BUS - Random Thoughts Thread

[Lex]

2 hours ago, Lawrence St said:

@SevenEleven I got a question for you, are there GPS issues on SI? I ask because multiple times I've taken the S40 the sign is signed up in the wrong direction and the farebox isn't recognizing it's going the other way.

That seems more like the driver(s) punching in the wrong code(s).

Edited November 25, 2021 by Lex

[Lawrence St]

22 minutes ago, Lex said:

That seems more like the driver(s) punching in the wrong code(s).

That can't be right, the fareboxes are programmed to go in schedule mode.

[B35 via Church]

23 hours ago, Future ENY OP said:

....Personally, what I don’t like is that with the 103 is making the Park Slope stops. It drags the route a bit longer. Right after 4th and Pacific bus should be hitting the highway to checkpoint. It has no business servicing Park Slope. (I don’t know if the community board asked the TA to service park slope for the 103) but whatever the issue is the 103 is slightly slower than when it was in command.

That's not a fair comparison, because the B103's usage in general has exploded ever since Command operated the thing....

Aside from that, I personally don't take issue with those added stops, as quite frankly, the B103 could usage the extra patronage b/w the Junction & Downtown Brooklyn.... Otherwise, the MTA would go apeshit in running more B103's b/w Canarsie & the Junction (or looking at it the other way, having less B103 service run Downtown).... There is still an overwhelming majority of B103 riders east of the Junction that bolt for the than those that take it Downtown... While you could claim it's directly proportional, I notice somewhat of a decrease in B103 usage in Downtown Bklyn... What I also notice is that the usage the added stops in the part of the route in question gets, more or less offsets it.... So I don't really notice much of any lagging/dragging along the B103 because of those added stops...

What I will say, is that I still think there's value in having the B103 run Downtown - so any reasonable amt. of an influx of riders past the Junction I'm pretty okay with.... The NB stop by the Whole Foods (3rd st) dropping off pax. & the SB stops at [4th st] & at [the 4th/9th station] both picking up pax, are being used rather moderately.... Moderately, and not heavy - to the point where it drastically affects runtime...

Now if they start adding more stops along that stretch of the B103, then that could open pandora's box (so to speak).... That is what I wouldn't necessarily advocate for, as it would be overkill....

20 hours ago, MysteriousBtrain said:

I believe the situation was after the 2010 cuts they added stops on the B103 because Park Slope/Gowanus residents complained too much about the loss of the B37 so the B103 was somewhat modified. (Even though the added stops and restored B37 happened nearly around the same time just separated by a couple months)

That's just it - the actual complaints regarding the loss of the B37 were coming from the Bay Ridge end.... The B37 has always been this sort of bastard stepchild for Park Slopers/Gowanus patrons & that is actually being generous... In laymens, there wasn't that much fuss about the B37's loss from the more northern part of the route....

13 hours ago, Around the Horn said:

IIRC it was a compromise for not extending the B37 all the way to Court Street. The idea was that they could just take the B103 instead.

While I believe coverage past Atlantic-Barclays was a part of it, I also believe those B103 stops were added along 3rd/4th av's as a sort of silent "apology"... I'll explain.

Remember when they had B103's coming off the Prospect Expwy. at 7th av, to run via 7th av > 9th st > 5th av, to Flatbush av, to get Downtown, back in 2012? Their reason for that was due to 3rd av. being plagued by "extensive traffic congestion".... That was around the time when heavy (or... "extensive"... lol) construction along 3rd av, around 19th st (more or less where the Gowanus Expwy. diverges from running above 3rd av.) & points north was ongoing.... The irony was that B103 riders AND Park Slopers bitched about that, for 2 totally separate reasons... The former because it was actually slower than the routing that preceded it & the latter because Park Slopers did not benefit from B103's taking on that routing (it made no stops along 7th av., 9th st., or 5th av).... That routing change of the B103, combined with the already having been discontinued B37, meant that nothing was left on 3rd av. north of the Prospect Expwy...

