Via Garibaldi 8

On 8/2/2023 at 10:28 PM, Biz711 said:

Good evening,

I am looking to see how we get an express bus from Far Rockaway, NY to the Wall Street area in New York City. Currently there are many of us that take the ferry from 108th street in Rockaway to Pier 11 Wall Street. However, many of us would like an express bus to get us to the wall street area. I had asked all of us on the Shuttle bus to the ferry if they would like an express bus and they all said yes.  One of the reasons are that the weather is a big factor with taking a ferry from Rockaway to Manhattan and not to mention there is a stop in Brooklyn. We have the QM17 and the QM16 that goes to midtown but nothing that goes downtown.  How would we be able to get this service added for those of us in Rockaway Beach, NY - Far Rockaway, NY. etc.  

Thank you for your assistance and guidance. Greatly appreciate it.

Elizabeth

Hi, I'm not active on here on anymore. I will DM you to discuss further.

23 minutes ago, checkmatechamp13 said:

And he has every right to ask that question as well...it should be the Queens-Midtown Tunnel in both directions, and buses should go down 5th/Lexington rather than making a whole extra loop.

Listen I asked you to stop tagging me and it seems like you have a hard time understanding.  I am not interested in speaking with you. If you continue to harass me, I will speak with the mods. No means no. Stop tagging me. This is the second time I'm saying it.

-----

@IceBreaker768

For every person that wants an express bus down the LIE, there is someone else that has complained about buses being stuck on the LIE (some QM5 trips do use the LIE back to Queens), so everyone has their opinion about which way routes should go.  For that reason I don't get into that discussion because someone will always complain.  You asked the question about why it goes the way it goes back to Queens and I hope I answered it.  That's the routing it has had for years and some take the LIE as the standard route (Super Express trips) and others here and there to avoid traffic, but it isn't set in stone because the LIE has its own problems at times, so there is no perfect route.

3 minutes ago, QM1to6Ave said:

The chicken probably wanted to sit in the front seat, but the B/O was blocking it with his bags

I'm still working on that and the Stop Requested screen issues.

On 3/14/2023 at 4:45 AM, Mtatransit said:

 LIRR still treats its system, despite all the positive spin they put on the new schedules as primarily a service to transport passengers from the suburbs to Manhattan. Everything else seem incidental in their view. Quite frankly I think their definition of reverse commuter is people commuting from Manhattan to Long Island, 

Screw the outer boroughs, screw inter-island ridership, screw transfers. Everything is catered towards Manhattan

 

Metro North does a MUCH better job at serving people "not going to Manhattan"

Oh please. Metro-North has a similar attitude and their focus is on serving the suburbs and monied areas of the City that take Metro-North.  It's a commuter railroad, not a subway and yes the focus is on riders going to Manhattan. What a insane idea.  

1 hour ago, IAlam said:

So this was found on an express bus today

Yeah morning rush hour bus from Riverdale. Chicken supposedly hopped on the bus at the depot with the driver in Yonkers.

39 minutes ago, Gotham Bus Co. said:

 

The Queens Bus Network Redesign seems to have all  trips using the LIE west of 188th.

Yes because in the Queens Redesign those buses wouldn't make stops west of 188th St. That is not the case now.

1 hour ago, Icebreaker768 said:

Is there a reason Queens BLVD is the normal route, cause in the morning they use the LIE and its fast. Thanks!

Yeah, I just said. It's the normal route and has been for years.  That's like asking why the buses take the Queensborough bridge going to Queens and the Midtown Tunnel going to Manhattan. lol

19 minutes ago, Icebreaker768 said:

Follow up above ^ What are the steps I can take to push the MTA to use the LIE on the return trip, unless there is a reason they are not allowed to use the LIE?

22 minutes ago, Icebreaker768 said:

Hello,

Anybody knows why the QM buses use Queens BLVD on the return trip? I use the QM5 at Douglaston, and take the late night bus. However this trip takes way longer then it needs to due to Queens BLVD being used when the LIE is fast as hell. Thanks.

Queens Blvd is the regular route back to Queens, that's why. 

4 hours ago, Lawrence St said:

You have no idea.

In the transit community, there’s always some type of childish drama going on, wether it be fighting, name calling, etc etc. It’s disgusting. And most of it is over stupid shit, like train cars.

The amount of incidents that have occurred on special excursion trains (like the TOMC or R211 inaugural ride), have gone up tremendously and it’s concerning. On the R32’s it was fights and vandalism, on the TOMC it was someone getting pulled off the train by NYPD and everyone around the incident screaming and recording the altercation, and now you have this.

