Meeting Regarding S79 +SBS+

[checkmatechamp13]

So now you're saying that there is no turnover even going south on Broadway towards Bay Ridge too?? Okay, I'm not sure what you're looking at but clearly you don't use the S53 as much as me and SI North do, or perhaps just not enough at different times.

 

 

 

Where did you come to conclusion at? No one ever said that, you just put that in there. The point was that service should be conformed to meet the needs of each borough.

 

I think you are confusing turnover with crowding. The S53 gets a lot of riders at Forest Avenue going towards Bay Ridge, but a lot of them are going to Bay Ridge, not really to intermediate points (except for maybe the SIR Grasmere station and Hylan Blvd/Clove Road).

 

You said yourself that most of the stops along Clove Road have only 1 person getting off (which irritates everybody else who wants to get moving). Generally, at those stops, there is nobody getting on to replace them, so the bus is progressively getting emptier.

 

As for the second comment, you're right, but the change should only be made if the demand is there (but generally, need and demand go hand-in-hand, as is the case here)

[Via Garibaldi 8]

I think you are confusing turnover with crowding. The S53 gets a lot of riders at Forest Avenue going towards Bay Ridge, but a lot of them are going to Bay Ridge, not really to intermediate points (except for maybe the SIR Grasmere station and Hylan Blvd/Clove Road).

 

You said yourself that most of the stops along Clove Road have only 1 person getting off (which irritates everybody else who wants to get moving). Generally, at those stops, there is nobody getting on to replace them, so the bus is progressively getting emptier.

 

Um, that's not correct and no I am not confusing turnover with crowding at all. At Forest Avenue you have a lot of people get off and a lot new riders getting on at various times during the day. That can vary from day to day and time to time of course, which is only natural. As far as the one person getting on some stops yes, but there are plenty of stops that are not major connecting points that get a decent amount of riders. And you're still leaving out several other points with decent turnover. Clove Rd and Targee and Richmond Avenue and Clove and Victory have decent turnover too.

[checkmatechamp13]

Um, that's not correct and no I am not confusing turnover with crowding at all. At Forest Avenue you have a lot of people get off and a lot new riders getting on at various times during the day. That can vary from day to day and time to time of course, which is only natural. As far as the one person getting on some stops yes, but there are plenty of stops that are not major connecting points that get a decent amount of riders. And you're still leaving out several other points with decent turnover. Clove Rd and Targee and Richmond Avenue and Clove and Victory have decent turnover too.

 

So at what times of day are there a lot of riders traveling between Forest Avenue and Port Richmond.

 

A few times per week, I ride coming from Port Richmond in the early PM rush, and there are usually only 2-3 people that get off at Forest Avenue (and I usually don't see a whole lot of people waiting across the street to go northbound either)

 

Later in the PM rush (anywhere from 5PM to 7PM) it appears to be the same situation.

 

From what I've seen at Clove Road/Victory Blvd, there appears to be a similar situation there.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

So at what times of day are there a lot of riders traveling between Forest Avenue and Port Richmond.

 

A few times per week, I ride coming from Port Richmond in the early PM rush, and there are usually only 2-3 people that get off at Forest Avenue (and I usually don't see a whole lot of people waiting across the street to go northbound either)

 

Later in the PM rush (anywhere from 5PM to 7PM) it appears to be the same situation.

 

From what I've seen at Clove Road/Victory Blvd, there appears to be a similar situation there.

 

17:00 - 19:00 isn't all that late quite frankly, especially not on the S53 and during those times, the buses aren't that packed in either direction, but still get decent ridership. Part of it is because during that time there are very high frequencies, especially going to Port Richmond, much more than they give going towards Bay Ridge between 08:00 and 09:00, which is odd since there should be more service during that time. It could be that more drivers are pulling in at that time, so they have them do the runs and also there are fewer high school, college and elementary riders as well since they either get out earlier or at different times, as opposed to the morning crowd. Same is true of the work crowd. You also still have all of the rush hour express buses running during that time too, so that helps lessen the load on the S53.

