NJ DOT Commissioner Suggests Bus Pickups on Manhattan Streets

[BZGuy]

The only other thing I can think they can do is institute rolling departures by garage. Say a Wayne bus pulls in...instead of waiting for it's trip on the 190, it rolls right out on say, the 196. Other than expanding the PABT, something will have to give.

[B35 via Church]

Bro(B35) and others what about the fact in Phiadelphia a couple of South Jersey NJT buses make a couple of stops along Market St in Central(Downtown)Philadelphia? While the rest terminate at the Greyhound station on Filbert and 9th (back of Philly Galleria Mall)? Just playing devils adovcate?

lol... at least you admit devil's advocacy....

 

But yeah, the Greyhound terminal was never intended to host all the routes that come in from New Jersey (well, not to my knowledge anyway).... the only "300" route that doesn't end in there is the 551.... There are no 400's that end inside the terminal...

 

The gravity of the situation is much much worse @ PABT than the little Greyhound terminal in downtown Philly.

[qjtransitmaster]

bzguy first 3 routes 126,139 & 159 not needed. 159 can have short turns at lincoln harbor msnhattan folk have PATH & HBLR. 126 has PATH 139 already has a wall street service run by academy. the last 5 however would benefit from wall street service 167,190,320 & 161 if routed via secaucus jct ppl can take train for midtown stay on bus to wall street via rte 9 to holland tunnel

[PinePower]

I do not think NJ Transit buses should be stopping on Midtown streets, however, I think there should be some downtown service, perhaps to the new WTC via the Holland Tunnel. The problem is there just simply isn't enough room at PABT, or in the Lincoln Tunnel.

It's easier to send some rush hour buses downtown than expanding the PABT or adding lanes to the Lincoln tunnel.

Especially now with all the construction in Weehawken and Union City, sending the buses downtown via the Holland is a good idea.

A bus element should be introduced to the new Fulton transit center.

[B35 via Church]

Don't know where the hell that would be built exactly... but If there were to be a bus terminal arond the fulton transit center, all the SI, brooklyn, and queens express buses that terminate in lower manhattan should end in there also.... damn the paying to fund a bus terminal in lower manhattan just for the sake of NJT buses due to capacity problems at PABT....

[SirJokaPlaya]

Philadelphia is a totally different beast. Philly's traffic is a DREAM compared to the traffic to the city. The issue is that more cars don't want to carpool in my view. Now, if you want to to go NYC and pay the tolls, go for it, but pay TWICE if you want to go solo. Otherwise, either car pool or take a bus. That's view number one.

 

View number two - all of this happened too because of a Christie's inept mind-altering idea of NOT making the ARC Tunnel. If that tunnel was done by now, the traffic to NY would be reduced CONSIDERABLY since more people would take the train to work, less traffic on the road.

 

View number three - It's getting so bad that I wish PABT would make a fourth tunnel to NY, but make it bus accessible with easy in and out of PABT (That's wishful thinking, yes, I know).

 

View number four - eventually, the problem that we have will grow into a major chaos. More and more people will start to not take transit due to these delays, which means more passenger cars on the road, meaning more traffic hell than there is now.

 

Solution Options:

 

1 - Reduce fares to get more people to take bus (Yeah right)

2 - Build a new tunnel & charge more for un-carpooled cars

3 - B/O must learn all legs of a route, in case of a switch. That's another thing. I heard B/O not doing legs because they don't know it or they don't want to and they want to do the leg that they can. For example, if I was the 166T to Leonia, and there's only enough for Cresskill via the X, no one will do the X, and wait for Leonia. Come on, do the X. Get more people out of the building. I've done trips where I told the starter that I'll go to Cresskill via the T during the rush. I had more people get on that bus and clear out gate 211 because I want to help get people out. It's a win since you get more people, the B/O gets more time in if they only got one trip, and it reduces traffic and crowds.

4 - Some re-evaluations on buses needed for routes. For example, I think the 126 should be moved from gate 204 to Gate 213 during the rush so more people can fit in the waiting area and more importantly, the possibility of getting articulated buses on that route. Makes more sense to get 99 people out of there than 56.

 

Just some ideas I have.

[BZGuy]

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1 - Reduce fares to get more people to take bus (Yeah right)

 

I agree with this, but it makes too much sense and that's why they won't do it.