While the construction wasn't the MTA's fault, I actually believe the MTA believes that 7th av > 9th st > 5th av > Flatbush av. routing of the B103 was done hastily.... More fuel was burned/wasted & no fares were collected... Double whammy.

Edited November 25, 2021 by B35 via Church

[trainfan22]

There's an SBS XD40 (7679) on the B82 today even though its a weekend schedule.

Edited November 25, 2021 by trainfan22

[Future ENY OP]

5 minutes ago, trainfan22 said:

There's an SBS XD40 (7679) on the B82 today even though its a weekend schedule.

Very interesting find. Just that too bad the doesn't want to expand the services of the B82SBS to weekend service. It shouldn't be about numbers. But in this business it's all about the ridership numbers.  Too bad there's no B6 limited today b/c of thanksgiving and that's another route that needs to be 7 days- limited service.  Hopefully, then the time comes for the B6 to become SBS they will address that issue.

[Jdog14]

3 hours ago, Future ENY OP said:

Very interesting find. Just that too bad the doesn't want to expand the services of the B82SBS to weekend service. It shouldn't be about numbers. But in this business it's all about the ridership numbers.  Too bad there's no B6 limited today b/c of thanksgiving and that's another route that needs to be 7 days- limited service.  Hopefully, then the time comes for the B6 to become SBS they will address that issue.

 

That is assuming the B6 is left as is (with varying ridership bases on top of it)

[Calvin]

The M50's have started being rerouted between 5th and 6th Avs due to the Tree with crowds at Rockefeller Center. The crowd will also be back during the New Year week as it was announced that the ball drop will welcome guests on that occasion. 

[paulrivera]

Took the BxM3 back from the city tonight, and there were actually about 12 to 15 people on it.

That seems high to me for it on a Saturday in the early to mid-evening, but it's not a bad thing either. I hope more people continue to find out about these express buses. They have a nice vibe to them and many of the routes could use all the riders they can get.

Edited November 28, 2021 by paulrivera

[QM1to6Ave]

26 minutes ago, paulrivera said:

Took the BxM3 back from the city tonight, and there were actually about 12 to 15 people on it.

That seems high to me for it on a Saturday in the early to mid-evening, but it's not a bad thing either. I hope more people continue to find out about these express buses. They have a nice vibe to them and many of the routes could use all the riders they can get.

THe QM5/6 to Queens on Saturday nights are pretty busy starting in the late afternoon...I took one tonight with 15 people on it. The frustrating thing is the B/Os drive slowly because they are given 25 minutes to get through all the stops in Manhattan, which is much too long, even with holiday traffic

[Future ENY OP]

On 11/25/2021 at 1:51 PM, B35 via Church said:

That's not a fair comparison, because the B103's usage in general has exploded ever since Command operated the thing....

Aside from that, I personally don't take issue with those added stops, as quite frankly, the B103 could usage the extra patronage b/w the Junction & Downtown Brooklyn.... Otherwise, the MTA would go apeshit in running more B103's b/w Canarsie & the Junction (or looking at it the other way, having less B103 service run Downtown).... There is still an overwhelming majority of B103 riders east of the Junction that bolt for the than those that take it Downtown... While you could claim it's directly proportional, I notice somewhat of a decrease in B103 usage in Downtown Bklyn... What I also notice is that the usage the added stops in the part of the route in question gets, more or less offsets it.... So I don't really notice much of any lagging/dragging along the B103 because of those added stops...

What I will say, is that I still think there's value in having the B103 run Downtown - so any reasonable amt. of an influx of riders past the Junction I'm pretty okay with.... The NB stop by the Whole Foods (3rd st) dropping off pax. & the SB stops at [4th st] & at [the 4th/9th station] both picking up pax, are being used rather moderately.... Moderately, and not heavy - to the point where it drastically affects runtime...

Now if they start adding more stops along that stretch of the B103, then that could open pandora's box (so to speak).... That is what I wouldn't necessarily advocate for, as it would be overkill....