 

 

The buses going to Port Richmond are more crowded around 21:00 - 22:40 or so and you'll see that there's a bus roughly every 10 minutes going to Port Richmond because of that reason. Going towards Bay Ridge it can be hit or miss in terms of how crowded it gets at Forest around 17:00 - 19:00, but certainly not as crowded as it is during the morning rush.

 

Victory Blvd is similar to Forest Avenue in that you generally have more people getting off and on going towards Bay Ridge and more people getting off going towards Port Richmond, but fewer people getting on.

[SIR North Shore]

I think you are confusing turnover with crowding. The S53 gets a lot of riders at Forest Avenue going towards Bay Ridge, but a lot of them are going to Bay Ridge, not really to intermediate points (except for maybe the SIR Grasmere station and Hylan Blvd/Clove Road).

 

You said yourself that most of the stops along Clove Road have only 1 person getting off (which irritates everybody else who wants to get moving). Generally, at those stops, there is nobody getting on to replace them, so the bus is progressively getting emptier.

 

As for the second comment, you're right, but the change should only be made if the demand is there (but generally, need and demand go hand-in-hand, as is the case here)

 

I understand what you're saying but I was looking at from the way the route actually operates and not the numbers themselves. From my observations all too often does the S53 become a frequent stop-and-go route like the B6, M102 or some other route, it just moves at a faster pace and has less riders. During rush hours and school/college hours, it's a brutal ride between forest & brooklyn because there's no alternative. The S83 would be able to provide relief for those riders traveling a longer distance but mind you, there will still be ridership for all those local stops even if a limited came into play. The turnover at Forest Av wouldn't truly matter as that area would probably be the local-stop portion of the S83 anyway.

 

And I would say during the mornings through 1pm, the S53 reaches West Brighton from port richmond with standees and it's not even at Forest Av yet.

[Santa Fe via Willow]

I just doublechecked the Renaissance's location is on the west side of Hylan Blvd, the same side as Nunzio's. The best ways there are the 51, 78, 79, (81), and X-buses if coming from the city. Plus the Renaissance isn't a long walk from the Grant City SIR station. The Renaissance isn't too long a walk from the 74 & 76 on Richmond Rd either.

 

Directions reminder:)

 

The Renaissance's address is 2131 Hylan Blvd in Grant City.

[checkmatechamp13]

17:00 - 19:00 isn't all that late quite frankly, especially not on the S53 and during those times, the buses aren't that packed in either direction, but still get decent ridership. Part of it is because during that time there are very high frequencies, especially going to Port Richmond, much more than they give going towards Bay Ridge between 08:00 and 09:00, which is odd since there should be more service during that time. It could be that more drivers are pulling in at that time, so they have them do the runs and also there are fewer high school, college and elementary riders as well since they either get out earlier or at different times, as opposed to the morning crowd. Same is true of the work crowd. You also still have all of the rush hour express buses running during that time too, so that helps lessen the load on the S53.

 

 

The buses going to Port Richmond are more crowded around 21:00 - 22:40 or so and you'll see that there's a bus roughly every 10 minutes going to Port Richmond because of that reason. Going towards Bay Ridge it can be hit or miss in terms of how crowded it gets at Forest around 17:00 - 19:00, but certainly not as crowded as it is during the morning rush.

 

Victory Blvd is similar to Forest Avenue in that you generally have more people getting off and on going towards Bay Ridge and more people getting off going towards Port Richmond, but fewer people getting on.

 

When I said “later”, I meant later than I originally travelled to Forest Avenue. I usually arrive there around 4PM and leave the area anywhere from 5PM-7PM (though some nights, I’ve stayed as late as 9PM)

 

But the point that I was trying to make was that there were still not that many people traveling between Port Richmond and Forest Avenue. I’m well aware that buses can still get crowded north of Forest Avenue.

 

I understand what you're saying but I was looking at from the way the route actually operates and not the numbers themselves. From my observations all too often does the S53 become a frequent stop-and-go route like the B6, M102 or some other route, it just moves at a faster pace and has less riders. During rush hours and school/college hours, it's a brutal ride between forest & brooklyn because there's no alternative. The S83 would be able to provide relief for those riders traveling a longer distance but mind you, there will still be ridership for all those local stops even if a limited came into play. The turnover at Forest Av wouldn't truly matter as that area would probably be the local-stop portion of the S83 anyway.

