Random Thoughts Thread - Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE)

[Krocyoin]

14 hours ago, danielhg121 said:

But you said the LTD makes Limited Stops until Bell Blvd which is easily 75% of the route. The local riders all along Northern Blvd until Oceania Street would have the longest commute because the LTD bypasses their stop. Face it, just come out and say that you live in Douglaston or Little Neck and you want a faster commute at the expense of 60% of the ridership base of the Q12. In your scenario, the locals would be standing room only and the Limiteds would be carrying air.

The Q12 LTD would make stops at major intersections and transfer points, between Lippman Plaza/Union Street and Bell Boulevard, so it would have good ridership, the stops it would make would be:

Roosevelt Avenue & Lippman Plaza (WB) / Union Street (EB)
Sanford Avenue & Bowne Street (WB) / Sanford Avenue & Parsons Boulevard (EB)
Sanford Avenue & 150th Street (Connection for the Murray Hill LIRR Station)
Sanford Avenue & 162nd Street (Connection for the Broadway LIRR Station)
Northern Boulevard & Utopia Parkway
Northern & Francis Lewis Boulevards
Northern Boulevard & Oceania Street
Northern & Bell Boulevards
And then all Local stops east of Bell Boulevard

"Face it, just come out and say that you live in Douglaston or Little Neck and you want a faster commute at the expense of 60% of the ridership base of the Q12. In your scenario, the locals would be standing room only and the Limiteds would be carrying air."

I live in Auburndale, so close but no cigar for you! 

[B35 via Church]

On 8/8/2022 at 6:34 PM, Mtatransit said:

NICE bus is probably the only system I've been on that still consistently enforce the face covering required rule.

Their drivers also have no hesitation confronting people not paying. I was on a n20 last week where the bus literally sat in the middle of Sanford Avenue for 5 minutes until that guy found his Metrocard. And they never press the F5 button unless its for their GoMobile Tickets, so I'm wondering if the operators themselves get disciplined if they don't enforce the rule/fare for them to take it so seriously. 

Or maybe I'm just used to MTA not giving a crap about the fare these days 

I'd say it has more to do with NICE drivers being (more) in fear of losing their jobs....

On 8/8/2022 at 6:34 PM, Mtatransit said:

That being said, they really need to add service on the n22 on the weekend. Maybe its the third track project, but the buses are SRO coming westbound out of Roosevelt Field, and completely packed by the time the bus gets to NHP Rd. However most passenger don't seem to be going to the subway at 179th so maybe its not the third track project

Wait, so were/are those crowds on weekends riding past the subway to get to 165th, or are the lion's share of them off the bus before it ever reaches the subway?

On 8/8/2022 at 6:34 PM, Mtatransit said:

Also I think it would be really beneficial if we have more of a pulse operation with n20g/h, n58, n25 at Great Neck instead of a barely timed mess at either the train stations two side and at Middle Neck Rd. granted n25/n58 are currently interlined on weekends, I have a feeling more n58 pax would benefit more with the n20G connection instead of the n25. It would mean that NICE would need to standardize its schedules with probably the n25/58 running every 40 minutes, n20g/h/21 running every 20 minutes

I suppose you can get away with pulse operations with the n20H, n21, and the n58 at Great Neck, but I don't see it with the n20G & the n25....

The unpopular opinion I have regarding the n25 is that I think too many trips overall run up to Great Neck anyway... When I get out of work, I usually see a NB n25 as I'm pulling out the lot onto Marcus av... This is usually around 4:30-ish.... Never see more than a handful of people on the thing.... I've felt that way about the n25 well before I started working out there & seeing what I've been seeing, solidifies my sentiments that much more.... As far as the n25's I've actually been on, everyone basically gets off along Northern (likely to xfer to the Flushing bound n20g).... n25's tend to start getting delayed in the lower-third portion of the route (Lynbrook - Franklin Sq, or whatever Franklin av./Hempstead Tpke is considered).... Then there's the traffic around NHP rd/Jericho Tpke, and... Yeah.....

As for the n20g, the demand for Great Neck - NE Queens travel (I suppose Flushing falls under NE Queens, being the western-most boundary of it... these boundaries are all subjective anyway) is too great, to think that you can get away with having those things run like clockwork - unless you give n20g's a bigger cushion when it comes to runtime (something I don't see NICE remotely doing).... Passenger activity/stop is more on the higher end, than it is on the lower end.... I'm not saying you're saying/believing this, but you do have people that like to think that the n20g is essentially a point-to-point operation b/w Flushing-Main st & LIRR Great Neck & it's not remotely the case.....

All that said, I do agree with your sentiment that there's more of a bond (if you will) b/w the n20g & the n58, compared to that of being a bond of sorts b/w the n25 & the n58....

[Cait Sith]

Funny how NICE has the "DROP-OFF ONLY" signs on the buses, but people still try to board them to Jamaica.....I was at Hillside/Little Neck Parkway waiting for the Q43 a few days ago and an n22 shows up with that sign, people still tried to get on lol....also noticed one of their minibuses at the parking lot in Roosevelt Field the other day.

