BUS - Random Thoughts Thread

[S78 via Hylan]

30 minutes ago, checkmatechamp13 said:

Yes they increased off-peak frequency so now buses run every 12 minutes or better for the entire day. It's a pilot program to see if they can boost off-peak ridership by increasing the service but the problem is they didn't advertise it (and if anything by not updating the schedule they did the opposite. People can't use the extra service if they don't know it exists)

The schedule is now updated. I checked earlier.

[checkmatechamp13]

10 minutes ago, S78 via Hylan said:

The schedule is now updated. I checked earlier.

And it still lists a transfer to the B20 (not the B70) at 92nd & Fort Hamilton Parkway. 🤣

[trife86]

35 minutes ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

Still wrong on BusTime though. I posted it in my group yesterday, so likely Road Ops saw it and sent out a memo, but who knows when BusTime will be fixed.

P.S. I know who handles BusTime too, so I don't expect any miracles that's for sure, let's just put it that way.

Why no faith on some issues? You claim improvement elsewhere so why no miracles here ?

[Lil 57]

50 minutes ago, checkmatechamp13 said:

Yes they increased off-peak frequency so now buses run every 12 minutes or better for the entire day. It's a pilot program to see if they can boost off-peak ridership by increasing the service but the problem is they didn't advertise it (and if anything by not updating the schedule they did the opposite. People can't use the extra service if they don't know it exists)

Hopefully they don't pull a "SIM2" on this one.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

10 minutes ago, trife86 said:

Why no faith on some issues? You claim improvement elsewhere so why no miracles here ?

Because I know exactly who is responsible for it and they've done a bang up job with their other responsibilities. Let's just say if I had it my way, she would be fired... The same person that thinks passengers have to be "patient" when they're waiting in 30 degree weather with no bus for 30 - 40+ minutes during rush hour when a bus should be coming every 5 minutes.  

Edited January 15, 2019 by Via Garibaldi 8

[RestrictOnTheHanger]

Never knew the Q53 had a short turn code for 163rd Ave, first time seeing it in use this weekend.

[BM5 via Woodhaven]

19 minutes ago, RestrictOnTheHanger said:

Never knew the Q53 had a short turn code for 163rd Ave, first time seeing it in use this weekend.

They've been there for a while, however I don't know for how long. Here's one being used a little over two years ago:

2011 New Flyer C40LF 217 on the Q53 LIMITED at Woodhaven Blvd/Alderton Street by BM5 via Woodhaven (Main), on Flickr

[Lil 57]

13 hours ago, SevenEleven said:

Can't find a way there!!

Do you know how to file a complaint to Google Maps for Public Transportation errors?

[Lil 57]

Each day this government Shutdown continues, the closer we get to the having to do a mass cut of service, since the  recieves $150 million in Federal funding each month. With the  not receiving this there could be cuts across the board for subway and bus service.

If the government doesn't reopen, I could see...

1. The SIM3C being eliminated with the SIM4C and 33C running every hour all day on weekends.

2. The SIM1C running every 30 minutes on weekends.

3. The QM4 being eliminated off-peak and either the QM5 and QM6 being eliminated off-peak.

And much more.

The government needs to reopen for the future of the  and our future.

Edited January 15, 2019 by Lil 57

[Armandito]

4 minutes ago, Lil 57 said:

Each day this government Shutdown continues, the closer we get to the having to do a mass cut of service, since the  recieves $150 million in Federal funding each month. With the  not receiving this there could be cuts across the board for subway and bus service.

If the government doesn't reopen, I could see...

1. The SIM3C being eliminated with the SIM4C and 33C running every hour all day on weekends.

2. The SIM1C running every 30 minutes on weekends.

3. The QM4 being eliminated off-peak and either the QM5 and QM6 being eliminated off-peak.

And much more.

The government needs to reopen for the future of the  and our future.

Blame it all on a childish president! He acts like he's only 4 and doesn't give a damn about the dire consequences of his tantrums and whims affecting the lives of ordinary citizens. He should either grow up and act like a REAL president or see a psychiatrist 

Edited January 15, 2019 by lara8710

[B35 via Church]

On ‎1‎/‎14‎/‎2019 at 12:35 AM, checkmatechamp13 said:

The thing with Arden Heights is that people were pretty much stranded. Literally, it wasn't even a matter of "they don't want to transfer to a local bus", there literally wasn't any local bus to take (unless you happened to live by Arthur Kill Road). And notice that they only restored the weekday evening service, and didn't add anything for the weekends (the SIM2 still ended earlier than the X17)

I'll put it this way, I think one of the "lessons" learned by the MTA is don't make promises you can't keep (and I think at this point, they're hoping people don't remember that promise they made). At the meetings, when they mentioned that you'd still have service in the general area, we were all thinking that they would check the schedules to make sure that they were keeping that promise. Then all of a sudden the schedules come out and you see all the gaps and areas where even the rush hour service starts later or ends earlier than it used to (e.g. X5 riders on the SIM6, etc)

I'll put it this way, express bus service definitely isn't a priority for Community Board 1 overall (the North Shore Community Board). For the Area Committee representing Port Richmond (they basically lump Port Richmond/Mariners Harbor/Arlington/Graniteville into one area committee), I honestly don't recall the last time express bus service was discussed, and the building is a couple of blocks from the Castleton Depot. So those meetings are pretty well-attended, but there's other issues that take priority.

I went to the most recent CB1 meeting, and they literally said the only thing on the agenda was the Bay Street rezoning (and the room was jam-packed). I asked some of the board members if I could speak and let everybody know that there are going to be major changes to the express bus schedules and they said they would barely have time to get through everything with the Bay Street rezoning. In Port Richmond, the main topic was the hotel that a developer is proposing (that people are worried will become a welfare hotel) and again the meetings were full.