 

And I would say during the mornings through 1pm, the S53 reaches West Brighton from port richmond with standees and it's not even at Forest Av yet.

 

I know that a limited is warranted, but the only statement I was disputing was the idea that there is a lot of turnover at Forest Avenue. Out of those people filling the buses north of Forest Avenue, not that many actually get off at Forest Avenue. I know it doesn't matter for the purposes of there being a limited.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

When I said “later”, I meant later than I originally travelled to Forest Avenue. I usually arrive there around 4PM and leave the area anywhere from 5PM-7PM (though some nights, I’ve stayed as late as 9PM)

 

But the point that I was trying to make was that there were still not that many people traveling between Port Richmond and Forest Avenue. I’m well aware that buses can still get crowded north of Forest Avenue.

 

 

 

I know that a limited is warranted, but the only statement I was disputing was the idea that there is a lot of turnover at Forest Avenue. Out of those people filling the buses north of Forest Avenue, not that many actually get off at Forest Avenue. I know it doesn't matter for the purposes of there being a limited.

 

I still don't get the point. You insist that not many people are traveling that way when SI North has already stated that buses can be SRO. Even if there aren't that many people, what exactly is the point?? One measly stop doesn't mean that the line doesn't need limited stop service to Port Richmond.

 

Even if your argument holds some merit (which quite frankly I don't think it does since I don't know what your definition of "a lot of people" is), you cannot come to the conclusion of what an entire bus route needs based on one stop, so what exactly are you trying to argue?? :confused: If anything, I would be willing to concede that ridership from Forest Avenue to Port Richmond can fluctuate, meaning that you can have a crowded bus with standees, or a relatively empty bus, but that is normal. All buses have that at certain times of the day. It still doesn't justify not giving the line limited stop service to Port Richmond because the ridership is there.

 

We cannot compare the S53's ridership numbers to that of other bus lines in the city because Staten Island is the least populated borough in the entire city. If anything you could compare the number of riders to the overall size of the borough and see the proportion of folks using the line to the boroughs' population size. You have a densely populated area with those housing projects and so forth going towards Port Richmond and those people do use the S53 well, since most of them are too poor to afford a car or other expensive means of transportation such as the express bus or car service.

 

I know that a limited is warranted, but the only statement I was disputing was the idea that there is a lot of turnover at Forest Avenue. Out of those people filling the buses north of Forest Avenue, not that many actually get off at Forest Avenue. I know it doesn't matter for the purposes of there being a limited.

 

Yeah, but that's the thing though, that is not true overall. Forest Avenue is one of the main corridors of the North Shore and of Staten Island for that matter, so generally speaking you will always have a decent amount of folks getting off there. As I said before from 17:00 - 19:00 there generally aren't large amounts of folks getting off there, but I also explained why, but that doesn't mean that a lot of people don't get off there. It just depends on what time of the day we are talking about. For example on the weekends there are tons of folks getting off there as well as during certain parts of the day and night looking to either transfer to the S48 or because they live in the vicinity. I don't know if you realize this or not, but Forest Avenue is sort of the dividing line for good part of West Brighton and the crappy part and this is true of most neighbourhoods where Forest Avenue runs. Anyone who lives above or slightly below Forest Avenue tends to get off there. After that you can consider the dividing line to be Delafield Avenue or so, so it is a very important stop for different reasons, hence why it is indeed a stop with decent turnover overall.

[checkmatechamp13]

I still don't get the point. You insist that not many people are traveling that way when SI North has already stated that buses can be SRO. Even if there aren't that many people, what exactly is the point?? One measly stop doesn't mean that the line doesn't need limited stop service to Port Richmond.

 

Even if your argument holds some merit (which quite frankly I don't think it does since I don't know what your definition of "a lot of people" is), you cannot come to the conclusion of what an entire bus route needs based on one stop, so what exactly are you trying to argue?? :confused: If anything, I would be willing to concede that ridership from Forest Avenue to Port Richmond can fluctuate, meaning that you can have a crowded bus with standees, or a relatively empty bus, but that is normal. All buses have that at certain times of the day. It still doesn't justify not giving the line limited stop service to Port Richmond because the ridership is there.

