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Nassau Inter County Express (Nice) Discussion


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Article from December:

 

http://blog.tstc.org/2011/12/15/nassau-county-legislature-adopts-amended-nice-contract/

 

Late Monday night, the Nassau County Legislature unanimously adopted an amended version of a contract with Veolia Transportation.

 

While the new contract still cedes much power to Veolia, the amendments and a new memorandum of understanding do guarantee that there will be no fare increases in 2012, no cuts to Able-Ride service for three years, and no fare increases or service cuts without a pair of public hearings before the newly-formed Transit Advisory Committee. Any cuts or fare increases must go through a 45-day waiting period prior to implementation. By more clearly outlining the powers of the Transit Advisory Committee, the amendments protect the TAC from being weakened by the County Executive, and the changed contract requires that the County Executive and legislature agree on changes to the TAC’s purview.

 

These amendments, offered by the Democratic caucus, came after a heated public hearing and an announcement that Veolia’s European parent company is divesting from the transportation business. In an effort to reassure riders, Veolia representatives and Nassau’s Chief Deputy County Executive Rob Walker reminded the public that Nassau County can opt out of the contract at any time, so long as they give 90 days notice. There was no discussion of what would happen after a potential opt-out.

 

Though turnout for the final hearing was light—possibly because the vote was moved up a week from its original December 19th scheduling—speakers were unanimously opposed to the adoption of the contract. While the contract’s passage marks an end to the first phase of this privatization process, comments by speakers indicated that bus transit advocacy in Nassau County is just getting underway. Immediately after testifying, Charlene Obernauer, Executive Director of Long Island Jobs With Justice, announced the formation of a NICE Bus Riders’ Union, which will seek to protect riders from future fare hikes and service cuts.

 

In addition, Pat Bowden, President of Transport Workers Union Local 252, indicated that, while the deal between Nassau County and Veolia is done, the union has yet to reach an agreement with the company. This could pose a problem for Veolia, who is scheduled to take over on January 1st. Ms. Bowden pointed out that the privatization contract means that Nassau County’s transit workers are no longer bound by the Taylor Law, which prohibits public employee strikes.

 

Newsday is covering the labor negotiations here.

 

 

Interesting, the Community Meetings were exactly 45 days before April 8th.

 

If the existing Long Island Bus Riders Union posts are any indication ,Charlene Obernauer and/or her group are clueless. They created an entity to "fight for bus riders rights" but they know nothing of bus riders, the bus routes, etc. They're there just to make noise.

They think service adjustments will take place April 5th, when they take place April 8th. They had a meeting on "Wed April 15th" when Wed was the 14th. They think the N43 is being cut midday when service is being improved, etc. They are clueless.

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I rode a 1700 today that did not have a number on the rear. Also, even though the announcements that played when the doors opened were for the opposite destination, the "major stop" announcements worked fine.

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what was the routing of the JB24?

Also, when did the N8 go to hempstead? I have a map (the one that shows the N91 in the Lynbrook inset) and it shows the N8 at HTC

Just curious.

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Also, when did the N8 go to hempstead? I have a map (the one that shows the N91 in the Lynbrook inset) and it shows the N8 at HTC

Just curious.

 

The original plan for the N8 was for it to go to Hempstead, but I heard something about them not getting the funding needed, so they terminated it at Hempstead Turnpike before the route began operating. Somehow it slipped by on the map.

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The original plan for the N8 was for it to go to Hempstead, but I heard something about them not getting the funding needed, so they terminated it at Hempstead Turnpike before the route began operating. Somehow it slipped by on the map.

 

MTA Derp.

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Article from December:

 

http://blog.tstc.org/2011/12/15/nassau-county-legislature-adopts-amended-nice-contract/

 

 

 

Interesting, the Community Meetings were exactly 45 days before April 8th.

 

If the existing Long Island Bus Riders Union posts are any indication ,Charlene Obernauer and/or her group are clueless. They created an entity to "fight for bus riders rights" but they know nothing of bus riders, the bus routes, etc. They're there just to make noise.

They think service adjustments will take place April 5th, when they take place April 8th. They had a meeting on "Wed April 15th" when Wed was the 14th. They think the N43 is being cut midday when service is being improved, etc. They are clueless.

now you know the real reason why I will not join them they had a petition.

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I also found out the Person with Number 1 seniority at MF his name is Walter. He drives 7901 (I take him often). as with the whole system he is about third they say after a few RVC guys.

 

I'd imagine 7901 is on the n79? That's a surprise, since I'd expect a very senior driver to pick an empty route like the n80/81.

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Cant remember the number of the bus, but I know that the bus on the 7:40 north n51 has a broken sign. Has a little paper sign with "N51" drawn on it in the window.

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  • 2 weeks later...

in reference to post # 457-------any of those picks you know by heart or you can send to me or if you know where the entire thing is?...i'd love to see what runs are linked together now that i'm gone....please and thank you......

 

i don't like what they did to my 23 route....that was my favorite and i didn't even mind when they linked it up with the 79.....i also remeber the route i used to take wayyyyyyyy back when when you started at 400 report and you left Mineola 430, did 4 trips on the 23, and 4 trips on the 6 with a meal break in hempstead and finished somewhere in the ball park of 12 xx.......i didn't even mind that all that much ....What's going on!?!?! lol

 

anyway hope all is well with everyone here.....i'm still driving a bus don't you worry just not my cummins CNG number 287 for LIB anymore...(RIP) ....

