Via Garibaldi 8

2 hours ago, RandomRider0101 said:

I'm not saying that ridership isn't high; trust me I've seen and been on crowded trains and buses pretty often since ridership climbed to somewhat normal levels. What I'm saying is that it isn't to the same degree as before; That's why MTA is making the mentioned service adjustments.

I also never said I supported congestion pricing; if the situation is really that bad, then I'm sure they will put the plan on hold until they know for sure when they'll have more cars available. I'm assuming that's why they selected the June 2023 date, because they expect a decent amount of R211s to be in by then.

In any case, I hope that happens since there has been constant delays; if it means making sure that the R211s are as reliable as possible when they enter service, then they should take all the time they need.

 

The fact of the matter is, ridership is still only about 60% of pre-pandemic levels overall, so while some buses and trains may be crowded, ridership is only a little more than half of what it normally was pre-pandemic, which for the  is no good, given that they rely on fare box revenue for a chunk of their operating budget.

9 hours ago, Lex said:

The individual in question has a hyperfocus on the R46 cars.

I'll take your word on it, since I'm not sure which subway cars those are. lol

7 hours ago, Lex said:

Maybe you should go back over the announcement.

Why?  At best this is a cost neutral move and at worst, a service cut. Even if they have enough equipment (if that's what you're focusing on?), they still don't have enough personnel to run the service that they currently have, so either way it's a problem.

I think this is a poor decision.  Sure they should increase service on weekends since ridership is growing and has rebounded faster, but they're doing this during the week in JUNE, when more people may be out and about because of warmer weather.  This change is coming SIX months from now... I actually avoid traveling with the  on Mondays because they can't meet their schedules. They should consider that. They are still struggling with staffing and dealing with cancellations.

1 hour ago, Chris89292 said:

Why would they reduce service on mondays and fridays? It’s not like everyone don’t take the train during those days, at this point they’re just creating random services to make themselves look like they’re doing their job on making service better 

Did you read the link they posted?  The response as to why was very clear. Ridership is supposedly lighter during those days.

38 minutes ago, texassubwayfan555 said:

I still do this as I don't know what things deserve their own threads.

Should be straight forward. If it's something that will likely be discussed for several pages, it should have its own thread. If it's just a random thought that can be answered in one or two responses, it probably doesn't need its own thread.

2 minutes ago, CyclonicTrainLookout said:

Huh, I didn't even realize I can create a thread here. I'll do that then.

Yes you can.  Some new users just put everything in the Random Thoughts Thread because they don't know better.

34 minutes ago, CyclonicTrainLookout said:

https://new.mta.info/press-release/new-york-city-transit-outlines-subway-service-adjustments-coming-2023 Not sure where to put this but I think this thread may be the best option.

New scheduled service changes coming next year includes:

• Increase of weekend service on the  lines by reducing headways by 2 minutes
•  express/local rush hour service to begin earlier during weekdays. A morning rush hour  to Manhattan will start one trip early while a  local service will start earlier to compliment the  shift
• Reductions to the  lines Monday to Fridays due to overall low ridership during weekdays (thanks to hybrid WFH options becoming more of a norm).

These changes are to go effect around June 2023.

You can just start a thread specifically for this. Not everything needs to go in the Random Thoughts thread. This should have its own thread for discussion.

2 hours ago, RandomRider0101 said:

Between the 2011 New Flyers, Novas, & Orions, which buses are the best? Which are the least best?

Least best?  You mean which are the worst...

1 hour ago, Lawrence St said:

A question...

Knowing how  is with trying to shush opposers of the plan, its a question.

I think he was pretty clear about what they did, which is not allow him to speak after he raised his hand to do so.  This was a virtual meeting via Zoom, so it's easy to control what people do and can't do.  

Has anyone been experiencing leaks from the roof on the new Prevost express buses when it rains? I know this has been an issue on the older Prevosts, particularly those on the Staten Island lines. Ridiculous.

5 hours ago, QM1to6Ave said:

Yeah, I have heard BOs say they will only take out an MCI from the depot 

Some of the drivers hate those buses.  They also don't like being enclosed behind those shields.

2 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

…except sign problems, which was my point.

The sign issues are the least of the problems. Putting the sign issues aside, none of the other major problems are attributed to any street conditions whatsoever.  

33 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

Yes they are brand new but any bus is subject to the rough roads of NYC with all the potholes everywhere.