That's just it - the actual complaints regarding the loss of the B37 were coming from the Bay Ridge end.... The B37 has always been this sort of bastard stepchild for Park Slopers/Gowanus patrons & that is actually being generous... In laymens, there wasn't that much fuss about the B37's loss from the more northern part of the route....

While I believe coverage past Atlantic-Barclays was a part of it, I also believe those B103 stops were added along 3rd/4th av's as a sort of silent "apology"... I'll explain.

Remember when they had B103's coming off the Prospect Expwy. at 7th av, to run via 7th av > 9th st > 5th av, to Flatbush av, to get Downtown, back in 2012? Their reason for that was due to 3rd av. being plagued by "extensive traffic congestion".... That was around the time when heavy (or... "extensive"... lol) construction along 3rd av, around 19th st (more or less where the Gowanus Expwy. diverges from running above 3rd av.) & points north was ongoing.... The irony was that B103 riders AND Park Slopers bitched about that, for 2 totally separate reasons... The former because it was actually slower than the routing that preceded it & the latter because Park Slopers did not benefit from B103's taking on that routing (it made no stops along 7th av., 9th st., or 5th av).... That routing change of the B103, combined with the already having been discontinued B37, meant that nothing was left on 3rd av. north of the Prospect Expwy...

While the construction wasn't the MTA's fault, I actually believe the MTA believes that 7th av > 9th st > 5th av > Flatbush av. routing of the B103 was done hastily.... More fuel was burned/wasted & no fares were collected... Double whammy.

Personally, I feel that the   could of addressed the detour a bit better and should of collected fares along the detour to make the route a bit more effective. While I get the whole general idea of the 103 stopping at the and the whole foods on 3rd Street it does create a good demographic for folks who want those stops and I give the TA some credit to creating those stops. Had that been with command (present day). There was no way this was happening.

I've always wondered if the 103 went down Smith/Court by-passing the whole 3rd/4th avenue segment (sort of a super express) to Canarsie. Although, court street isn't really traffic prone, but at times it can be a chokehold between Huntington & Hamilton Avenue.

[B35 via Church]

9 hours ago, paulrivera said:

Took the BxM3 back from the city tonight, and there were actually about 12 to 15 people on it.

That seems high to me for it on a Saturday in the early to mid-evening, but it's not a bad thing either. I hope more people continue to find out about these express buses. They have a nice vibe to them and many of the routes could use all the riders they can get.

The MTA isn't helping itself in this category (due to their continual embarrassingly egregious lack of advertisement when it comes to the things), but I would still be optimistic about express bus usage for the future.... I foresee a nice little shift of those that gave up taking the subway for those ridesharing services (or have resorted to driving) since the rise of covid, for express buses in the near future...

I was never gung-ho about the rideshare services because quite frankly, I never saw the model as being sustainable.... I'm hearing now that fares have skyrocketed on those things & waits have drastically increased on top of it, due to driver retention issues... Not saying if it's true or not, but it wouldn't come as a shock to me if it was.... Hell, I mean, it's a nice little hustle for a minute, then (most) drivers eventually GTFO for something more steady & profitable.... Anyway, you have people that love pulling on buses being a major culprit of traffic exacerbation, as if the explosion of cabs in this city in the recent past is some negligible (or even non-existent) factor or something.... The vociferous ramblings from all avenues (us city residents, out-of-town commuters that work here, even tourists, etc.) regarding the recent traffic explosion in the city is even more apparent/intense now, compared to prior assessments of traffic levels in this city, pre-covid (which was definitely nothing to sneeze at).... Pun unintended.

I'm not saying I agree with it, but the fear mongering of the subway system is working/is effecting people... You couple that with the declination of (the quality of) rideshare service{s}, it's going to push those that originally gave up taking the subway for the rideshare services, into starting to look into taking expresses IMO.... Biking & e-biking is cute & everything, but that also isn't a long term solution for most people... Personally I see all this biking/e-biking as a trend, but that's neither here nor there....

