Via Garibaldi 8

I don't want to say that it's three hours, but checking my OMNY account, it was definitely over two hours and 30 minutes. I must say that I've been surprised myself, thinking I had to pay in some cases, but received a free transfer. Now if they only had fare capping for the express bus. I don't ride enough for a pass anymore, but still use it a few days a week for this and that.

The could care less. On weekends, there seems to be no dispatching whatsoever. I decided to take the express bus yesterday to run an errand and wish that I hadn't. Could've went elsewhere by car. Waited almost an hour for one bus. Four buses were do. First one left early as I was walking to the stop. I said, no biggie, I'll get the next one. Well that was over 50 minutes later. Two buses pull in late, then a third one and they all go on layover then all start at the same time, and I'm pretty sure at least two of them were late, if not all three. What does him seeming like a nice guy have to do with his reckless behavior? He's responsible for other people while he is in service, whether he's a nice guy or not. There's a reason using cell phones while in service is prohibited. Over the years, I have never had a driver using a cell phone while in service, but a few passengers have said that they have had drivers using cell phones while on the expressway, nonetheless at high speed (traffic was moving). You loose control for one second and it could be disaster. Being a nice guy won't change the result if someone is injured or killed.

I think everyone knows that congestion is bad all over. Why? Because more people started driving. There are a number of reasons why congestion has worsened. Yes, narrowing of streets doesn't help with Vision Zero, but the big one in my mind are the explosion of FVHs and how horrendous the has become.

To be on the safe side, you should keep say $2.75 on it (I'm using that as an example because it's the base fare and they wouldn't suspend the card with a fare left on it), otherwise they will still suspend it, even with a balance on it. Sometimes I just put $20-30 on a card at a time. The other day, I had something like $1.50 left on it Friday evening after I paid $6.75 on the way home and it suspended my card about 25 minutes after I had tapped. If I needed the transfer, I would've had to reload money onto it to get it, which is ridiculous. They have never suspended the card that fast, which leads me to believe that it was an error. They give you over two hours to complete a transfer. I know because recently a bus I was transferring to was severely delayed and they still gave me the transfer when I was sure I would be paying another fare.

Well either it's a software issue or they made a change because they weren't suspending cards before so quickly. My card had a balance left on it. A small balance but a balance, plus I technically still had a transfer, so it shouldn't have suspended my card 25 minutes into the trip. I don't see why in your case you need to have a balance to take advantage of fare capping. They likely don't want people going into the negative.

They are having some software issues still, which is a problem. I noticed when I took the express bus yesterday going home, my OMNY card was suspended about twenty minutes after I tapped. That means if I needed to transfer, I would've had to have added more money to do so, which was not the case before. It's annoying because that means that you can't just add the amount you need for the day. You have to keep a minimum amount on the card. Before they would suspend it after a few hours to allow you to use the transfer on your card. Right now I only use the a few times a week, so there's no need for me to be adding more than what I need.

These bus operators are unbelievable. Mask mandate ended yesterday. Now all of a sudden, they are masked up when the majority of them haven't been since the pandemic began. Tonight I got one that had the nerve to ask me if I needed a mask. Now I had one, but opted not to wear it because it is no longer required. Getting off the bus, I asked him if he asked the guy behind me that was getting off with me if he needed a mask, since he too was maskless. He says no because because you didn't have one. I will definitely be escalating my complaint for sure now.

It's the Mill Basin trip, with ONE photo of Mill Basin? lol

It's worth nothing that the first stop often times is skipped from what I have heard, in part because there isn't a ton of usage at the end of the route. Not excusing it by any means. Just putting it out there in case people try to use the first stop. It would be wise to get the bus further along the route. That said, anyone bypassed should file a formal complaint. That's the only way to correct the problem.

I will inquire today now that the mask mandate is lifted. The QM8 is out of the same depot as the QM2 & QM20.

One announcement on masks on the express bus. Masks are now OPTIONAL. The mandate ended today with Governor Hochul's announcement, which was effective immediately. Signage on the express buses will be changed as buses can be updated and I will reach out tomorrow to ask that all express bus operators are reminded/made aware of this change. I already had a complaint from a QM8 rider that was told that they needed a mask tonight when the mandate is over. No passenger should be denied service if he or she decides not to wear a mask. I will also inquire about the latest regarding seats being blocked off on the new express buses given this change with the madate.

Yeah if I saw him I'd recognize him immediately. I've had him on quite a few QM lines.

I will reach out about this tomorrow and ask - I think a few people in the group have been complaining, but I had no idea as to why. As for late QM5 buses, yes, I have noticed quite a few lately when checking at random times and I mean REALLY late too. Maybe that's why. Was the Asian guy a middle aged guy? If so I have had him a few times. Last time I took the QM1 to Queens he drove it. We're talking pre-pandemic when I had a meeting out in Kew Gardens for work.

Yeah well since they were required, I always wore one. There was one time when I forgot it in my office and couldn't find it so I said screw it, as I was not missing my bus for that. Driver didn't care. I keep a bunch of extras at home though just in case. Even gave a driver I know a few, as he always would forget then ask if I had extras, so I brought him two from home one morning. lol

Long overdue. I only wear a mask now on the express bus, otherwise, nowhere else.