Except none of the issues with these buses have to do with rough roads. lol

2 hours ago, Bill from Maspeth said:

If indeed there is an employee in charge, he, she has to be overwhelmed!

There is someone in charge and I can assure you they're not overwhelmed.  If it wasn't for me complaining, they wouldn't be addressing any of this.  So far they've agreed to do the following:

-Adjust the seats back to the original Prevost configuration on hundreds of new express buses

-Re-program the screens so that the "Stop Requested" signage is displayed when the bell is rung - there is no longer a bell up front (still a work in progress, as there are still issues where the driver is unaware that someone wants a stop when they ring the bell).

-Adjust HVAC due to buses being unbearably hot.  Had a guy get off of the bus and throw up from being overheated with just a t-shirt on.

The opted to make changes to this order knowing that there was things like less leg room due to then wanting more wheelchair spots, yet didn't do anything until I started complaining to them.  Aside from that the vendor Prevost has done a poor job with quality control. I've been on several buses where screws are already falling out of the overhead areas, leaving sections just dangling.  

On the older Prevosts, quite a few of them leak when it rains.  I am almost certain the new ones will have the same issue.

1 hour ago, Lawrence St said:

The destination signage isn’t the fault of Prevost per-say but rather  not maintaining them. Most of the time cables get knocked loose and don’t get fixed for a while.

These buses are brand new.  Destination signage, poor HVAC and a host of other issues... Most of the drivers say that these buses are garbage and quite frankly, I have to agree with them.

41 minutes ago, 7-express said:

Thanks...I'll report on any buses that appear to be hot.  My theory is that the thermostat is at the front of the bus where it's cooler and the climate control system doesn't know it's cooking the back...shoddy corner cutting for Prevost likely.  And agreed that the overhead vents are relatively useless on the Prevosts vs the MCIs...blows either nothing or barely anything that won't flow down to the seat.

I was on a bus last week where the Stop Requested sign appeared to be stuck but I wasn't sure if it was because the driver never reset it at a stop.  The driver did complain the bell system was acting up and he didn't have an indication of a stop requested on the dash.  Really wish they would've had an old school light in the front to at least get around some of these digital disasters.

These buses are just shoddy and the issues are endless. Some buses already have broken destination signage displays.   

2 hours ago, 7-express said:

I got to experience what you were talking about today.  Rode on 1335 and it was a sauna on board.  The back was super hot while the front was much more mild.  I sat in a window seat but had to move because the window vents were really warm.  I didn't have an IR thermometer on me but the vents felt like they were at least 90 degrees to the touch.  A warm bus is nice during the winter but not this warm!

Also the GPS and screens were out on this bus and the driver and I couldn't figure out how to turn it on.  With the screens dead, the stop requested bell didn't even work and wasn't showing up on the dashboard for the driver.  We had to resort to calling out our stops verbally instead.  Not sure if this was an electrical gremlin or this is just how the system behaves but it seems asinine that the stop requested system is tied to the screens only.

These buses have had HVAC issues from the very beginning and some have been sent back to the manufacturer (Prevost).  Any bus that you board that is that hot, please file a formal complaint to have it pulled and the air adjusted.  Since I last posted, they have started addressing the air problems (there is still some warm air given that it's cold out, but it's not a sauna and at points of the trip, cold air blows out from the side vents to keep it comfortable - the overhead blowers usually don't blow out much like the old ones during these cold months), but it won't happen immediately, so report any of them you encounter. https://contact.mta.info/s/customer-feedback

As for the screens, I noticed on Saturday coming home that they also started addressing that, that is reprogramming the screens.  Before when ads played, you could not see the "Stop Requested" signage until the bus was practically at the stop, which meant people missing their stop. However, there still seems to be a glitch where when the "Stop Requested" sign is displayed and ads are below that, sometimes there is no sound playing, so it seems as if the driver has no way of being notified when the bell is requested UNLESS they hear the automated stop being announced, so even with the "Stop Requested" signage displayed, the driver still skipped a stop. Smh I have to follow up with the (again) about this (they should be paying me as a consultant at this point for all of the sh*t that's going on with these buses).  Truth be told, before Sarah Meyer left, she reached out to me, and I had started talking with them about that issue and their tech team was working on it, but then someone from the tech team left too and apparently it was dropped, so now it's being worked on again since I started following up.

