BUS - Random Thoughts Thread

[MTABusTransitFanner]

2 of my friends went to Eastchester depot recently and they didn't see 6326(Orion V for museum fleet) there. If anyone has any information about 6326, where is that bus as of now and when do you think it will get restored and that type of stuff?

[danielhg121]

4 minutes ago, MTABusTransitFanner said:

2 of my friends went to Eastchester depot recently and they didn't see 6326(Orion V for museum fleet) there. If anyone has any information about 6326, where is that bus as of now and when do you think it will get restored and that type of stuff?

Maybe it was moved to Amsterdam? Or it's parked in the same lot as the scrap lot? I think 5534 was parked there too.

 

[MTABusTransitFanner]

1 minute ago, danielhg121 said:

Maybe it was moved to Amsterdam? Or it's parked in the same lot as the scrap lot? I think 5534 was parked there too.

 

5534 is still sitting in its original spot since 2019, 6326 was parked in the scrapyard but it could either be at another spot of Eastchester or at Amsterdam.

[7-express]

Anyone know why the Q16 never got an A/B designation to indicate branched service (Utopia/Francis Lewis)?  Seems like it would make sense like the Q15/15A and Q20A/B but they never did it.

[BM5 via Woodhaven]

Looking at bustime, it's interesting to see some of the ridership stats on the express buses. The very first QM4 trip of the day has 29 riders after picking up. There's a BM2 bus towards Midtown (combo route) with 27 riders on at Kings Highway. Saw a BM1 in the tunnel with 25 people on. Good to see, although further up the line in the BM2 case, crowding may be an issue.

EDIT: Seems like the BM2 bus didn't make too many stops after Kings Highway, as the bus is on it's express segment with 30 riders. 

Edited April 22, 2021 by BM5 via Woodhaven

[Lex]

6 hours ago, 7-express said:

Anyone know why the Q16 never got an A/B designation to indicate branched service (Utopia/Francis Lewis)?  Seems like it would make sense like the Q15/15A and Q20A/B but they never did it.

They didn't do that with the Q10 until service along Conduit Avenue was discontinued, making the Lefferts Boulevard branch Limited-only, and considering how long that lasted...

I do think they should if they're to insist on maintaining that setup, even if it'll only last for a few more years (I consider the network redesign inevitable).

[Future ENY OP]

1 hour ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

Looking at bustime, it's interesting to see some of the ridership stats on the express buses. The very first QM4 trip of the day has 29 riders after picking up. There's a BM2 bus towards Midtown (combo route) with 27 riders on at Kings Highway. Saw a BM1 in the tunnel with 25 people on. Good to see, although further up the line in the BM2 case, crowding may be an issue.

EDIT: Seems like the BM2 bus didn't make too many stops after Kings Highway, as the bus is on it's express segment with 30 riders. 

BM2: Not like before. However, the stops on East 45th, East 38th and East 32 & The Junction have decent ridership in the early morning hours. After the Junction segment it's not doing alot of pickups because all the buses converge onto Cortelyou Road.

[XcelsiorBoii4888]

I had a dream that Yukon had received the Ex Casey Stengal Nova LFSAs 5895-5934 for the S79. In the dream the S79 was one of the most fanned routes in the city and those drivers were hauling those buses across the island, those buses had so many sound effects, they were fast and powerful. The S79 was all door boarding with OMNY, it was the most popular route on the island. Man I was so mad when I found out it was a dream. 

 

Can it become a reality in the future? 😭 I mean it's not impossible. 

[Via Garibaldi 8]

15 hours ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

If the QM5 was running via Jewel during the off-peak hours, then the QM6 would be the only thing on Union Turnpike during those hours. Although ridership on both routes tend to come more from east of 188th Street, the segment west of 188th Street isn't low in ridership which is why I mentioned boosting QM6 frequencies. The 30 minute headways may also be more attractive to potential users out east, and my take riders away from the QM5 in Glen Oaks, but the main thing regarding the Main Street to 188th Street segment. 