 

We cannot compare the S53's ridership numbers to that of other bus lines in the city because Staten Island is the least populated borough in the entire city. If anything you could compare the number of riders to the overall size of the borough and see the proportion of folks using the line to the boroughs' population size. You have a densely populated area with those housing projects and so forth going towards Port Richmond and those people do use the S53 well, since most of them are too poor to afford a car or other expensive means of transportation such as the express bus or car service.

 

 

 

Yeah, but that's the thing though, that is not true overall. Forest Avenue is one of the main corridors of the North Shore and of Staten Island for that matter, so generally speaking you will always have a decent amount of folks getting off there. As I said before from 17:00 - 19:00 there generally aren't large amounts of folks getting off there, but I also explained why, but that doesn't mean that a lot of people don't get off there. It just depends on what time of the day we are talking about. For example on the weekends there are tons of folks getting off there as well as during certain parts of the day and night looking to either transfer to the S48 or because they live in the vicinity. I don't know if you realize this or not, but Forest Avenue is sort of the dividing line for good part of West Brighton and the crappy part and this is true of most neighbourhoods where Forest Avenue runs. Anyone who lives above or slightly below Forest Avenue tends to get off there. After that you can consider the dividing line to be Delafield Avenue or so, so it is a very important stop for different reasons, hence why it is indeed a stop with decent turnover overall.

 

When did I say ridership isn’t high north of Forest Avenue? I said the turnover isn’t high at the Forest Avenue stop.

 

Second of all, I said specifically that the S53 should get limited-stop service.

 

Also, like I said, I was just saying that the ridership isn’t like that of a Brooklyn route. I wasn’t saying that it was good, or bad, or why the ridership is like that. 12,000 riders per day is still less than the average Brooklyn route. That’s all I’m saying.

 

Bolded statement (I bolded that, not you): Yes, I know that a lot of people get off there, but that is only Port Richmond-bound. There aren't a lot of people getting off at that stop Bay Ridge-bound. I know a lot of people transfer to the S48, but, again, they are mostly coming from Brooklyn.

 

That's why there is no such thing as "having a lot of turnover overall". It either has a lot of turnover or it doesn't.

 

For example, two stops that I know have high turnover is the Forest Avenue/Broadway and Forest Avenue/Richmond Avenue stops on the S48. In both directions, you'll see people waiting for the S48. That is the difference between the S53 at Broadway/Forest Avenue: Hardly anybody is waiting at the stop to go to Port Richmond.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

When did I say ridership isn’t high north of Forest Avenue? I said the turnover isn’t high at the Forest Avenue stop.

 

Second of all, I said specifically that the S53 should get limited-stop service.

 

Also, like I said, I was just saying that the ridership isn’t like that of a Brooklyn route. I wasn’t saying that it was good, or bad, or why the ridership is like that. 12,000 riders per day is still less than the average Brooklyn route. That’s all I’m saying.

 

Bolded statement (I bolded that, not you): Yes, I know that a lot of people get off there, but that is only Port Richmond-bound. There aren't a lot of people getting off at that stop Bay Ridge-bound. I know a lot of people transfer to the S48, but, again, they are mostly coming from Brooklyn.

 

That's why there is no such thing as "having a lot of turnover overall". It either has a lot of turnover or it doesn't.

 

For example, two stops that I know have high turnover is the Forest Avenue/Broadway and Forest Avenue/Richmond Avenue stops on the S48. In both directions, you'll see people waiting for the S48. That is the difference between the S53 at Broadway/Forest Avenue: Hardly anybody is waiting at the stop to go to Port Richmond.

 

 

Okay, fine, let's say turnover is low at Forest & Broadway going towards Port Richmond (I still disagree because I live relatively close to Broadway and am near there everyday at different times of the day and it fluctuates). What is the point of pointing it out???