 

2 - Build a new tunnel & charge more for un-carpooled cars

 

A 4th tube is needed yesterday. With 4 tubes the inner tubes would be for bus and truck traffic and the outer ones for cars. I can guarantee that traffic would move smoothly.

 

3 - B/O must learn all legs of a route, in case of a switch. That's another thing. I heard B/O not doing legs because they don't know it or they don't want to and they want to do the leg that they can. For example, if I was the 166T to Leonia, and there's only enough for Cresskill via the X, no one will do the X, and wait for Leonia. Come on, do the X. Get more people out of the building. I've done trips where I told the starter that I'll go to Cresskill via the T during the rush. I had more people get on that bus and clear out gate 211 because I want to help get people out. It's a win since you get more people, the B/O gets more time in if they only got one trip, and it reduces traffic and crowds.

 

I agree with this but you and I both know there are some operators who won't go along with it. Unless they need/want the money nobody from the Meadowlands wants to do a Cresskill trip if they were suppose to do a short trip to Leonia. Same thing with the 190....I've heard it like pulling teeth to get a Meadowlands op to go all the way to Paterson because they claim they don't know it. Everybody should know the full routes on every line their garage has and should run them with no problems.

 

4 - Some re-evaluations on buses needed for routes. For example, I think the 126 should be moved from gate 204 to Gate 213 during the rush so more people can fit in the waiting area and more importantly, the possibility of getting articulated buses on that route. Makes more sense to get 99 people out of there than 56.

 

I've been saying that the 126 should be artics for a long time. They waste artics on the 321 all the time....send those suckers to Hoboken. There is no reason why the 126s should be running 4-5 in a pack.

 

Just some ideas I have.

 

[SirJokaPlaya]

 

 

In the 5 years I lived in Hudson County, I never ever seen the 321 on an artic: either a CNG, D4500, or NABI. That's shocking. As for Meadowlands going to Paterson, before a certain supervisor took over, they were allowed to go there. Now, if they do, this person gets a heart attack. I know cuz he wanted to chew me a new a**hole. I'm glad the starter came in the garage to explain (since some take the 320 to NY to go to work and park either at Mead or the NB P/R).

[BZGuy]

Mostly Fairview puts artics on the 321 for the AM Rush, every once in the while they will put one on for the PM Rush. And I honestly don't see what the big deal is about sending a Meadowlands guy out to Paterson....I think it's better to keep the flow of people and buses moving than just restricting them to the Ruthersford branch.....at least send them to Passaic! From what I was told, years ago the 190 was FULLY split and Meadowlands went out to Paterson in the Flexs.

[SirJokaPlaya]

Mostly Fairview puts artics on the 321 for the AM Rush, every once in the while they will put one on for the PM Rush. And I honestly don't see what the big deal is about sending a Meadowlands guy out to Paterson....I think it's better to keep the flow of people and buses moving than just restricting them to the Ruthersford branch.....at least send them to Passaic! From what I was told, years ago the 190 was FULLY split and Meadowlands went out to Paterson in the Flexs.

 

 

The problem now is that no one really knows how to do the 190 beyond Rutherford. The reason I did the 190 a few times to Paterson is:

- I lived in Paterson all my life, and took the 190 numerous times.

- I know all but one leg - Passaic Avenue (I only taken it once in a blue moon, so I forgotten how to go there, but Delawanna: Easy.)

 

Back to the topic at hand: It's like 50/50 on buses going into Midtown if PABT is backed up or not. I will say this until someone can prove to me how safe it is as well as how I can avoid legalities: Unless that bus stop says NJ Transit, like the ones the 120 use, I'm not stopping. That person has to be either in dire straights medically wise because I'm not getting a ticket from PAPD or NYPD.

[Jarob1020]

Trying to send more buses downtown would be a nightmare. I drive a downtown route via the holland tunnel and there are days when we sit on Church or Sixth Ave for an hour or more because of congestion. I don't know if this would work but what if 43rd Street between 8th and 9th Avenues is closed to all traffic except for NJ bound buses to load passengers and go. Take some PABT lines out of the Port and line them up there. Not sure if that would work but 42nd St would be just as crazy as downtown