Although it may be cost neutral to even saving money depending on how its implemented (given that QM4 resources would be freed up, and QM5 runtimes would be similar and/or slightly faster than they currently are), I personally would go with trying out the additional stops along Queens Boulevard, and an extension to the Fresh Meadows complex (like you suggested). Don't necessarily have a preference of whether the QM5 should operate via Union Turnpike or via Jewel Ave during the off peak hour (more or less fine with either option).  I do think the QM5 shouldn't be serving Union Turnpike stops during the peak hour, but that's a separate discussion.

And yeah, I figured that planners would be reluctant to do so. 

When I started the group, one of my curiosities was to see how bad service was across the system. I rode around a lot in Queens before meeting with the  to discuss problems across the system.  I sent over a list of comments that were problems, and made suggestions in terms of how to boost ridership on some lines. The QM4 would keep the same routing basically, but I would extend it to serve those QM5 stops along 188th, and have the QM5 not go up to big complex and loop back back down. I would have it go up 188th, then turn on 73rd and keep going. Weekends especially, that line just does too much, and I found that most QM5 trips ended a good 20 minutes behind schedule as a result. I also suggested having it make more stops along Queens Blvd as you did. With the extensions east & west, it would pick up more riders. There are QM4 riders on weekends. I've taken many trips both Saturdays and Sundays.  The schedules need to be adjusted to address the excess runtime in the pick-up segment., something else that was discussed with the  . They are reluctant to do anything. We've been trying to get them to adjust some runtimes on some lines for several picks, and they have a song and dance for everything.

[NBTA]

2 hours ago, XcelsiorBoii4888 said:

I had a dream that Yukon had received the Ex Casey Stengal Nova LFSAs 5895-5934 for the S79. In the dream the S79 was one of the most fanned routes in the city and those drivers were hauling those buses across the island, those buses had so many sound effects, they were fast and powerful. The S79 was all door boarding with OMNY, it was the most popular route on the island. Man I was so mad when I found out it was a dream. 

 

Can it become a reality in the future? 😭 I mean it's not impossible. 

That batch of the 2011 order has some of the most sound effects in any bus today in NYC, of course it’ll be fanned to death, especially the way they’ll scream down Hylan. 
 

I think it can, if the S79 garners it, should be an artic route (it’ll definitely be the last SBS artic route, but I see it happening regardless).

[Future ENY OP]

Does Kingsbridge still doing morning rush on the Bx28? 

[LegoBrickBreaker101]

1 hour ago, Future ENY OP said:

Does Kingsbridge still doing morning rush on the Bx28? 

Yep, still the one trip from Fordham Center to Co-Op City and back.

[danielhg121]

So #2910 will most likely be making a final trip on the QM6 (10:30 PM) to North Shore Towers and it's unlikely that it'll see service again. The last MTA-operated D4500 with the green flipdot signs and Detroit Diesel engine. Apparently, the operator had to practically beg to pull it out for the afternoon run. I'm sure VG8 will be happy about this haha. 

Edited April 24, 2021 by danielhg121

[B35 via Church]

On 4/21/2021 at 11:48 PM, 7-express said:

Anyone know why the Q16 never got an A/B designation to indicate branched service (Utopia/Francis Lewis)?  Seems like it would make sense like the Q15/15A and Q20A/B but they never did it.

I honestly don't think there's any rhyme or reason as to why routes with branches do or don't have route suffixes.....

On 4/22/2021 at 6:09 AM, Lex said:

They didn't do that with the Q10 until service along Conduit Avenue was discontinued, making the Lefferts Boulevard branch Limited-only, and considering how long that lasted...

I do think they should if they're to insist on maintaining that setup, even if it'll only last for a few more years (I consider the network redesign inevitable).

Come to think of it, does "LTD" actually/officially qualify as a route suffix (same deal for the '+' sign with the SBS routes) ?

[SoSpectacular]

2 hours ago, B35 via Church said:

I honestly don't think there's any rhyme or reason as to why routes with branches do or don't have route suffixes.....

Come to think of it, does "LTD" actually/officially qualify as a route suffix (same deal for the '+' sign with the SBS routes) ?

On our paddles they're one and the same. They just mark the trip as LTD with the proper sign code and timepoint(s) 

[Jsunflyguy]

On 3/31/2021 at 8:22 AM, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

Good luck with that. Something I found VERY strange the other day was a driver telling me how he can't get to Manhattan too early. We had no traffic and the people on the bus wanted stops towards the end of the line so we moved quickly. I always thought once the pick-up segment is done, that's it, you just go. Makes no sense to me. If dispatch is behind it, why in the world would they penalize express bus drivers if they finish the pick-up segment on-time, but finish the trip early? 