 

if anyone can help with those picks or knows any of the routes that are linked together please let me know here or PM....thanksss

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in reference to post # 457-------any of those picks you know by heart or you can send to me or if you know where the entire thing is?...i'd love to see what runs are linked together now that i'm gone....please and thank you......

 

i don't like what they did to my 23 route....that was my favorite and i didn't even mind when they linked it up with the 79.....i also remeber the route i used to take wayyyyyyyy back when when you started at 400 report and you left Mineola 430, did 4 trips on the 23, and 4 trips on the 6 with a meal break in hempstead and finished somewhere in the ball park of 12 xx.......i didn't even mind that all that much ....What's going on!?!?! lol

 

anyway hope all is well with everyone here.....i'm still driving a bus don't you worry just not my cummins CNG number 287 for LIB anymore...(RIP) ....

 

if anyone can help with those picks or knows any of the routes that are linked together please let me know here or PM....thanksss

 

Did you drive 287 everyday? What was so special about that bus?
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no not every day.....but i had enough seniority that they tried to save it for me...287, 285, 185, 234, 222, 202, 462, 460, 457, 199, and 213 (1476) were usually among my first picks

 

if you had seniority they usually rattled off a few numbers and you were able to pick what you wanted based on what was in the yard but not all the time sometimes it was whatever was left or whatever just came in

 

DOES ANYONE HAVE THOSE NEW PICKS FOR NICE?!?! HELP lol

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I'm thinking about sending one gigantic FOIL request to NICE/Dept of Real Estate:

 

-All ridership data from transition surveys (which should have trip by trip, stop by stop)

-Pick

-HTC/Mineola/MetroCard/165 MOU's (these may be easier to get from the MTA)

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no not every day.....but i had enough seniority that they tried to save it for me...287, 285, 185, 234, 222, 202, 462, 460, 457, 199, and 213 (1476) were usually among my first picks

 

if you had seniority they usually rattled off a few numbers and you were able to pick what you wanted based on what was in the yard but not all the time sometimes it was whatever was left or whatever just came in

 

DOES ANYONE HAVE THOSE NEW PICKS FOR NICE?!?! HELP lol

 

No I just bother drivers on routes that aren't that busy and ask them. Often Times on the 79 I'm the first one on because I take the short turn ones.
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Article: Going Nassau’s Way

 

 

The Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) succeeded the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) Long Island Bus (LIB) system effective Jan. 1, 2012. More than three months later, NICE announced it was keeping all 48 of the routes it inherited from LIB while expanding service to Jamaica, Queens from Hempstead and Freeport, and reducing it elsewhere.

 

The primary reason is that the NICE, operated on Nassau County’s behalf by Veolia Transportation, has a much better sense today about where, and when, its 35,000 riders travel. Moreover, Veolia calculated that its redesigned schedule will allow NICE to generate $106 million in revenue by year-end 2012. That’s how much money Veolia said it would need to operate NICE, a bus system financed through a combination of fare revenue (riders pay $2.25 per trip) and governmental subsidies. The county will contribute more than $2 million to fund NICE in 2012 whereas Nassau paid the MTA over $9 million last year to underwrite LIB.

 

NICE’s new schedule went into effect on Sunday, April 8. It can be found online at [nicebus.com] and includes print and video summaries of the service adjustments in both English and Spanish. Certain media outlets and elected officials will predictably focus on people who are unhappy with some of the changes, and there may well be merit to their complaints.

 

Yet one of the great things about having the NICE come under the county’s jurisdiction, rather than the MTA’s, is that Nassau in 2012 has a much greater level of control over future modifications to NICE’s operations. When the MTA’s Long Island Bus did something that didn’t sit well with county lawmakers, Nassau needed to make its case to the entire MTA board, an entity filled with gubernatorial appointees who generally obsess over matters directly impacting New York City. Nassau had allowed the MTA to manage its bus system dating back to the early 1970s. An aside: getting buy-in from the MTA board is a major reason the MTA’s Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) may have a difficult time undoing its wildly unpopular off-peak service reductions on the LIRR’s Port Washington branch.

 

The Veolia Transportation-operated NICE will listen to County Executive Ed Mangano and county legislators because Veolia, a private entity, was hired by them. Veolia Transportation is in the first year of a five-year contract with the county. The deal, unanimously approved by the county Legislature in December 2011, also includes a five-year renewal option.

 

The initial feedback to this private-public partnership has been promising. Indeed, in his 2012 State of the County address last month, Mangano mentioned that a NICE rider called his office “just days after Veolia began operating our buses to complain that he missed the bus because it was on time and had been historically late.”

 

There is one piece of unfinished business on this matter. The county has committed to forming a five-member Nassau County Bus Transit Committee to provide counsel to Nassau regarding NICE’s fares, service and annual budgets. The committee, whose members are appointed by the county executive in consultation with the county legislature, has not held its first meeting as yet. Given all the interest in NICE, this committee needs to convene as soon as possible.

 

 

I interjected the "nicebus.com" it seems to be missing from the article.

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