To sum it up, the MTA needs to get on the ball & start exploiting the shortcomings/flaws of their competition... Gotta keep a watchful eye of the market you're a part of, or otherwise engaged in.... Any smart business owner or investor will profess that sentiment.

[Lawrence St]

1 minute ago, B35 via Church said:

The MTA isn't helping itself in this category (due to their continual embarrassingly egregious lack of advertisement when it comes to the things), but I would still be optimistic about express bus usage for the future.... I foresee a nice little shift of those that gave up taking the subway for those ridesharing services (or have resorted to driving) since the rise of covid, for express buses in the near future...

I was never gung-ho about the rideshare services because quite frankly, I never saw the model as being sustainable.... I'm hearing now that fares have skyrocketed on those things & waits have drastically increased on top of it, due to driver retention issues... Not saying if it's true or not, but it wouldn't come as a shock to me if it was.... Hell, I mean, it's a nice little hustle for a minute, then (most) drivers eventually GTFO for something more steady & profitable.... Anyway, you have people that love pulling on buses being a major culprit of traffic exacerbation, as if the explosion of cabs in this city in the recent past is some negligible (or even non-existent) factor or something.... The vociferous ramblings from all avenues (us city residents, out-of-town commuters that work here, even tourists, etc.) regarding the recent traffic explosion in the city is even more apparent/intense now, compared to prior assessments of traffic levels in this city, pre-covid (which was definitely nothing to sneeze at).... Pun unintended.

I'm not saying I agree with it, but the fear mongering of the subway system is working/is effecting people... You couple that with the declination of (the quality of) rideshare service{s}, it's going to push those that originally gave up taking the subway for the rideshare services, into starting to look into taking expresses IMO.... Biking & e-biking is cute & everything, but that also isn't a long term solution for most people... Personally I see all this biking/e-biking as a trend, but that's neither here nor there....

To sum it up, the MTA needs to get on the ball & start exploiting the shortcomings/flaws of their competition... Gotta keep a watchful eye of the market you're a part of, or otherwise engaged in.... Any smart business owner or investor will profess that sentiment.

There is also the problem when it comes to budget cuts. Most of these advocacy groups will find out about these express buses and demand to eliminate them first before any core subway or bus line, especially with these budget cuts looming over in 2024. 

This year, back before we got extra money from congress, a lot of people were saying to eliminate all the express buses & fast Ferrys.

[Future ENY OP]

2 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

There is also the problem when it comes to budget cuts. Most of these advocacy groups will find out about these express buses and demand to eliminate them first before any core subway or bus line, especially with these budget cuts looming over in 2024. 

This year, back before we got extra money from congress, a lot of people were saying to eliminate all the express buses & fast Ferrys.

So how you address the issues of Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst, and all of Staten Island?. (Don't tell me SIR). That's doesn't do the job at all.

I would of said Coney Island but that area has decent transportation options.

[Lawrence St]

1 hour ago, Future ENY OP said:

So how you address the issues of Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst, and all of Staten Island?. (Don't tell me SIR). That's doesn't do the job at all.

I would of said Coney Island but that area has decent transportation options.

Any express line that does not duplicate the subway or doesn't have nearby alternatives.

For example, the.

[paulrivera]

55 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

Most of these advocacy groups will find out about these express buses and demand to eliminate them first before any core subway or bus line, especially with these budget cuts looming over in 2024. 

Yea, having these buses only run once an hour with 10 people or less per bus is quite the low hanging fruit. BUT, the majority of the expresses serve areas that aren't directly served by subway.

59 minutes ago, B35 via Church said:

The MTA isn't helping itself in this category (due to their continual embarrassingly egregious lack of advertisement when it comes to the things), but I would still be optimistic about express bus usage for the future.... I foresee a nice little shift of those that gave up taking the subway for those ridesharing services (or have resorted to driving) since the rise of covid, for express buses in the near future...