I just asked a driver I know. Blame the  . Even though it's the drop-off segment, some guys are being called up by dispatch and told to wait and check their paddles. That is incredibly stupid. I am going to look into this for you. I see no reason why any driver should have to hold at any time point that is along the drop-off segment, and drive slowly after the pick-up segment has been done.

To be fair to the MTA, depending on how the runs are lined up it may be a layover problem. If there are only 4 spots near the end that are occupied and the bus comes in flaming hot they will park somewhere that obstructs traffic like that do at the QMT. I'm not saying that's *THE* reason, though that is  a concern.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

5 hours ago, Jsunflyguy said:

To be fair to the MTA, depending on how the runs are lined up it may be a layover problem. If there are only 4 spots near the end that are occupied and the bus comes in flaming hot they will park somewhere that obstructs traffic like that do at the QMT. I'm not saying that's *THE* reason, though that is  a concern.

Right now, that is really not an issue. Plenty of parking available.

[XcelsiorBoii4888]

Question to express bus operators. Do yall get aggravated when people say hello/thank you when getting off the bus? 

 

I try to be polite and say good morning when getting on and thank you when getting off, but I'm tired of no acknowledgements back. Unfortunately my personality doesn't allow me to just walk pass and not say hello/thank you, so I have to force myself to just get off and not say anything if I haven't received any acknowledgement getting on.

 

We live in such a miserable world, especially a miserable city, and its just sad how being polite is not even accepted anymore. 

Edited April 24, 2021 by XcelsiorBoii4888

[B35 via Church]

1 hour ago, XcelsiorBoii4888 said:

Question to express bus operators. Do yall get aggravated when people say hello/thank you when getting off the bus? 

I try to be polite and say good morning when getting on and thank you when getting off, but I'm tired of no acknowledgements back. Unfortunately my personality doesn't allow me to just walk pass and not say hello/thank you, so I have to force myself to just get off and not say anything if I haven't received any acknowledgement getting on.

We live in such a miserable world, especially a miserable city, and its just sad how being polite is not even accepted anymore. 

You confined this to just express bus ops, but I'm still going to give my take on this in a general sense... As with any forum post, you can take it or leave it.

I've opined on the notion of b/o's being more cordially talkative back in the days of yesteryear (namely, back during the PBL days), compared to that of in the now.... Those days are toast, for a range of personal reasons that a myriad of b/o's will give... I'd say more b/o's started being more stoic/cold not too long before the unfortunate Edwin Thomas incident, and it (the stoicness) has only increased/gotten worse (as you may see it) over time.... I say "as you may see it", because for me, IDRC b/c I'm not a "good morning" person anyway - always came off disingenuous as shit to me... How many people that tell you good morning/good night honestly & truly give a f*** about you & your day (rhetorical)....

To sum it up, given all that they have to put up with as time has progressed (considering what you might dub as a societal regression in the process), I'm with the b/o's on this one.... The question I more have (not posing this at you) is, do b/o's see passengers in general as nuisances - or being blunt/vivid, potential aggressors that pose a threat to their physical person.... I have always wondered that, even before the assaults on b/o's started becoming more commonplace... One of many reasons why I could never be a b/o, which I've professed numerous times on this forum....

See, I'm not a small talker & I'm big on the how & why things are said, moreso than the mere content of what's being said.... That said, the thing with salutations is that there is this expectation that it has to be reciprocated... Just because I don't want to play the social acceptance game with you ("you" in general) right then & there, doesn't necessarily mean I'm impolite, miserable, or whatever other negative character traits.... You don't know what people are going through; what you may classify as impolite, I classify as maybe, damn, the b/o could be/or is going through some shit, so let me leave this dude/chick alone... Live & let live.... Guess what I'm saying in a nutshell is that people's situations in life won't easily have them having sunny dispositions... Too many damn crazies roaming around & about & apparently, the frequency of 'em & the amplitude/blatancy of their crazy is increasing...

