Staten Island: All Limited service except for S89 and S93: Temporarily suspended. S44 and S59: the northern stop at Staten Island Mall (Macy's) will be skipped. The southern stop will be made as that services Lidl, a supermarket. S55 and S56: service into SI Mall starts and ends at Lidl. S61: service every 20 minutes. Trips operate into SI Mall at Lidl to connect with the S79 SBS. S62 and S93: Alternate trips to and from Travis, and all S93 service, will start and terminate at Jewett Avenue. (The CSI campus is currently sealed off.) S79 SBS: One fewer bus per hour. Additionally, all trips will start and end at the Lidl bus stop at Staten Island Mall. No Marsh Avenue service or Macy's stop.

I have to wonder if the MTA is considering wholesale service cuts, but not to the point where a hearing would have to be held, as ridership has fallen precipitously citywide because of COVID-19.

Probably because, as 5299, that bus was involved in a fatal accident. I have seen this done before in aviation, where a Southwest Airlines plane was involved in a fatal car crash (runway overrun) as N471WN. After repairs, it was re-registered as N286WN.

I would only keep the S25 proposal, and have that as an express bus fare. Keep in mind that the LFS buses are capped at 40 mph as per MTA policy. That said, I can't see service being justified 24/7---maybe 4:30 AM to 11:30 AM (EWR departs 75 minutes later). The S23 should be split in two...as I don't see a market from SI to just Perth Amboy. On the NJT end, the 813 and 817 don't run on Sundays, while the 48, 116, and 815 do). However, I do see a market to Metropark, which could be justified weekdays and Saturdays via the Amtrak and NJT rail connection, with a rush-hour extension into the business park, and to Raritan Center rush hours only. (This would be contracted with buses supplied by the MTA and leased to the contract winner, as I see it necessary to store buses in NJ.) Keep in mind that the SIM23 and SIM24 are currently dispatched out of Academy's Perth Amboy lot, shared with the NJ Transit Middlesex County local operation. The S27, I would instead run St. George to downtown Elizabeth via Richmond Terrace, Port Richmond Avenue, Forest Avenue, Bayway Avenue, and Broad Street. This would be weekdays and Saturdays only.

There are actually significant enough differences between the 5439-5602 batch of LFS buses and the 1200s/5253-5363/5770-5986 batch of LFSs that can't make one a substitute for the other for training. (The blue-and-yellow LFS buses do not have convex mirrors on the driver's side, while the older models do.) The mirror specs on Xcelsior artics, by contrast, have remained the same from 4710 up to the XE60s. Also, I wonder if an XN60 will now be used on the morning B1 run that's out of Gleason.

By now, one has heard about the CUNY and SUNY situation. The S93 is one of two bus routes that pull into a college campus (the other is the Q27). However, the S93 exists almost exclusively to serve the College of Staten Island. With in-person classes virtually over for the spring semester (because of COVID-19), S93 buses would be basically carrying air. Would it be possible to reduce service this late in the game for the Spring 2020 schedule, with a pick likely ongoing at Castleton Depot to basically just every 30 minutes between 6 AM and 7 PM only (CSI departure; Bay Ridge departs 45 minutes later), with the last two S93 trips from Bay Ridge terminating at Jewett Avenue?

Similarly, I believe that bus 6110 at one time did a test run on the B35 before its articulated conversion. The only difference is the vertical clearance.

One thing I would want to ask...especially since it would save money: why not have the Q53 and Q70 as one route? This may require a contract renegotiation to allow this, but this is how it would work, rebranded as the Q53 all the way. Pull-out from LGA to Jackson Heights with Driver A. Driver A does a trip to LGA and returns, to Roosevelt and 74. Driver A gets off, and Driver B takes over to the Rockaways Driver B arrives back in Jackson Heights, gets off, and Driver C takes over to LGA. (It could also work where the pullout is southbound.) The Q44 SBS currently works in a similar matter, with driver changes at Main Street and 39 Avenue/ Operationally: these signs would exist as the main ones...northbound: Q53 Select Bus Q53 LaGuardia Link Q53 via X-Bay/Woodhaven Q53 via Broadway Q53 LGA Term B-D-C or Q53 Select Bus Q53 via X-Bay/Woodhaven Q53 via Broadway Q53 74 St Jackson Hts LAST STOP Southbound Q53 LaGuardia Link Q53 LAST STOP: Q53 Jackson Heights Q53 or Q53 Select Bus Q53 via Broadway Q53 via X-Bay/Woodhaven Q53 Rockaway Park As for customers at Woodside, they can take the to 74th Street and then go downstairs for the Q53, or use a rerouted Q70 that only runs Woodside-Jackson Heights-Marine Air Terminal (this would be for LGA customers flying jetBlue, the exclusive tenant at the Marine Air Terminal). During late nights, 12:30 AM to 4:30 AM, the Q70 would not run, and the Q53 would run to Woodside, with no Q53 service to LGA. The Q33 would instead run inside the airport.

I have to wonder if there will be enough buses to make the Q70 SBS articulated once the remaining XE60s are delivered. One could reduce frequency by as much as 35-40 percent as an artic in the MTA's configuration would maintain the same capacity. Then the remaining XD60s at MTA Bus in SBS livery could be changed to local livery, especially at JFK, which mostly pools the Q10 and Q52 SBS with one fleet.

Right outside Elmhurst Hospital.

Is the space under the el wide enough for buses in both directions to traverse? If only one direction can go there, I'd send eastbound buses that way. I would imagine that the trolleys that used to travel there weren't 102" wide.

Two thoughts/questions: 1. What is preventing the XE60s now from being sent out into service? 2. Whose bright idea was it to put a LaGuardia Link bus on the Q53, which needs the capacity?

That's a different one in the Bronx. These streets are owned and maintained by the Forest Hills Gardens Corporation. The existing Q23 skirts the edges of the neighborhood. That is something the MTA will have to live with. I would actually ask if another route is needed that runs straight down Yellowstone, which would serve a slightly different catchment area.

For what it's worth, Vancouver (TransLink, all bus routes) has been all-door boarding since 2007. They are the largest mass transit bus system in Canada outside of the Quebec City-Windsor corridor. I don't see why the MTA can't do so (express buses excluded).