I was never gung-ho about the rideshare services because quite frankly, I never saw the model as being sustainable.... I'm hearing now that fares have skyrocketed on those things & waits have drastically increased on top of it, due to driver retention issues... Not saying if it's true or not, but it wouldn't come as a shock to me if it was.... Hell, I mean, it's a nice little hustle for a minute, then (most) drivers eventually GTFO for something more steady & profitable.... Anyway, you have people that love pulling on buses being a major culprit of traffic exacerbation, as if the explosion of cabs in this city in the recent past is some negligible (or even non-existent) factor or something.... The vociferous ramblings from all avenues (us city residents, out-of-town commuters that work here, even tourists, etc.) regarding the recent traffic explosion in the city is even more apparent/intense now, compared to prior assessments of traffic levels in this city, pre-covid (which was definitely nothing to sneeze at).... Pun unintended.

I'm not saying I agree with it, but the fear mongering of the subway system is working/is effecting people... You couple that with the declination of (the quality of) rideshare service{s}, it's going to push those that originally gave up taking the subway for the rideshare services, into starting to look into taking expresses IMO.... Biking & e-biking is cute & everything, but that also isn't a long term solution for most people... Personally I see all this biking/e-biking as a trend, but that's neither here nor there....

To sum it up, the MTA needs to get on the ball & start exploiting the shortcomings/flaws of their competition... Gotta keep a watchful eye of the market you're a part of, or otherwise engaged in.... Any smart business owner or investor will profess that sentiment.

At this point, I'm only traveling on the subway whenever I'm with a group of people. Like this weekend, I had family staying over in the city for the holiday and we all went from Midtown to downtown and back on the subway, but when I was alone going between the Bronx and Manhattan, it was the BxM4 down and the BxM3 back for me. And even with a group of people I felt uncomfortable going back to Midtown on the subway in the early evening (there were more skeevy people out and about then)

Edited November 28, 2021 by paulrivera

[Future ENY OP]

1 hour ago, Lawrence St said:

Any express line that does not duplicate the subway or doesn't have nearby alternatives.

For example, the.

I'm talking about Brooklyn/Staten Island alternatives here...  Not the Bronx.. However, nice example.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

12 hours ago, QM1to6Ave said:

THe QM5/6 to Queens on Saturday nights are pretty busy starting in the late afternoon...I took one tonight with 15 people on it. The frustrating thing is the B/Os drive slowly because they are given 25 minutes to get through all the stops in Manhattan, which is much too long, even with holiday traffic

It should be 10 minutes max all day just as it is during the week. I will look into this but any changes would have to be approved by the union and since the Winter pick is already here, nothing will happen until likely next year at the earliest. Next time I have a conference call, I'll bring it up.

[B35 via Church]

On 11/25/2021 at 2:08 PM, Future ENY OP said:

Very interesting find. Just that too bad the doesn't want to expand the services of the B82SBS to weekend service. It shouldn't be about numbers. But in this business it's all about the ridership numbers.  Too bad there's no B6 limited today b/c of thanksgiving and that's another route that needs to be 7 days- limited service.  Hopefully, then the time comes for the B6 to become SBS they will address that issue.

On 11/25/2021 at 5:38 PM, Jdog14 said:

That is assuming the B6 is left as is (with varying ridership bases on top of it)

I don't really see the MTA having 2 SBS routes on Flatlands av. out there in Canarsie.... The dynamic wouldn't be the same as with the Q52/Q53 for example, since the former is basically a short turn variant of the latter...

If they would try their hand at SBS-ing the B6, they may jump stupid & have the thing stay on Av. J from the west, all the way to Flatlands, to then continue on Flatlands doing the regular route to the , where they'd likely terminate the thing.... Only local service would run the full route, basically saying f*** you to at least, what, 25% of the route's riderbase.......

3 hours ago, Future ENY OP said:

Personally, I feel that the could of addressed the detour a bit better and should of collected fares along the detour to make the route a bit more effective....

If not for leaving the routing alone (back when that construction along 3rd av. was in its early stages), I would've temporarily had the thing run on Flatbush av. & go nonstop from the Junction to Barclay's Center (or have it make 1 courtesy stop at Empire for the Brighton line (and the Franklin av as a bonus)), instead of that 7th av > 9th st > 5th av > Flatbush av. crap.....