 

Also, you are wrong about a lot of people getting off at Forest and Broadway going towards Bay Ridge. Plenty of people get off there to take the S48 towards the Ferry or Mariners' Harbor or to go shopping or whatever. I'm not sure what you are basing your conclusions on, but if you're basing them solely on the times that you mentioned earlier then I understand why you concluded the way you did, but you don't use the S53 as your primary bus line to really come to that conclusion. I say that because if you did, you would realize how much turnover fluctuates at that stop. It is not consistent and it is generally lower at the times that you mentioned particularly from 17:00 - 19:00. To be honest with you, the turnover is probably low during that time because there are too many S53s running at that time, but they are needed to keep crowding at bay I suppose, especially since ridership can fluctuate on that line.

 

I also don't understand why you continue to compare the S53 to a Brooklyn route in terms of ridership when both SI North & I clarified that we were not referring to how many riders a day the line gets when we said that it functions like a Brooklyn bus line. The point that you are making about Brooklyn buses having higher ridership is obvious for the reasons I've mentioned earlier.

 

In sum, I'm really not sure what you're debating??? :eek: :confused:

[checkmatechamp13]

Okay, fine, let's say turnover is low at Forest & Broadway going towards Port Richmond (I still disagree because I live relatively close to Broadway and am near there everyday at different times of the day and it fluctuates). What is the point of pointing it out???

 

Also, you are wrong about a lot of people getting off at Forest and Broadway going towards Bay Ridge. Plenty of people get off there to take the S48 towards the Ferry or Mariners' Harbor or to go shopping or whatever. I'm not sure what you are basing your conclusions on, but if you're basing them solely on the times that you mentioned earlier then I understand why you concluded the way you did, but you don't use the S53 as your primary bus line to really come to that conclusion. I say that because if you did, you would realize how much turnover fluctuates at that stop. It is not consistent and it is generally lower at the times that you mentioned particularly from 17:00 - 19:00. To be honest with you, the turnover is probably low during that time because there are too many S53s running at that time, but they are needed to keep crowding at bay I suppose, especially since ridership can fluctuate on that line.

 

I also don't understand why you continue to compare the S53 to a Brooklyn route in terms of ridership when both SI North & I clarified that we were not referring to how many riders a day the line gets when we said that it functions like a Brooklyn bus line. The point that you are making about Brooklyn buses having higher ridership is obvious for the reasons I've mentioned earlier.

 

In sum, I'm really not sure what you're debating??? :eek: :confused:

 

The point of pointing it out was because you said that turnover was high. I was disagreeing with that particular statement (basically, that was the one point that we were debating)

 

I don't see how rush hour is the time when there are the least number of people waiting for a bus in any given direction. So I assumed that, if hardly anybody is travelling between Forest Avenue and Port Richmond during rush hour, hardly anybody would travel between Forest Avenue and Port Richmond period.

 

The limited actually would be a good idea to better distribute the crowding. You could have the locals terminate at Forest Avenue and the limiteds continue to Port Richmond.

 

Ridership means how many riders a line gets. Originally, that is what I thought you guys meant when you said "Ridership is similar to that of a Brooklyn route". In terms of cost per passenger, it is but the pure ridership numbers aren't. Now that I can see that that wasn't what you were referring to, there is no point in debating this further.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

The point of pointing it out was because you said that turnover was high. I was disagreeing with that particular statement (basically, that was the one point that we were debating)

 

I don't see how rush hour is the time when there are the least number of people waiting for a bus in any given direction. So I assumed that, if hardly anybody is travelling between Forest Avenue and Port Richmond during rush hour, hardly anybody would travel between Forest Avenue and Port Richmond period.

 

The limited actually would be a good idea to better distribute the crowding. You could have the locals terminate at Forest Avenue and the limiteds continue to Port Richmond.

 

Ridership means how many riders a line gets. Originally, that is what I thought you guys meant when you said "Ridership is similar to that of a Brooklyn route". In terms of cost per passenger, it is but the pure ridership numbers aren't. Now that I can see that that wasn't what you were referring to, there is no point in debating this further.

 

Yeah, the thing is you are too quick to debate. lol If you would've read the rest of what SI North and were saying you would've understood that we weren't referring to ridership in terms of numbers.