With all that said, NEVER change who you are, to conform to anything.... You don't have to force yourself to get off & not say anything... Just because you're not getting acknowledgments back after being salutatory doesn't mean you have to stop being kind... As a pessimist, I feel weird even saying this, but I can be objective by meeting people in the middle - For you, this is where that whole "kill em with kindness" bit applies... Meaning, you can still say your good mornings/afternoons/evenings - regardless of reciprocity - knowing that you'll still feel good about yourself at the end of the day...

Edited April 24, 2021 by B35 via Church

[Lex]

10 hours ago, SoSpectacular said:

On our paddles they're one and the same. They just mark the trip as LTD with the proper sign code and timepoint(s) 

In fairness, the designation is more for the riding public.

 

13 hours ago, B35 via Church said:

I honestly don't think there's any rhyme or reason as to why routes with branches do or don't have route suffixes.....

Come to think of it, does "LTD" actually/officially qualify as a route suffix (same deal for the '+' sign with the SBS routes) ?

Maybe not in practice, but in principle, I don't see why not.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

4 hours ago, XcelsiorBoii4888 said:

Question to express bus operators. Do yall get aggravated when people say hello/thank you when getting off the bus? 

 

I try to be polite and say good morning when getting on and thank you when getting off, but I'm tired of no acknowledgements back. Unfortunately my personality doesn't allow me to just walk pass and not say hello/thank you, so I have to force myself to just get off and not say anything if I haven't received any acknowledgement getting on.

 

We live in such a miserable world, especially a miserable city, and its just sad how being polite is not even accepted anymore. 

You should be riding enough now to know the cranky ones. I have ones that I have known for years. We greet each other when I board and when I get off. There are others that are nasty, which really doesn't phase me. Such is life. I pay and take a seat and get off. As long as they pick me and drop me off safely, that's what I care about. I had a rude one yesterday, but he picked me up safely and dropped me off safely. I kept it moving. 

[SevenEleven]

2 hours ago, B35 via Church said:

See, I'm not a small talker & I'm big on the how & why things are said, moreso than the mere content of what's being said.... That said, the thing with salutations is that there is this expectation that it has to be reciprocated...

Exactly. Don't get me wrong, my parents raised me with some sort of respect, so if you talk to me up front, (and if I'm paying attention -- the other important part), then imma say something in return. It goes both ways though. There's been several times where express bus passengers don't say anything. I remember one morning I was doing the SIM25 replacing the operator for the week and I'm somewhere on Rossville picking up. Said "Good morning" to everyone. It took the 7th person on the line to say it back to me. The way that a lot of people go on about not getting a response is like we HAVE to send something back. Like @B35 via Church said, you don't know what's going on in our minds OR can't come to terms that not everyone was raised with the manners to say it back or are just miserable all the time or are just fed up with the job. This is NYC after all, not the South. Some of my neighbors don't even say hi to me.

Before we hit the "Well, if you don't want to be "customer service friendly", get another...": I've worked the hawk last pick and if the sun wasn't up and you wasn't my regular, then I wasn't acknowledging you. Point blank period. It's either you just walked on, you acted like your ish was right and act dumb after the fact, you had the excuse and kept walking or you legit paid the fare and I never seen you before. Or you pay you fare but you're quick to glance away when you see me looking at you (to say good morning, throw the head nod, eyebrow raise with these masks on), or don't even glance at all. (Eyes straight from Metro to farebox or phone to OMNY reader) A lot of people get on with the notion that the bus operator don't exist but make an issue when you throw it back in their face.

Anyways... I've been threatened, spat at, cursed out about why I'm not leaving (when I leave in 20 mins), etc. So why should I be nice if people can talk and act any kind of way they want on the bus? Which is why a lot of ops don't show any acknowledgement.

Long rant over.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

5 minutes ago, SevenEleven said:

Exactly. Don't get me wrong, my parents raised me with some sort of respect, so if you talk to me up front, (and if I'm paying attention -- the other important part), then imma say something in return. It goes both ways though. There's been several times where express bus passengers don't say anything. I remember one morning I was doing the SIM25 replacing the operator for the week and I'm somewhere on Rossville picking up. Said "Good morning" to everyone. It took the 7th person on the line to say it back to me. The way that a lot of people go on about not getting a response is like we HAVE to send something back. Like @B35 via Church said, you don't know what's going on in our minds OR can't come to terms that not everyone was raised with the manners to say it back or are just miserable all the time or are just fed up with the job. This is NYC after all, not the South. Some of my neighbors don't even say hi to me.