3 hours ago, Future ENY OP said:

....While I get the whole general idea of the 103 stopping at the and the whole foods on 3rd Street it does create a good demographic for folks who want those stops and I give the TA some credit to creating those stops. Had that been with command (present day). There was no way this was happening.

I've always wondered if the 103 went down Smith/Court by-passing the whole 3rd/4th avenue segment (sort of a super express) to Canarsie. Although, court street isn't really traffic prone, but at times it can be a chokehold between Huntington & Hamilton Avenue.

Something else that wouldn't have happened with Command is the influx of service that the many people that utilize the B103 currently benefits from, since the takeover....

Anyway, running buses via Smith/Court - Hamilton av, to eventually get to the Prospect Expwy.? Ouch, that would be torture.... That would not be worth it, just to have some sort of B103 variant that wouldn't serve those stops along 3rd/4th.....

You're right when it comes to Court vs, Smith, but the other facet of what you're wondering about would be too important to be ignored.... There are too many motorists in Brooklyn that done caught on to that quote-unquote Gowanus Expwy. bypass (the whole 3rd av - Hamilton av - BQE bit) for such a bypass to be effective for those seeking faster service on the B103 to/from Downtown... Once upon a time, Hamilton av. used to be dead as shit (traffic-wise), but those days are toast...

Edited November 28, 2021 by B35 via Church

[Lawrence St]

Did someone quote me in this thread?

[B35 via Church]

2 hours ago, paulrivera said:

Yea, having these buses only run once an hour with 10 people or less per bus is quite the low hanging fruit. BUT, the majority of the expresses serve areas that aren't directly served by subway.

I got this one... keep reading (below)...

3 hours ago, Lawrence St said:

There is also the problem when it comes to budget cuts. Most of these advocacy groups will find out about these express buses and demand to eliminate them first before any core subway or bus line, especially with these budget cuts looming over in 2024. 

This year, back before we got extra money from congress, a lot of people were saying to eliminate all the express buses & fast Ferrys.

Yeah, buses are easier targets than trains when it comes to budget cuts (with the subset of that being that express buses being easier targets than local buses).... Not sure when you started perusing these NYC-based transit forums and/or blogs, but if you've been around for a little minute, you would know that the express bus "hate" was pretty significant around these parts... Now, barely a peep.... If it was truly that much disdain for them, at minimum, those commentaries would still noticeably persist to this day..... So, I can't fathom that much of any local bus & subway riders are really going out of their way to have an express bus be cancelled because of __________ **(insert anti-express bus rhetoric here)**....

You have to realize why a lot of people even lash out against express buses & the new ferry services... They tend to do so, because there is a snob factor/stigma that's attached to them - moreso than the basic reason of not being able to directly benefit from them... The whole, *they think they're better than us* mindset.... Until they're tried out that one time, then they end up being the very "snob" they were previously demonizing, or otherwise critical of...

In general, people tend to fear what they don't understand... People are a funny bunch.

2 hours ago, paulrivera said:

At this point, I'm only traveling on the subway whenever I'm with a group of people. Like this weekend, I had family staying over in the city for the holiday and we all went from Midtown to downtown and back on the subway, but when I was alone going between the Bronx and Manhattan, it was the BxM4 down and the BxM3 back for me. And even with a group of people I felt uncomfortable going back to Midtown on the subway in the early evening.

I'm not sure what's going on with Spring Creek, but once upon a time, just about every time I would return to NYC from my weekend excursions/fan trips, I would gun for the BM's to head back to Brooklyn.... Now it's been the to Church for a good old fashioned dollar cab, just like I did last night.... Speaking of which, just last night, there was some lanky, strung out, Screech (from Saved by the Bell) in the face lookin dude screaming his lungs out into a phone at TSQ... I was on the platform for about 10 minutes in total... about 6 or 7 mins in, 2 cops came & bumrushed ole boy.... I was about 15-20 feet away from the bench (towards the front of the Brooklyn bound platform) he was sitting on.... Some dude sat 3 seats away from him, until the aforementioned hostile screaming bit......