One person is in custody and the other two have been identified.  NYPD Hate Crimes is also investigating. Hopefully the people that think this isn't a big deal realize that you can't go around doing stuff like this.  

https://abc7ny.com/subway-attack-nyc-autism-suspects-identified/12957070/?ex_cid=TA_WABC_FB&utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A Trending Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR2PRIiFMZV--2wpoAeGvAGirVhhWDrxWGvhDVv7OcK9yxdKzncaZijzdJw

1 hour ago, mikecintel said:

Hi,

Yes I do have it linked to my OMNY account online and yes the one I just lost has money on the old card and when I get the new card I can transfer the balance from the old to the new card.  That is not the problem.  The problem is if I "lose" another OMNY card the 3rd one and I have to purchase another OMNY card then I would have to pay the $6 again for the new card and that adds up as you know. E.G 6+6+6+6 = $24. $5 to purchase card and $1 for activation so that makes it $6 to purchase a card. 

As a matter of fact I did call OMNY yesterday and tell the rep my situation that I lost the card and I suspended the card and I said when I purchase the 3rd card I already have paid the MTA a total of $18.00 already and she said I am so sorry and I do apologize  for this that when you lost a card or you have a stolen card you will have to get a new card and add $1 minimum and it becomes $6 and I am sorry to hear that you lost your card. 

I said to the rep can't the MTA have people to make a "deposit" where you deposit $6 and when you don't need the card you can refund the $6 back to the customer and they will return the card. Then what the rep told me that when everything is finalized "thing will change and that is what the MTA told the rep which is us.  I said oh so they are going to change the rules and she said yes and I said do you know what they will change and will they require deposit and the rep they didn't tell us except they only said that things will change when everything is finalized.  So when I head that from the Rep I said to myself I am going back to the unlimited Metro Card for now until they phase out because things will change again.  I do not want to give the MTA $6 if I keep losing the card if you know what I mean.  My intention is NOT to keep losing the OMNY card but things happen accidentally as you know.

I can't speak for the , but I can say that I have heard that the upfront cost of the OMNY card has been a discussion and a concern, because it is expensive for some people.  $5.00 for the purchase of the card +$1.00 to load it over the course of seven years (which is when the OMNY card expires) is pretty cheap, but because there have been complaints, they may revisit the cost structure.  

19 minutes ago, mikecintel said:

I just lost my physical OMNY card 2x. Yes 2x!  The 1st one was I thinking going to Costco and when I checking out it  "dropped" out of my pocket and I didn't hear anything.  The 2nd time was yesterday March 14, 2023 and it was in my pocket again.  I don't put my phone in my pocket where my OMNY card is but for some reason I did that. When I got to Bryant Park I took my phone out to see if when my train will arrived. Then when I get to Brooklyn and take the bus to work and I need to take out my OMNY card it is gone then I realize that I dropped when I took out my phone to see the train schedule.  I went to 7 eleven at Brighton Beach to see if there were OMNY card and it is SOLD OUT.  Went to Walgreens across the street and it is SOLD OUT.  WOW are they selling like hot cakes? Anyway I am going back to the Metro Card for now because I can't "claim" like the Metro Card if I paid with my credit card from the vending machine and I lost it I can call MTA to refund my metro card amount or how many days I have left for the unlimited card. 

My question is will the MTA when they release the OMNY vending machines and you pay the with credit card will they let you "claim" again like oh you lost it so refund you the lost OMNY card.  I will stick with the old Metro Card until it phases out Sigh. I really do like OMNY but if I lose my OMNY card I have to keep paying $6 to the MTA.  So now I would end up paying $18 to the MTA now if I did purchase a 3rd OMNY card now.  I will wait.  I don't like to put OMNY card virtually on my phone because I don't know what gets transferred to the MTA.  All my contacts are on my phone.  I can't wait until the last week of March and the meeting will be on 27th and 29th for the general meeting and it will be on OMNY.  After March we will have to wait for 6th months until October 2023 for another OMNY meeting ugh.

You can get a new OMNY card and OMNY can put your balance from the old card onto the new one.  I'm pretty sure you have your OMNY card linked to your OMNY account online, no? If so then OMNY can see the card.  I would call them and alert them accordingly.

23 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

You have no idea.

In the transit community, there’s always some type of childish drama going on, wether it be fighting, name calling, etc etc. It’s disgusting. And most of it is over stupid shit, like train cars.

The amount of incidents that have occurred on special excursion trains (like the TOMC or R211 inaugural ride), have gone up tremendously and it’s concerning. On the R32’s it was fights and vandalism, on the TOMC it was someone getting pulled off the train by NYPD and everyone around the incident screaming and recording the altercation, and now you have this.