Before we hit the "Well, if you don't want to be "customer service friendly", get another...": I've worked the hawk last pick and if the sun wasn't up and you wasn't my regular, then I wasn't acknowledging you. Point blank period. It's either you just walked on, you acted like your ish was right and act dumb after the fact, you had the excuse and kept walking or you legit paid the fare and I never seen you before. Or you pay you fare but you're quick to glance away when you see me looking at you (to say good morning, throw the head nod, eyebrow raise with these masks on), or don't even glance at all. (Eyes straight from Metro to farebox or phone to OMNY reader) A lot of people get on with the notion that the bus operator don't exist but make an issue when you throw it back in their face.

Anyways... I've been threatened, spat at, cursed out about why I'm not leaving (when I leave in 20 mins), etc. So why should I be nice if people can talk and act any kind of way they want on the bus? Which is why a lot of ops don't show any acknowledgement.

Long rant over.

Ouch...

[XcelsiorBoii4888]

4 hours ago, B35 via Church said:

You confined this to just express bus ops, but I'm still going to give my take on this in a general sense... As with any forum post, you can take it or leave it.

I've opined on the notion of b/o's being more cordially talkative back in the days of yesteryear (namely, back during the PBL days), compared to that of in the now.... Those days are toast, for a range of personal reasons that a myriad of b/o's will give... I'd say more b/o's started being more stoic/cold not too long before the unfortunate Edwin Thomas incident, and it (the stoicness) has only increased/gotten worse (as you may see it) over time.... I say "as you may see it", because for me, IDRC b/c I'm not a "good morning" person anyway - always came off disingenuous as shit to me... How many people that tell you good morning/good night honestly & truly give a f*** about you & your day (rhetorical)....

To sum it up, given all that they have to put up with as time has progressed (considering what you might dub as a societal regression in the process), I'm with the b/o's on this one.... The question I more have (not posing this at you) is, do b/o's see passengers in general as nuisances - or being blunt/vivid, potential aggressors that pose a threat to their physical person.... I have always wondered that, even before the assaults on b/o's started becoming more commonplace... One of many reasons why I could never be a b/o, which I've professed numerous times on this forum....

See, I'm not a small talker & I'm big on the how & why things are said, moreso than the mere content of what's being said.... That said, the thing with salutations is that there is this expectation that it has to be reciprocated... Just because I don't want to play the social acceptance game with you ("you" in general) right then & there, doesn't necessarily mean I'm impolite, miserable, or whatever other negative character traits.... You don't know what people are going through; what you may classify as impolite, I classify as maybe, damn, the b/o could be/or is going through some shit, so let me leave this dude/chick alone... Live & let live.... Guess what I'm saying in a nutshell is that people's situations in life won't easily have them having sunny dispositions... Too many damn crazies roaming around & about & apparently, the frequency of 'em & the amplitude/blatancy of their crazy is increasing...

With all that said, NEVER change who you are, to conform to anything.... You don't have to force yourself to get off & not say anything... Just because you're not getting acknowledgments back after being salutatory doesn't mean you have to stop being kind... As a pessimist, I feel weird even saying this, but I can be objective by meeting people in the middle - For you, this is where that whole "kill em with kindness" bit applies... Meaning, you can still say your good mornings/afternoons/evenings - regardless of reciprocity - knowing that you'll still feel good about yourself at the end of the day...