For CB1, the transportation issues that tend to get attention are anything ferry-related, followed by local bus issues, and then way in the rear would be express bus issues. For Port Richmond, honestly those people never take the initiative on anything mass transit-related (local bus or express bus). Whenever I tell them anything it's always news to them and they don't get any MTA reps to come to their meetings or anything like that. If they channeled their energy into transportation issues even to the level that CB1 overall does, there would likely be a lot more positive changes.

There's someone on my grandmother's block that's been going to those monthly board meetings (Brooklyn CB17) every month.... (He says) All they really say about public transit is that the trains & buses are packed... There's no push for anything, just blahzay/half-hearted complaints..... The discussions are more in depth when it comes to (the preservation & necessity of) the dollar cab services though....

 

[paulrivera]

On the Bx9, the process of a driver relief takes almost 10 whole minutes. Why they feel the need for it to make a drop off only stop THEN do the relief THEN move up 20 feet to make a separate pickup stop is mind boggling to me.

i don’t know how I didn’t raise the issue on any of the Bronx bus redesign material. Then again I don’t ride the 9 as much as the 12...

[Armandito]

7 hours ago, paulrivera said:

On the Bx9, the process of a driver relief takes almost 10 whole minutes. Why they feel the need for it to make a drop off only stop THEN do the relief THEN move up 20 feet to make a separate pickup stop is mind boggling to me.

i don’t know how I didn’t raise the issue on any of the Bronx bus redesign material. Then again I don’t ride the 9 as much as the 12.

A couple of other bus routes also have a similar scenario--take the Q11/21/52 routes, for example. They drop off pax in front of Queens Center on the north side of Queens Boulevard, then make a quick jog along Macy's and 57th Avenue, then do layovers at Hoffman Drive, and then pick up pax at their designated bus stops along that street. Same with the Q29 at the stop at 82nd Street--buses do drop-offs at 83rd and Baxter and then travel empty to 82nd and Ithaca for pick-ups.

[LegoBrickBreaker101]

47 minutes ago, lara8710 said:

A couple of other bus routes also have a similar scenario--take the Q11/21/52 routes, for example. They drop off pax in front of Queens Center on the north side of Queens Boulevard, then make a quick jog along Macy's and 57th Avenue, then do layovers at Hoffman Drive, and then pick up pax at their designated bus stops along that street. Same with the Q29 at the stop at 82nd Street--buses do drop-offs at 83rd and Baxter and then travel empty to 82nd and Ithaca for pick-ups.

That's entirely different from what @paulrivera brought up.

He was referring to how the Bx9 stops at the corner of 225th and Broadway where the relief is, the drivers switch, and then the new driver pulls into the stop 20 feet away from the relief, all while the bus is in service and carrying passengers. You're describing buses that terminate and then travel empty to the first stop in another location, which isn't the same thing.

[Jdog14]

I just had a thought that I feel needs some serious looking into

 

I put my metrocard in the SBS machine just for it to not give me a receipt. The same machine then goes OOS. Im like *iight whatever I got an unlimited* and waited out the 24 min or however long the damn time limit is...

 

But it makes me wonder had it been a PP metrocard, what should I have done or could have done? 

[JubaionBx12+SBS]

When is the next new fleet of express buses coming in? 

[Future ENY OP]

11 hours ago, JubaionBx12+SBS said:

When is the next new fleet of express buses coming in? 

No time soon. Meanwhile  has brought if not all of the D4500CT Fleet until late 2019 or early 2020 at the earliest. 

[Calvin]

Were the LFS that were sent to Quill just for the M66/72?

[paulrivera]

I still think Cuomo took some of our new express buses and ordered the MTA to send them to Hudson Link instead.

That's my conspiracy theory anyways.... 

[mine248]

23 minutes ago, Calvin said:

Were the LFS that were sent to Quill just for the M66/72?

They were also used on the M9, M22, and the M55, so no. I would say that it was for the general MJQ depot bus fleet. 

[Lawrence St]

On 1/14/2019 at 11:28 PM, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

They've been there for a while, however I don't know for how long. Here's one being used a little over two years ago:

2011 New Flyer C40LF 217 on the Q53 LIMITED at Woodhaven Blvd/Alderton Street by BM5 via Woodhaven (Main), on Flickr

Do those still show up on the Q53 during snow storms?

[Calvin]

53 minutes ago, Lawrence St said:

Do those still show up on the Q53 during snow storms?

It depends, if there isn't enough standards at LGA

[XcelsiorBoii4888]

2 hours ago, paulrivera said:

I still think Cuomo took some of our new express buses and ordered the MTA to send them to Hudson Link instead.

That's my conspiracy theory anyways.... 

Honestly lmaoo. That just came out of nowhere. I still believe it, idc what anyone says. Especially since there was supposed to be an updated express bus scheme...where is it?! THAT was it. 

[Lil 57]

So Google maps has transit data on SI back but it's outdated. Still shows the SIM2 running off-peak.

[Armandito]

East New York and Central Queens are not well connected by public transportation, and I suppose the Q23 between Rego Park and Forest Hills could get some help during rush hours when some buses from Crescent Apartments short turn at 62nd Drive. The Q58 could be relieved as well, given how overcrowded it gets at various times of the day. Taking all of these ideas into consideration, I wanted to see if there would be any gains from a route between Flushing and Broadway Junction serving those ridership bases as well as improving connectivity between Forest Hills, Glendale, and East New York: https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1RtIKMyw0a0WjkrC5wJUbfL06KX1YphCg&ll=40.71850849025076%2C-73.87070879999999&z=1