Yeah it's pretty wild. You know what's funny to me is that I can only recall one time in all of the years that I have taken the subway where I have seen a railfan taking photos or whatever and that was several years ago at Columbus Circle and at that time I was wondering what the guy was doing since it was rush hour. I just saw him going around the platform taking photos. If it wasn't for this forum, I wouldn't have known the hobby even existed.

5 hours ago, BreeddekalbL said:

 

And besides if a new "el" were built wouldnt they be concrete like the airtrain jfk?

4 hours ago, IAlam said:

New elevated rail lines aren't as loud as the previous el lines we have built, If you go to other cities like Philly or Seattle you can see they're much quieter. 

Sure, but I'd put money on it that most people living in such environments moved to them willingly, knowing what they were getting into and perhaps were looking for a deal to boot.  Even if they aren't loud, they are still there, so property values are not going to be as attractive.  People want to be NEAR public transit. Being near it and having it right outside their door are two very different things. lol  I remember my first apartment overseas over ten years ago...  I had the option of living in Downtown Florence (Italy) near to everything on a very central but noisy street, OR I could live on a nice quiet street in a more exclusive area.  Price was roughly the same at about $1,800 - 2,000 a month when you consider the exchange rate and the cost for water and utilities.  Which do you think I chose?

3 hours ago, Lex said:

In that case, what are we waiting for?

I honestly question how much of an impact that would really have, as the increased connectivity -- especially with modern construction methods -- would, at worst, only slightly reduce property values. If noise is really that much of a concern, use Sapporo as a reference point.

At some point, we'll really need to get over this aversion to setting up elevated lines, and I say this as someone who doesn't exactly like heights.

For hell to freeze over. lol The only people that think this is the "cool" thing to do are "urbanists" that have nothing to lose. The types I see on social media posting non-stop about making every area of the City "dense" while they are shacked up living with five roommates (lol), or people that just think it's "cool" to have some new rail line to fan or whatever, BUT none of these people would have to deal with any of the ramifications of such projects, so of course they want it built - it doesn't impact them.  Funny how that works...

Realistically speaking, if your biggest asset is what you're living in that you paid money out to live in, you are not interested in losing money on that investment.  That's just the truth, and if you have no problem losing money on it living in what is now the most expensive City in the US, you probably need your head examined. 

I've never heard of anybody that owns real estate here say oh yeah I want a rail line on my block that decreases my property value.

2 hours ago, bobtehpanda said:

 

That's not the reason why the extension was rejected.

An LGA runway directly ends at the GCP. If you have ever driven in the area you'll notice very stubby streetlamps. Indeed, if you look at that neighborhood on Google Maps, there is a whole-ass clear zone where there are no buildings that are legally allowed to be built. Nothing can be in the general path of that runway and taller than those streetlamps. So you can't really build an elevated line from the west.

There's also a 90 year old storm and wastewater pipe that is apparently critical for serving hundreds of thousands of people in Queens that is also underground in this location, so it's not easy to build a tunnel either.

Here's the report: https://www.panynj.gov/content/dam/port-authority/press-room/press-kits/lga-mass-transit/2023-03-13-Full-Report%2bExecutive-Summary.pdf

Yes, logistics were the main reason, but my comments were in response to people saying that hadn't the NIMBYs left Astoria or whatever.  

1 hour ago, ABCDEFGJLMNQRSSSWZ said:

Bruh why everyone obsessed with these fighting kids?

In some ways by talking about it we are giving them attention they don’t deserve.

I don't think you and a few other people realize how serious this is being taken. A gang of teens beating another one while it is being recorded. This is not normal behavior and if it is over some trains, that makes it even more ridiculous. 

4 hours ago, NBTA said:

That was actually a random fan just being ignorant. Probably around the age of 14-15, probably black himself as well.

2 hours ago, NBTA said:

To add on to this, there’s videos of him jumping and fighting other transit fans, more infamously, in Astoria (I believe 30th Avenue).

Yeah well they should be prepared to note all of this when they are dragged in by the NYPD because the video posted and shown in the media paints a much different picture and all it shows is a bunch of Latino kids beating up a Black kid while racial slurs are being hurled. I don't know how that can be a "misunderstanding". Smh

I'm not that old and had friends of all backgrounds growing up. That term was not just thrown around so casually unless someone did something to really piss someone else off. Still makes no sense to me.

To "jump" someone means that someone else is joining him to gang up on someone else. 

58 minutes ago, NBTA said:

I second this. Believe it’s true honestly.

Even if he did, I don't understand the racial slurs. I'd be curious to understand what insults the Black kid used, if any. In any event, the three Hispanic teens better have a good explanation because it is being painted as a racist attack/hate crime in the media, whether true or not, and as it stands, their attack is on camera.