Yeah I purposely only referred to express bus operators because they deal with the same passengers up close as they get on and off. With the local bus, they're all in their cabin, and with the SBS buses and people boarding at any door, the driver isn't essentially near or interfering with any riders. And majority of local bus riders just walk on so the respect isn't necessarily there. Local buses are looked at mainly as people movers, whereas the express bus is a more commuter type service. When I take the LIRR and they come check my ticket, they always greet me and I greet them back and its almost always a normal and friendly exchange (90% of the time). I do agree that drivers go through a lot and perhaps some just don't be in the mood. Regardless, like you said, I'm not gonna let it stop me from being nice and greeting them. I would take offense sometimes because multiple people would be getting off, I'd hear someone ahead say "thank you" and the driver would say "you're welcome", then I say "thank you,,take care" and its silent, then the person behind me says thank you and they receive acknowledgement. That's what really triggered me this morning. It had me thinking should I just not speak to these people or should I continue to be who I am and not take offense to it. I'll do the latter, because I don't want to come off as disrespectful to the ones who are friendly and try to engage with their riders, and its always good to be polite on a daily basis, especially knowing that everyone is going through a lot, especially during these times. 

 

40 minutes ago, SevenEleven said:

Exactly. Don't get me wrong, my parents raised me with some sort of respect, so if you talk to me up front, (and if I'm paying attention -- the other important part), then imma say something in return. It goes both ways though. There's been several times where express bus passengers don't say anything. I remember one morning I was doing the SIM25 replacing the operator for the week and I'm somewhere on Rossville picking up. Said "Good morning" to everyone. It took the 7th person on the line to say it back to me. The way that a lot of people go on about not getting a response is like we HAVE to send something back. Like @B35 via Church said, you don't know what's going on in our minds OR can't come to terms that not everyone was raised with the manners to say it back or are just miserable all the time or are just fed up with the job. This is NYC after all, not the South. Some of my neighbors don't even say hi to me.

Before we hit the "Well, if you don't want to be "customer service friendly", get another...": I've worked the hawk last pick and if the sun wasn't up and you wasn't my regular, then I wasn't acknowledging you. Point blank period. It's either you just walked on, you acted like your ish was right and act dumb after the fact, you had the excuse and kept walking or you legit paid the fare and I never seen you before. Or you pay you fare but you're quick to glance away when you see me looking at you (to say good morning, throw the head nod, eyebrow raise with these masks on), or don't even glance at all. (Eyes straight from Metro to farebox or phone to OMNY reader) A lot of people get on with the notion that the bus operator don't exist but make an issue when you throw it back in their face.

Anyways... I've been threatened, spat at, cursed out about why I'm not leaving (when I leave in 20 mins), etc. So why should I be nice if people can talk and act any kind of way they want on the bus? Which is why a lot of ops don't show any acknowledgement.

Long rant over.

I definitely understand the scenarios. If I was a bus operator (especially in NYC like you said, this is not the south), personally I would not acknowledge anyone unless they greet me first. They are entering your bus, you don't know those people, but at least they know you're a professional certified driver. It's up to the respectful ones to speak up first and hopefully receive an acknowledgement back. And same thing getting off, if you want to, you should only be acknowledging people who say something first. 

In terms of level of customer friendliness, obviously the local bus is more problematic, so I wouldn't expect any customer engagement unless asked a question. Like I ride the local bus before getting on the express and those drivers either continue to look straight or out the other window when people are boarding and since I probably am not going to exit out the front, there is no tradition of saying thank you after riding. But with the express, knowing the majority of riders pay and there's way less incidents, the level of customer friendliness should increase a bit, especially since you have to see those same people when they get off again. 

 

All in all, the world needs more kindness and love, even in grimy NYC. I personally feel that being negative and miserable only leads to more negative situations, but if you keep a good positive energy and high level of courtesy, good things tend to come back to you. 

 

Side note: Any express bus operator that has the curtain covering them gets no acknowledgement, because I assume they don't want any conversations or anything because of the extra levels of safety they are taking. So I guess if operators doing express don't want to be bothered, close up the curtain and look forward during each stop, lol. 

[Deucey]

On 4/18/2021 at 1:57 AM, R10 2952 said:

I can easily see this seatbelt idea blowing up in the regulators' faces; big difference between a 5-6 person car and a full-size motor coach.  An overturned bus with 30+ people trapped hanging upside-down just seems like a recipe for a lawsuit.

Either way it's a lawsuit in America. Better to pay out a nuisance negligence claim to those litigious folks who wore seatbelts than a wrongful death claim bc there weren't any seatbelts.

FTR: on those rarest of occasions I use a cab or car service, or ride a coach bus, I wear a seatbelt. Collisions and rollovers can and do happen.