I haven't paid attention quite frankly. Next time I get one at night I'll check it out. The QM5 is problematic on weekends because it has to do too much, so some trips end late.

Yes, my point was they received the funding they needed to keep afloat NOW until into 2024, even with the current ridership situation. Their financial situation back in 1941 is irrelevant and has nothing to do with the present in terms of this funding. They have the funding NOW to keep running the service and they should be doing just that. There is no reason to excuse this happening when they got that money for one thing and one thing only... To keep running the bus and train service. Yes, they have had to borrow more because of the State robbing funding from them over a number of years, but that doesn't excuse the reckless spending that they have engaged in either. Spending $30 million for one subway entrance (that already existed) isn't exactly wise. There are other examples of reckless spending, so they certainly haven't helped their situation. Then there are the fare beating problems. Several Board members have been urging the agency to address the problem that they have lamented about for the last several years. They are not in a position to let hundreds of millions of dollars walk out of the door. If they can't find more funding, they will either have to cut service and/or raise fares in the long run, which will further hurt their situation, so they should continue to run the service that they were given funding for, find ways to generate new sources of revenue/funding and get their fiscal house in order and find ways to mitigate their rampant fare beating problem.

Three minutes means three minutes. People should have their speech prepared and timed. I'm against the plan as it is currently presented and finished in the allotted time. There are hundreds of people waiting to speak and the majority of them are courteous of everyone else and finish before their time is up. Others think they can just keep speaking until whenever despite being told in advance that they have three minutes and have no intention of wrapping up, so yes, they should be cut off. Congestion Pricing was passed into law years ago. The only question now is what the fee to enter the congestion zone will be and if there will be any exemptions. The tolls/fees for the other bridges are what they are and are not changing. The only way that this plan will change is if it is repealed or modified in some way, but the fee will be $9 - 23. It seems that some people are coming up with all of these proposals about this and that when none of that is part of the plan.

UN week won't be as terrible. Fewer people working in the office. I think office occupancy is something like 30%, maybe a little higher. I am going back to work from home permanently soon, but currently only in the office once or twice a week. Counting down the time... Excellent. I kept hounding their tech team about it via e-mail and they kept promising that they were working on it.

There was a very late QM5 to Midtown (the 7pm). Not sure what the story was. One step forward, two steps backwards. The positive is that they seem to finally be reprogramming the screens on the new express buses to address the Stop Requested issues so that when you request a stop, the Stop Requested alert remains on the screen from the time the bell is rung until the time the bus reaches the stop. Noticed it last weekend when I was coming home on the express bus. Took them long enough, ax I had been following up with their tech folks for a while. In the bad side, these express buses have ongoing problems. The latest is that a number of them leak, like this one. Bus is only about six years old. Second bus this week... Yesterday I was on a new one and I thought something was going to fall from the overhead area and hit me. Kept hearing the strangest sounds from the overhead area. The screws on some of the new ones fall out leaving sections of the overhead area just dangling. Shoddy manufacturing...

I did reach out today to my folks about this because I've been boarding a number of the old express buses where seats are blocked with personal belongings, which should not be happening. Will continue to monitor. How has service been in terms of the QMs running on-time?

It's because on the newer express buses, the distance is closer to the bus operator in terms of the first few rows in front. It's evident when you board and exit the bus too. It's narrower. I was told that the chains will remain on the new express buses until further notice. I believe the ones that were outfitted with the new floor to ceiling shields offers better protection, but the new express buses that have those "shower curtains" have to be pulled over time and retrofitted with the new shields. Obviously if the seats are blocked off then it doesn't matter if personal belongings are in them, as they are not supposed to be used to sit in (unless the driver allows it of course).

Was it an old express bus of a new one? Chains are only supposed to be on the new express buses (should be the first two rows) and that is because of the space between the first few rows and the bus operator. Chains should not be on any of the old express buses. Personal belongings should be put in the overhead bins. Since things have been developing with this, I confirmed recently with the since a number of commuters were inquiring in my group about it.

Yeah, unfortunately some people confuse their capital budget and their operating budget. They are not one and the same and are funded differently. A chunk of the capital budget is funded years in advance. Both are problematic in terms of how they are funded and involve too much borrowing, but their operational budget is esp. volatile now with them trying to predict ridership levels and revenue from that, which they overestimated substantially, as it has not recovered as quickly as they thought it would. Now they are trying to figure out how to get people back. It's very simple. Get the crime in the subways under control. A lot of the issues in the subway are tied to fare evasion, as the perps creating the problems are not paying and some people refuse to use them, myself included. The days that I go into Manhattan, I take the express bus and I will grab an Uber or Revel from there if I need to be elsewhere that the bus does not go to.

Traffic has varied, though I only go into Manhattan now twice a week and will be moving back to work from home permanently soon. I'm not sure how often I will be driving into Manhattan when this is implemented, but likely not often, and if I do, above the congestion zone. That assumes that there will be the same service provided now of course.