 

As far as your other comment goes, I can certainly see it. I would say that Staten Island has to have some of the lines that fluctuate the most in terms of ridership from one day to the next. I think you could make this argument about just about every local and express bus line on Staten Island. I have been on empty X2s and X30s as well as empty S53s and S48s during times in which you would expect them to have a decent amount of folks riding. Then other days the buses are packed like sardines and not because buses are missing either. I've tried to sit down and analyze why, and what I came up with is that some folks don't work 5 days a week, which is one reason. One lady that used to take the X16 at my stop is a perfect example. She works Monday through Thursday and has Fridays off. In my old office we would have early Fridays during the summer, so we would work from about 08:00 until 13:00 and then we were off. I attribute some of it also to college students. A lot of college students use the express and local buses on Staten Island and their classes vary. Same if true of high school students too who go to school in the city and use the express bus or the local bus to the ferry or whatever. Then you have some folks that use the express bus in the morning and the ferry and local bus to get back or vice versa.

[checkmatechamp13]

Yeah, the thing is you are too quick to debate. lol If you would've read the rest of what SI North and were saying you would've understood that we weren't referring to ridership in terms of numbers.

 

As far as your other comment goes, I can certainly see it. I would say that Staten Island has to have some of the lines that fluctuate the most in terms of ridership from one day to the next. I think you could make this argument about just about every local and express bus line on Staten Island. I have been on empty X2s and X30s as well as empty S53s and S48s during times in which you would expect them to have a decent amount of folks riding. Then other days the buses are packed like sardines and not because buses are missing either. I've tried to sit down and analyze why, and what I came up with is that some folks don't work 5 days a week, which is one reason. One lady that used to take the X16 at my stop is a perfect example. She works Monday through Thursday and has Fridays off. In my old office we would have early Fridays during the summer, so we would work from about 08:00 until 13:00 and then we were off. I attribute some of it also to college students. A lot of college students use the express and local buses on Staten Island and their classes vary. Same if true of high school students too who go to school in the city and use the express bus or the local bus to the ferry or whatever. Then you have some folks that use the express bus in the morning and the ferry and local bus to get back or vice versa.

 

Believe it or not, the reason why I am in the Forest Avenue/Broadway area a lot is to go to a mock government club at the YMCA that involves a lot of debating.

 

I've noticed that as well about a lot of routes. For example, the S46 has its days when it is completely crushloaded. Then it has its days when it is crushloaded in the front, but not in the back, and then it has its days when there are only a few standees, and this is all around 8AM.

 

College students can have a lot of variation in their schedules, but I don't think that is really the case with high school students (in the afternoon, some might have clubs and stuff, but that doesn't explain the differences in crowding during the morning)

 

There are also some people who take any bus that comes. For example, a person going between, say St. George and Forest Avenue/Richmond Avenue might miss an S48 and take the S44 instead, or something like that. If enough people do that, it makes a difference in the crowding.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Believe it or not, the reason why I am in the Forest Avenue/Broadway area a lot is to go to a mock government club at the YMCA that involves a lot of debating.

 

I've noticed that as well about a lot of routes. For example, the S46 has its days when it is completely crushloaded. Then it has its days when it is crushloaded in the front, but not in the back, and then it has its days when there are only a few standees, and this is all around 8AM.

 

College students can have a lot of variation in their schedules, but I don't think that is really the case with high school students (in the afternoon, some might have clubs and stuff, but that doesn't explain the differences in crowding during the morning)

 

There are also some people who take any bus that comes. For example, a person going between, say St. George and Forest Avenue/Richmond Avenue might miss an S48 and take the S44 instead, or something like that. If enough people do that, it makes a difference in the crowding.

 

lol... Yeah well if I didn't become a linguist then I would've been a lawyer... But yeah people do fluctuate from line to line. I do it myself. So far this week I've used the X30 and the X10 and have been shying away from the X14 since it is a longer walk, especially now with the warmer weather. Tonight I may use the X12 or X10 depending on when I leave. It all depends on my mood and where I'm going. I think part of the issue also is due to reliability issues. Sometimes the buses can get f*cked up, and most Staten Islanders know this, so they already have several back ups in place. Also since a lot of them are picked up, all they have to do is call the person who is picking them up and have them pick them up elsewhere. That's one reason why I've held off on getting a car because it would limit me in terms of which express buses I have access to. With car service I can basically take any bus and have a cab meet me. That's why I've used the X17J on several occasions because I would just take car service from the SI Hotel over there on Richmond Avenue. I would be extremely pissed if I had parked my car around Slosson Avenue and had taken the X10 into the city on the weekends and then the X10 was f*cked up coming home. That happens a lot and I was basically be forced to either wait it out, or take a cab or bus to get to my car, which defeats the whole purpose of having a car.