On 8/6/2022 at 6:56 PM, Lawrence St said:

Is someone purposely smashing in all the windows on the retired NG’s that are going for auction? What the hell!

Auction for parts and/or scrap. A little reading goes a long way.
 

Quote

 

Year: 2009

Make: Orion

Model: VII NG

Body Style: Bus (Parts Only)

VIN/SN: 1VHGH3W2196704725

Odometer Numbers: True Mileage Unknown

Cyl: 6

Fuel Type: CNG

Transmission Type: Auto

Tire Size/Type: 11R22.5

Tire Condition: Poor

Drivetrain: 2WD

Does the unit operate?: No

Does the vehicle start?: No

Are keys available?: No

Ownership Documents: Clear Title

Mechanical Condition: Poor

Mechanical Notes: Parts vehicle.

Body Condition: Poor

Interior Condition: Poor

Misc Info: Parts missing, please inspect.

Titled: Yes

 

On 8/7/2022 at 1:08 PM, Lawrence St said:

That’s extremely idiotic. What if another transit agency wanted to buy these?

No agency is going to buy buses with 500,000 or more miles on them, or with expired CNG tanks, which is what those buses have. Suffolk County had Orion VII NGs that retired much earlier than these because of mileage alone. Nassau and Suffolk County puts some serious mileage on those buses.

Edited August 21, 2022 by Cait Sith

[Mtatransit]

On 8/21/2022 at 8:00 AM, B35 via Church said:

Wait, so were/are those crowds on weekends riding past the subway to get to 165th, or are the lion's share of them off the bus before it ever reaches the subway?

Most of the passengers were off the bus by 179th. Actually more pax took the bus all the way to the terminal than got off at the 179th Street Station

 

On 8/21/2022 at 8:00 AM, B35 via Church said:

As for the n20g, the demand for Great Neck - NE Queens travel (I suppose Flushing falls under NE Queens, being the western-most boundary of it... these boundaries are all subjective anyway) is too great, to think that you can get away with having those things run like clockwork - unless you give n20g's a bigger cushion when it comes to runtime (something I don't see NICE remotely doing).... Passenger activity/stop is more on the higher end, than it is on the lower end.... I'm not saying you're saying/believing this, but you do have people that like to think that the n20g is essentially a point-to-point operation b/w Flushing-Main st & LIRR Great Neck & it's not remotely the case.....

NICE needs to run this service more frequently than what is currently running right now, especially during the evenings and on weekends. Plus the schedules are way too tight. You sometimes miss transfers at Middle Neck Rd, because Northern blvd was being a bit slower than normal. During those times I just take it all the way to great Neck

[B35 via Church]

7 hours ago, Mtatransit said:

NICE needs to run this service more frequently than what is currently running right now, especially during the evenings and on weekends. Plus the schedules are way too tight. You sometimes miss transfers at Middle Neck Rd, because Northern blvd was being a bit slower than normal. During those times I just take it all the way to great Neck

Agreed, but at the same time, more n20G service doesn't help the case for pulse operations, as n20G service would greatly outnumber the other services at the pulse point (as in, LIRR Great Neck)... In other words, there would be way too many n20G's arriving at Great Neck throughout the day with no other buses at the terminal..... Pulse operations is a specific type of feeder network, where every route at that "pulse" point arrive & leave a terminal at the same time.... Pulse operations are best served for smaller networks.

7 hours ago, Mtatransit said:

Most of the passengers were off the bus by 179th. Actually more pax took the bus all the way to the terminal than got off at the 179th Street Station

If most of the pax were off the bus before hitting 179th, that sounds largely like people coming home from work, mixed in with mall shoppers...

More people riding out to 165th than getting off at 179th on weekends is more common than you may think.... The increase in pax doing it may be 3rd track project related, but that has more to do with the wackiness of the QB line on weekends more than anything.

[MTABusTransitFanner]

Don’t know where to post this but ig I’ll post it here…

 

2086-2101(2022 Gillig BRT+ CNGs) have been built, 2088 is already on the way to Nassau courtesy of a Gillig employee 

[MTABusTransitFanner]

2087 is at Mitchel Field

[Krocyoin]

On 9/17/2022 at 9:00 AM, MTABusTransitFanner said:

Don’t know where to post this but ig I’ll post it here…

 

2086-2101(2022 Gillig BRT+ CNGs) have been built, 2088 is already on the way to Nassau courtesy of a Gillig employee 

Well that is some great news, I really love the Gilligs, I'm happy more of them of are coming to Nassau to replace all of those dreadful Next Gens.

[MTABusTransitFanner]

2089 delivered to Mitchel Field, if it wasn’t mentioned already, 1805 has been retired

[MTABusTransitFanner]

1827 retired

[MTABusTransitFanner]

As of 10/2/2022:

1805, 1827 confirmed retired, 1802 and 1816 transmissions failed and 1809 engine failed, these 3 aren’t confined as retired yet so I’ll wait till I get confirmation on that 

2087, 2089, 2097 and 2098 present at Mitchel Field, 2097 was delivered yesterday evening 
 

[MTABusTransitFanner]

1802, 1808-1809, 1816 confirmed retired

[NewFlyer 230]

I prefer the XN40s over the Gilligs but it’s still nice to see Nassau getting some new buses.