1 hour ago, Vulturious said:

From what I heard, and this is just a rumor so don't quote me on this, the girl that was attacking the dude only attacked because the dude was disrespecting Kavon (the person that died train surfing a few weeks or months ago on the Williamsburg Bridge). Apparently, she's the girlfriend and didn't take too kindly to what the kid was saying. The kid, again from what I heard, was confirmed to be Mr Foamer who's rather infamous in the transit community for hate speech (ironic) and attacking people on social media and the different platforms he's on. 

I honestly wouldn't be surprised if this story were to be true given that Mr Foamer has gone out straight up laughing at Kavon when he died train surfing. I would know because I've seen some of the stuff this person has said through screenshots from other people about him. Again, this is just a rumor and the investigation is still continuing so we won't know any more information until we hear more news.

Well it doesn't look good. It's all on video with the racial slurs being hurled. If I was on that train I would've been just as confused as some of the other commuters were.  This is in the media now and is being classified as a hate crime:

https://patch.com/new-york/washington-heights-inwood/black-teen-attacked-kids-screaming-racial-slur-wash-heights-pd?fbclid=IwAR24VOfj0Mv5a4J8j_Gpm3jW2YaXvIaDRSbYwV-mijR-RZOzgV-uvfqY8uU

There is also a rally being held:

This may have been an isolated incident, but there have been a number of Latino on Black racist incidents in Washington Heights and Inwood lately, and this certainly doesn't help matters.

6 hours ago, Calvin said:

The two folks on board the R211 last Friday with another person are now wanted for assault at 181 St, same time around 5:30 PM. It was all from footage onboard the R211 and posted on the NYPD 34th Precinct Twitter account. 

*There's a lot of info that's hidden as the person being attacked spoke a lot in bad talk. 

I saw the video online.  Apparently some Latinos attacking an autistic Black kid and hurling the "N" word. What was that all about?

Just now, Lawrence St said:

Your telling me you wouldn't want the wonderful sounds of the  train right outside your window?

If I wanted that I'd live in Manhattan. lol Areas outside of the City away from the subway are an escape and allow for piece and quiet, not to mention that property values would immediately decline.

50 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

I moved to NJ moving to Riverdale next month to be closer to my job!

Well that would never fly here. lol

37 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

I absolutely would. Adds to the ambience of the city.

You don't live in the City or did you move from Westchester? lol

16 minutes ago, T to Dyre Avenue said:

No, but if I had an extended  or  train to Whitestone, I’d switch from the QM20 bus to it in a second. Big gap in buses + heavy LIE traffic = late to work again this morning. Hell, I’m sitting in very slow BQE traffic right now. 

Besides, the majority of the extended  route would likely have been via 19th Avenue, which is a mostly industrial area with a substantial amount of parking lots.

I can assure you that having a train overheard roaring by does not help property values. That's why most people don't want them, regardless of how old they are. Your quiet, leafy Whitestone would be anything but. 

1 minute ago, T to Dyre Avenue said:

Ah…AirTrain or no train. Port Authority wouldn’t have it any other way.

It’s been 20-25 years! How many of those unpleasant NIMBYs are still around anyway?

Nobody wants some noisy overhead thing in their neighborhood.  Would you like an AirTrain overhead in Whitestone?  Likely not.

3 minutes ago, NewFlyer 230 said:

That is also why nobody cares to enforce the fare. It is a free for all in the city, that is why I want to leave when I get the chance. 
 

And there are some people that will argue that we need LESS cops.

1 hour ago, MysteriousBtrain said:

Funny how it's advertised assaulting an employee is punishable by up to 7 years but almost every incident like this one rarely anybody gets caught

 

The cops are under assault in this City, so good luck with anyone else getting justice for being assaulted.

14 minutes ago, xD4nn said:

The majority of complaints are coming from Atlantic Terminal. Just because you don't like it doesn't mean everyone else is the same as you....

The majority of the riders use Penn and that's where the majority of the complaints are from, followed by Atlantic Terminal riders.  What I "like" is irrelevant. lol Most of the changes being made are for Penn riders, so I'm providing facts and you are spewing rhetoric. Just like you said ridership out of Grand Central is "increasing". What does that even mean?  No specifics.... With some trains leaving GCM empty, "increasing" could mean anything.

The complaints from Atlantic Terminal riders are mainly about the shuttle service and it being disorganized, which is a valid complaint, aside from the obvious lack of direct service which means longer trips, etc.  Penn riders are dealing with overcrowding, poorly timed connections, longer commutes and longer waits between trains, particularly if they want direct service, so it's fairly obvious to see what the issues are and who is being impacted the most.