[checkmatechamp13]

lol... Yeah well if I didn't become a linguist then I would've been a lawyer... But yeah people do fluctuate from line to line. I do it myself. So far this week I've used the X30 and the X10 and have been shying away from the X14 since it is a longer walk, especially now with the warmer weather. Tonight I may use the X12 or X10 depending on when I leave. It all depends on my mood and where I'm going. I think part of the issue also is due to reliability issues. Sometimes the buses can get f*cked up, and most Staten Islanders know this, so they already have several back ups in place. Also since a lot of them are picked up, all they have to do is call the person who is picking them up and have them pick them up elsewhere. That's one reason why I've held off on getting a car because it would limit me in terms of which express buses I have access to. With car service I can basically take any bus and have a cab meet me. That's why I've used the X17J on several occasions because I would just take car service from the SI Hotel over there on Richmond Avenue. I would be extremely pissed if I had parked my car around Slosson Avenue and had taken the X10 into the city on the weekends and then the X10 was f*cked up coming home. That happens a lot and I was basically be forced to either wait it out, or take a cab or bus to get to my car, which defeats the whole purpose of having a car.

 

I guess I have a lot of career choices. I could be a politician, engineer, lawyer, or transit planner. :cool:

 

I would expect express bus riders to fluctuate more between different lines than regular local bus riders, since they are generally more mobile (they are more likely to have access to cars and/or car service if, for some reason they can't take their normal line)

 

Ah well. Don't feel bad that you can't get a car. There's cleaner air for everybody and you said yourself that you prefer that somebody else do all the work as far as driving. I actually think that way as well: Driving requires more skill and focus than taking public transportation, so I'll probably get a drivers' license but I'll probably only use it occasionally.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

I guess I have a lot of career choices. I could be a politician, engineer, lawyer, or transit planner. :cool:

 

I would expect express bus riders to fluctuate more between different lines than regular local bus riders, since they are generally more mobile (they are more likely to have access to cars and/or car service if, for some reason they can't take their normal line)

 

Ah well. Don't feel bad that you can't get a car. There's cleaner air for everybody and you said yourself that you prefer that somebody else do all the work as far as driving. I actually think that way as well: Driving requires more skill and focus than taking public transportation, so I'll probably get a drivers' license but I'll probably only use it occasionally.

 

Yeah, well same here. I mean I wouldn't use that much anyway since I wouldn't even bother driving into the city, so it doesn't seem worth it to spend money for insurance, gas, maintenance and the car payment every month just to drive to the express bus. BWT, tonight was a perfect example of the regulars scattering. A bunch of us was waiting for the X30 and we waited for almost 40 minutes and then started to give up. Some folks took the X17J, some took the X10 and some got on the X12 or went to another line entirely. Turns out the last X30 broke down at 57th street. Anywho, I wonder why the is pushing for SBS service on the S79?? :confused:

[checkmatechamp13]

Yeah, well same here. I mean I wouldn't use that much anyway since I wouldn't even bother driving into the city, so it doesn't seem worth it to spend money for insurance, gas, maintenance and the car payment every month just to drive to the express bus. BWT, tonight was a perfect example of the regulars scattering. A bunch of us was waiting for the X30 and we waited for almost 40 minutes and then started to give up. Some folks took the X17J, some took the X10 and some got on the X12 or went to another line entirely. Turns out the last X30 broke down at 57th street. Anywho, I wonder why the is pushing for SBS service on the S79?? :confused:

 

Hopefully things will turn out better when they have BusTime on the express buses (like they have on the B63 and M16/M34).