Will Nassau be getting anymore XN40s or will all the remaining Orion’s be retired with Gilligs?

 

[MTABusTransitFanner]

7 hours ago, NewFlyer 230 said:

I prefer the XN40s over the Gilligs but it’s still nice to see Nassau getting some new buses.

Will Nassau be getting anymore XN40s or will all the remaining Orion’s be retired with Gilligs?

 

All of the Orions will be replaced by the Gilligs, speaking of Orions…..

 

it was mentioned that 1808 was retired, please disregard that

[I Run Trains]

On 10/3/2022 at 11:10 PM, NewFlyer 230 said:

I prefer the XN40s over the Gilligs but it’s still nice to see Nassau getting some new buses.

Will Nassau be getting anymore XN40s or will all the remaining Orion’s be retired with Gilligs?

 

there's like 60 more Gilligs coming there's like 7 on property but The next new buses from what im hearing are gonna be Electric New Flyers

[MTABusTransitFanner]

On 10/4/2022 at 11:54 PM, I Run Trains said:

there's like 60 more Gilligs coming there's like 7 on property but The next new buses from what im hearing are gonna be Electric New Flyers

Speaking of Gilligs, we are getting 40 new Gilligs, 2087-2094, 2097-2098, 2100, 2103, 2107, 2113 are on property. 2087-2094 already have their fareboxes Installed. All the new Gilligs won’t enter service until December 

Retired 1800s: 1802, 1805, 1809, 1816, 1825, 1827

2016, 1877 in Deer Park for repairs

[I Run Trains]

On 10/22/2022 at 8:19 AM, MTABusTransitFanner said:

Speaking of Gilligs, we are getting 40 new Gilligs, 2087-2094, 2097-2098, 2100, 2103, 2107, 2113 are on property. 2087-2094 already have their fareboxes Installed. All the new Gilligs won’t enter service until December 

Retired 1800s: 1802, 1805, 1809, 1816, 1825, 1827

2016, 1877 in Deer Park for repairs

2110 is on property as well. I saw it today when I came back to the yard

[MTABusTransitFanner]

On 10/27/2022 at 11:47 PM, I Run Trains said:

2110 is on property as well. I saw it today when I came back to the yard

Gotchu, speaking of, on Friday, 2093 entered service on the n15 and n43, run 1509 had it, it’s currently on the n1, run 0161

 

NICE now has 2086-2094, 2097-2100, 2103, 2106, 2106-2107, 2110, 2113, 2116-2117

Edited October 29, 2022 by MTABusTransitFanner

[I Run Trains]

On 10/29/2022 at 6:18 PM, MTABusTransitFanner said:

Gotchu, speaking of, on Friday, 2093 entered service on the n15 and n43, run 1509 had it, it’s currently on the n1, run 0161

 

NICE now has 2086-2094, 2097-2100, 2103, 2106, 2106-2107, 2110, 2113, 2116-2117

I know.. I saw them when I pulled into the yard the other day. Side Note. im a NICE Bus Operator now

[danielhg121]

6 hours ago, I Run Trains said:

I know.. I saw them when I pulled into the yard the other day. Side Note. im a NICE Bus Operator now

Wait. So you went from A Division Train Operator to NICE Bus Operator? Is that allowed or does that infringe on the hours of service rule? Either way, rare to see someone go from MTA to another agency that isn't completely out of state.

Edited October 31, 2022 by danielhg121

[danielhg121]

Delete

Edited October 31, 2022 by danielhg121

[MTABusTransitFanner]

10 hours ago, I Run Trains said:

I know.. I saw them when I pulled into the yard the other day. Side Note. im a NICE Bus Operator now

Oh wow! I actually had no idea! Very cool!

[MTABusTransitFanner]

2114 delivered to Mitchel Field

[MTABusTransitFanner]

2087 entered service on the n4(will later go on the n40/41 and n4, run 0406)
2089 entered service on the n25(currently on the n58, will later go on the n25, n58 and n25, run 2504)
2095 entered service on the n16(run 1603)

[I Run Trains]

On 11/2/2022 at 7:18 AM, MTABusTransitFanner said:

2087 entered service on the n4(will later go on the n40/41 and n4, run 0406)
2089 entered service on the n25(currently on the n58, will later go on the n25, n58 and n25, run 2504)
2095 entered service on the n16(run 1603)

I just have one question! how do you know all this!? I work for the company and I don't be knowing this stuff as far as what's on what route!

 

On 10/31/2022 at 6:03 PM, danielhg121 said:

Wait. So you went from A Division Train Operator to NICE Bus Operator? Is that allowed or does that infringe on the hours of service rule? Either way, rare to see someone go from MTA to another agency that isn't completely out of state.

You're asking too many questions. I was there, now im here..... With possibility of being back over there!