I can see why most people would be nervous/fearful of taking the subway nowadays, but I'm so unnerved by all the crap that plagues the subway, that it doesn't deter me from taking it... Probably jinxing myself by saying this, but I go in with the attitude of, I wish a mf-er would (try some shit).... That was exactly my attitude when I took the around 4:30am b/w Atlantic-Barclays & Park place this past Friday... There was only a homeless dude in the car I was sitting in & no one else (there was about 10-15 ppl in the next car up)... These fools carefully pick their targets....

17 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

Did someone quote me in this thread?

Since your last post? Yeah, 3 of us.... Me, @paulrivera & @Future ENY OP

 

Edited November 28, 2021 by B35 via Church
split post...

[Via Garibaldi 8]

3 hours ago, B35 via Church said:

The MTA isn't helping itself in this category (due to their continual embarrassingly egregious lack of advertisement when it comes to the things), but I would still be optimistic about express bus usage for the future.... I foresee a nice little shift of those that gave up taking the subway for those ridesharing services (or have resorted to driving) since the rise of covid, for express buses in the near future...

I was never gung-ho about the rideshare services because quite frankly, I never saw the model as being sustainable.... I'm hearing now that fares have skyrocketed on those things & waits have drastically increased on top of it, due to driver retention issues... Not saying if it's true or not, but it wouldn't come as a shock to me if it was.... Hell, I mean, it's a nice little hustle for a minute, then (most) drivers eventually GTFO for something more steady & profitable.... Anyway, you have people that love pulling on buses being a major culprit of traffic exacerbation, as if the explosion of cabs in this city in the recent past is some negligible (or even non-existent) factor or something.... The vociferous ramblings from all avenues (us city residents, out-of-town commuters that work here, even tourists, etc.) regarding the recent traffic explosion in the city is even more apparent/intense now, compared to prior assessments of traffic levels in this city, pre-covid (which was definitely nothing to sneeze at).... Pun unintended.

I'm not saying I agree with it, but the fear mongering of the subway system is working/is effecting people... You couple that with the declination of (the quality of) rideshare service{s}, it's going to push those that originally gave up taking the subway for the rideshare services, into starting to look into taking expresses IMO.... Biking & e-biking is cute & everything, but that also isn't a long term solution for most people... Personally I see all this biking/e-biking as a trend, but that's neither here nor there....

To sum it up, the MTA needs to get on the ball & start exploiting the shortcomings/flaws of their competition... Gotta keep a watchful eye of the market you're a part of, or otherwise engaged in.... Any smart business owner or investor will profess that sentiment.

I've been an Uber user primarily for when I'm at meetings for work purposes and started using it since I get reimbursed for my rides when on business. I occasionally use it for pleasure as well. As an UberBlack and UberXL user, I can say that the waits really aren't that bad (maybe you wait a minute or two longer than before - nothing egregious). The real change is the price. Some trips cost about $10-12 more than before, while others are roughly the same. I use Uber mainly in Manhattan if I'm too lazy to walk or don't want to take any local bus, I'll get an UberBlack or UberXL (I prefer using large SUVs since I have long legs). When prices were lower, I would just jump in them, but I'm not dependent on them at all, so right now instead of spending $200-300 a month, I have no problem walking or whatever when I'm in the City or taking a quick bus ride and that money just gets spent elsewhere on other pleasures (wine, food, etc.) 

The Uber/Lyft model was supposed to eventually move to the driverless model, which would allow said companies to significantly reduce overhead. Of course that hasn't happened, so while Uber is more diversified in its offering (UberEats, Uber, etc.), Lyft nor Uber are exactly impressing investors. Personally, I don't have any stock in either, esp. Uber, as they have yet to turn a real profit and just burn through investor capital.