 

I think the MTA wants create more +SBS+ routes, but it wants to put one in each borough before continuing to expand (even if that one route isn't well-received by the community)

[Santa Fe via Willow]

The s79 +SBS+ Public Meeting will be on Wednesday June 8th 2011 at the Renaissance on the west side of Hylan Blvd in Grant City, about a block north of McDonald's & Nunzio's. If you know &/or are familiar with the Nunzio's/McDonald's intersection on Hylan Blvd, you can't miss the Renaissance. It's literally a stone's throw away.

 

The meeting begins at 6:30pm.

 

How to get there:

 

* Not too bad a walk from the 74 & 76 on Richmond Rd.

 

* Not a bad walk from the Grant City SIR station.

 

* The 51 or (81). Get off in front of the new Auto Zone to the left of Nunzio's.

 

* The 78 & 79.

 

* X-buses if coming from the city.

 

* Drive. Parking might be frustrating.

 

* Cabs. Grant City taxi is nearby.

[Santa Fe via Willow]

The s79 +SBS+ Public Meeting will be on Wednesday June 8th 2011 at the Renaissance on the west side of Hylan Blvd in Grant City, about a block north of McDonald's & Nunzio's. If you know &/or are familiar with the Nunzio's/McDonald's intersection on Hylan Blvd, you can't miss the Renaissance. It's literally a stone's throw away.

 

The meeting begins at 6:30pm.

 

How to get there:

 

* Not too bad a walk from the 74 & 76 on Richmond Rd.

 

* Not a bad walk from the Grant City SIR station.

 

* The 51 or (81). Get off in front of the new Auto Zone to the left of Nunzio's.

 

* The 78 & 79.

 

* X-buses if coming from the city.

 

* Drive. Parking might be frustrating.

 

* Cabs. Grant City taxi is nearby.

[checkmatechamp13]

I think you should've waited until Wednesday to post this. With all of the other threads between today and Wednesday, people might forget.

[Santa Fe via Willow]

I think you should've waited until Wednesday to post this. With all of the other threads between today and Wednesday, people might forget.

 

Don't worry:) I'll be bumping this thread again tomorrow with that travel info post:tup:

[Santa Fe via Willow]

I think you should've waited until Wednesday to post this. With all of the other threads between today and Wednesday, people might forget.

 

Don't worry:) I'll be bumping this thread again tomorrow with that travel info post:tup:

 

5:36pm now!

[Santa Fe via Willow]

The s79 +SBS+ Public Meeting will be on Wednesday June 8th 2011, THAT's TONIGHT!, at the Renaissance on the west side of Hylan Blvd in Grant City, about a block north of McDonald's & Nunzio's. If you know &/or are familiar with the Nunzio's/McDonald's intersection on Hylan Blvd, you can't miss the Renaissance. It's literally a stone's throw away.

 

The meeting begins at 6:30pm.

 

How to get there:

 

* Not too bad a walk from the 74 & 76 on Richmond Rd.

 

* Not a bad walk from the Grant City SIR station.

 

* The 51 or (81). Get off in front of the new Auto Zone to the left of Nunzio's.

 

* The 78 & 79.

 

* X-buses if coming from the city.

 

* Drive. Parking might be frustrating.

 

* Cabs. Grant City taxi is nearby.

[cartmn1210]

Too bad that's not practical, the streets those routes travel on aren't wide enough.

 

why????? they"re not running artics out here!

[cartmn1210]

I find it odd that the MTA is really pushing for the SBS S79 when it's clearly being opposed. There are plenty of other things they could do for Staten Island other than SBS that would benefit more people. The only thing the S79 needs is a limited because it's a fast route already and IMO, the Novabus artics would only help to slow the route down immensely.

 

Everyone keeps talking about artics on SI. Does anyone know out of the 3 depots, where would artics fit? Def not Cast, Yukon with lots of modifications to shop area they might be able to put in 2-3 lifts at most, and Charlestons shop is smaller that Yukon and Casletons. IMO Artics on SI not gonna Happen. SBS with a 40ftbus is probably whats gonna happen.

Believe me, I would love artics out here. I drove an artic before they drive jsut as well as a 40ft bus and theres probably one line on SI where an artic couldnt operate and thats the 42/52.