As for the blank screen, that sounds like yet another malfunction (I had a new bus like that over the summer where the screens only came on sometimes and other times they went black, even when a stop was requested).  The problems with these buses are never ending and so big that it takes a long while to work through the issues since they impact hundreds of buses.  As it stands the seat adjustments are happening (noticed the difference on the bus I was on Saturday with more leg room), but with so many of buses to work through, they still have several weeks to go before they will be done (they had to order parts for the Prevost technicians, which were delayed due to COVID), as each bus has to be pulled and sent back to the manufacturer to work on them.  I think myself and my contacts are both worn out.  None of these issues should've happened, but there seems to be no quality control and just about all of the problems mean these buses have to be sent back to Prevost - I believe these are all issued covered under warranty, so the vendor has to fix them.

Judging by some of the issues with the older Prevosts (roof leaking during rainstorms, etc.), I don't have high hopes of these lasting very long. Two different buses...

So far folks in Marine Park have not been pleased to learn that the B2 is being proposed to be eliminated.  Assuming they are vocal enough, they may bring it back.

1 hour ago, Lawrence St said:

It’s a very sad reality in NY when the driver asks a passenger for their fare and the passengers response is “call the cops”. Shameful.

Drivers aren't supposed to be asking for anything. They're supposed to hit F5 and leave it up to the  to handle.

42 minutes ago, Cait Sith said:

I would think, from 3rd, left on 30th, left on 3rd. The stop list has it ending and starting at 3rd & 30th.

Yeah that makes the most sense and is very easy. They can't come around any other way from there unless they go further north.

15 minutes ago, Lex said:

If people could actually get there fairly easily by bus, I have no doubt you'd be able to establish a decent base. As it is, people who don't use a car will probably have to hoof it to/from 39th Street or the subway (in part) because the B37 hardly exists.

Good point.  Last time I was there I walked around to several stores mainly for some specialty food items.  Made my rounds, but before that walking around I noticed that it felt sort of isolated.  Couldn't even begin to tell you what transit I would've used if I had to. lol  I do know that some people in Bay Ridge shop there, so maybe Bay Ridge or Dyker Heights people will use the bus. 

3 minutes ago, Lex said:

That's Industry City, which is actually a shopping center.

The section of 39th Street west of 3rd Avenue is nothing more than a glorified turnback for the B35 and especially the B70. At the same time, it's much too far away from the venue to actually be particularly useful to people with good hauls (as one example, someone who just scored a bunch of PC components for a new build at Micro Center).

I shop there, but go by car, as do many people.  I do wonder how many people would take the bus there. 

4 hours ago, BrooklynBus said:

Just found out something very interesting. They used a consultant to develop the routes. So what does their Operations Planning Department do? 
 

Even more interesting is the consultant they chose who employs the same person who did all their bus planning in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. The person I was constantly at odds with when pushing through my Southwest Brooklyn Plan of which only about 25% was accepted. 
 

in fact, I was hired to replace him in 1981 after he screwed up the first Brooklyn redesign attempt by spending 90 percent of the money and accomplishing only 25 percent of the tasks. The first think I had to do was get more federal funds to continue. I only had six employees to develop an entire Brooklyn plan which was much better than what the 300 MTA employees and a consultant came up with this time around. Why it went nowhere is another story. 
 

My first three months were spent having my staff clean up a mess he caused. He fired the hundreds of survey temps on Friday, only to rehire them the following Monday as new employees. That way he saved the MTA having to pay them sick and vacation benefits. They found out and retaliated by sabatoging the survey data. He was eventually fired by the MTA many years later for some impropriety. Now he is back still planning Brooklyn Bus routes. 
 

The more things change, the more they remain the same. So much for taking a fresh look. 

Yeah they've done that for the other boroughs as well.

28 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

Two questions: Why doesn't the BxM7B & Bx29 turn around at the southern tip of the island where the old dock was?

And with the BxM1, why not split the Inwood portion into it's own separate route out of Quill Depot?

What difference does it make? The last stop is City Island Avenue and Rochelle St for the BxM8 and Bx29 in City Island, so they usually just turn there or go down to the very end at Belden Point and turn around. The BxM1 via Inwood doesn't have enough ridership to warrant its own route.

55 minutes ago, MysteriousBtrain said:

When I refer to no change, I do mean route wise. Not really gonna bring up stops bc that's literally almost every route. If we're talking about service spans, I don't see much that I don't dislike but I'll give credit to the B76 and B5/6. The B76 make sense since it's designed as a part time route to begin with, and I'm happy the B6 LTD has 7 day service.

Yes I know what you mean.  Just noting that because bus stop elimination is also a big part of this plan and some stops up for elimination are quite popular.