The prices pre-pandemic were insane though. I used to always get discounts, esp. on weekends, so while in Manhattan, I would jump in Ubers. They hooked me up with nice Black SUV cars, so why not? I still use Uber (mainly UberEats - I'm an Uber Platinum user, but most of the deals I get are for UberEats. I haven't received any Uber deals for rides in quite a while. I did take advantage of the Uber pass since it was only $49.99 for a year (roughly $4.00+ a bucks a month for various deals). If it isn't to my liking, I'll dump it after next year.

Spring Creek lines are still iffy. I've been working w/the  on the tracking issues, which have improved, but the depot still has lots of driver shortage issues. Putting that aside, service has been better overall.

Edited November 28, 2021 by Via Garibaldi 8

[checkmatechamp13]

40 minutes ago, B35 via Church said:

If they would try their hand at SBS-ing the B6, they may jump stupid & have the thing stay on Av. J from the west, all the way to Flatlands, to then continue on Flatlands doing the regular route to the , where they'd likely terminate the thing.... Only local service would run the full route, basically saying f*** you to at least, what, 25% of the route's riderbase.......

I suspect that with OMNY and all-door boarding, they won't be calling those "improved" limiteds SBS (or conversely, maybe all limiteds will be called SBS)

But I also think they may try their hand at doing it Queens-style (make routes like say, the B63 into those green-style local routes, and make crosstown routes like the B35, B8, B6, and B82 into those orange-style limited-stop routes). But I can definitely see some type of restructuring in store for the B6, B82, and B103.

[SoSpectacular]

On 11/24/2021 at 10:56 PM, danielhg121 said:

I know unofficially, employees just flash their pass and walk on the bus. But I think I read somewhere in a pdf document that MaBSTOA employees can only ride MaBSTOA buses, BC employees can only ride BC buses. Why is that the case? And if a MaBSTOA employee were to swipe onto an MTA Bus Company express bus, would the swipe go through fine? It just seems so backwards and the fact that one might have to pay get to work at the same agency is ludicrous. 

Our employee passes work on all buses now as per the recent contract

[JubaionBx12+SBS]

To be honest, post-covid I have used the express bus more so than local buses. I just don't like the cost inefficiency created by using a separate fleet of coach buses for what is primarily rush hour service. I support running articulated buses on express routes since they can be used on local routes as well. 

On the local bus end, I barely use the things. I have only taken the Bx12 +SBS and the Q50 within the past 2 years and I can count on one hand the amount of times I've used the latter. Now, you can come at me all you want but I am one of the motorists causing the surge in traffic we've seen in the city. In the summer of 2019 I bought my first vehicle and since the pandemic I've been driving as my primary commute method. The only time I don't drive these days are some days when I opt to use the subway to go to work to avoid traffic. The return trip is when I'm most likely to use a bus and as I said it's more likely to be an express bus (BxM7 or 10) than a local bus. I commute from LIC so I will get off the subway at either 5 Av/53rd or Lex/86 and walk to the express bus from those stops.

[Lawrence St]

Just now, JubaionBx12+SBS said:

To be honest, post-covid I have used the express bus more so than local buses. I just don't like the cost inefficiency created by using a separate fleet of coach buses for what is primarily rush hour service. I support running articulated buses on express routes since they can be used on local routes as well. 

On the local bus end, I barely use the things. I have only taken the Bx12 +SBS and the Q50 within the past 2 years and I can count on one hand the amount of times I've used the latter. Now, you can come at me all you want but I am one of the motorists causing the surge in traffic we've seen in the city. In the summer of 2019 I bought my first vehicle and since the pandemic I've been driving as my primary commute method. The only time I don't drive these days are some days when I opt to use the subway to go to work to avoid traffic. The return trip is when I'm most likely to use a bus and as I said it's more likely to be an express bus (BxM7 or 10) than a local bus. I commute from LIC so I will get off the subway at either 5 Av/53rd or Lex/86 and walk to the express bus from those stops.

Right, I'd rather the express lines use buses like they did before the takeover, with suburban buses