MTA To Change Flashing Blue Lights On Select Bus Service Vehicles

[Cait Sith]

The point of the lights is so you can see the bus from a distance, which really helps out in traffic. Taking them off is like a Big Middle Finger to the MTA.

 

 

Not really, after all, they are only on the SBS fleet.

[Burrstone]

It's also about the law and that everone has to follow the law... No matter how stupid one thinks the law is you have to obey it.

[East New York]

Hello,

I like the blue lights flashing on SBS lines but are they really necessary?

Then if you look at the bottom what is the real value of these flashing lights? The destination sign slightly changed doesn't suffice to correctly identify the line when it is dark? The day, bus paint scheme is quite obvious.

The MTA could buy LED destination sign with color number as is done in many cities in France.

 

When I read some answers on the forum I want to say: don't forget that drivers are not bus enthousiasts like us, do you really think they recognize vehicles in one second? And if they use their car, maybe they may have never taken a bus in their lives.

Large trucks NYPD ESU may be confused, for example.

 

I feel that you don't understand that drivers in stress in their car and have to pay attention to everything that happens around (other vehicles, pedestrians, signals ...) can't recognize a bus. But those who wait for their bus at a bus stop must necessarily be helped to recognize their bus from afar, while logically they have nothing else to do

 

In addition, if a state law prohibits flashing blue and red signals on all non-emergency vehicles, the MTA and nobody else can say anything about it. "It is the law" to resume writing that was behind the bus for the bus lanes.

 

Finally, a fixed blue light would be nice ... from flashing green one.

 

C.U. Soon,

Laurent

 

 

What you say is true. Many drivers can and do get confused by the buses. I can recall plenty of times at night thinking there was a cop approaching or in the area before I got used to the new blue lights. It is very easy to mistake an SBS bus for a police car at night.

 

With a little PR campaign, the blue lights could stay as people get used to them

 

Other lights and other sign options are there also. The buses you posted are using Hanover signs if I am not mistaken. We have those here, as well as the Luminator Spectrum line, and a few others. That could be an option.

 

What I would do, is go back to the traditional amber that was famous on the safety "hoodlum" lamps, and use a Hanover or Luminator sign that was blue, or standard amber with blue route number.

 

Courtesy A. Wong/CPTDB

 

Courtesy LA Soul/flickr

 

Courtesy R.C./Bergen Network

 

Because the situation wasn't about Manhattan or The Bronx.

 

 

See below. And remember that talk you and I had about them being illegal quite a few months ago? Well I thought it would blow over because MTA is a state agency. However, you can definitely look out for the change on the entire artic/SBS fleet. It actually is visually distracting if you are driving and an SBS bus comes up behind you. In my opinion it is a good thing because it associates the flashing blue with "Get out of the way. Period." Emergency vehicle or otherwise, it means move.

 

Some drivers beg to differ, and a certain firefighter made a huge stink about it sometime back. I actually had a conversation with the firefighter, and he pretty much knew that the only way that would change is if he brought it to the attention of the government. There are a few people who would decide to do nothing less than just that.

 

The thing is, I think they should stay blue, and change the law to reflect "select state owned vehicles" in addition to "emergency vehicles."

 

It's also about the law and that everone has to follow the law... No matter how stupid one thinks the law is you have to obey it.

 

 

True, but there is a little more this that as well. MTA knew the law when SBS was created. MTA is a state agency, not a city one. Politics and power comes into play here. Notice SI is the priority right now. If MTA was a private outfit I bet people would have called for all the bulbs to be changed citywide by now.

 

However, the original plan was for the lights to be blue, get people to move out the way, and all is well, and nobody will ever say anything about it. The problem is some people started to complain. I'm not really sure why some firefighters and politicians have such a big deal with it (that was a lie) being blue. Especially when the police don't...... Just my $.02

[B17EastNewYorkDepot]

sorry if this was answered but not going back into the thread to search.. What is the alternative for this??

[Far Rock Depot]

Shoot let it stay in just S.I. I lovee the lights on the 1200 Nova artics!

I think the 12xx lights blink once as the S79/M34 blink twice.

 

well the LFSA's blink while the Orion VII's strobe

[CDTA]

well the LFSA's blink while the Orion VII's strobe

 

 

Yeah, I saw that on the M34. I could see how people (especially those not used to it) would think it's an emergency vehicle.

[Far Rock Depot]

Yeah, I saw that on the M34. I could see how people (especially those not used to it) would think it's an emergency vehicle.

 

OT, im still tryin to get an opportunity to check out CDTA's BusPlus.

[megabus]

What you say is true. Many drivers can and do get confused by the buses. I can recall plenty of times at night thinking there was a cop approaching or in the area before I got used to the new blue lights. It is very easy to mistake an SBS bus for a police car at night.

 

With a little PR campaign, the blue lights could stay as people get used to them

 

Other lights and other sign options are there also. The buses you posted are using Hanover signs if I am not mistaken. We have those here, as well as the Luminator Spectrum line, and a few others. That could be an option.

 

What I would do, is go back to the traditional amber that was famous on the safety "hoodlum" lamps, and use a Hanover or Luminator sign that was blue, or standard amber with blue route number.

 

 

Destination signs on photos are trademarks: AESYS for the bus of Nice (line 23) and HANOVER for Paris (line 21).

I liked the old film destination sign (that's the name here), where the number and name of the line was on a blue and red background for the destination. Nobody would have beautiful pictures of NYCTA RTS with this equipment? I have unfortunately not found. Thank you in advance.

 

 

However, the original plan was for the lights to be blue, get people to move out the way, and all is well, and nobody will ever say anything about it. The problem is some people started to complain. I'm not really sure why some firefighters and politicians have such a big deal with it (that was a lie) being blue. Especially when the police don't...... Just my $.02

 

 

 

 

 

It had was well studied by the , they really wanted to give priority to a small side for their new SBS bus system.

Then there will always be persons who will never be happy.

The only time this could hinder emergency vehicle is in an intersection and when a siren screams without knowing where it comes from. An automibiliste seeking all sides could think that it comes blue flashing, wanting out of the way and finally blocking an emergency vehicle coming from the other side. But what if it happens frequently?

 

 

Annuler les modifications

 

When is it today, is there still buses running with flashing lights?

 

C.U. Soon,

Laurent

[Gorgor]

M15 SBS is running with hazard lights flashing and the blue lights off.

[MHV9218]

M34 SBS isn't running with any flashing lights. Really a loss, thank the bozos in SI who couldn't tell a bus from a police car and the idiots they elected.

[Turbo19]

No SBS lights = waste of lights/equipment.

[CDTA]

M34 SBS isn't running with any flashing lights. Really a loss, thank the bozos in SI who couldn't tell a bus from a police car and the idiots they elected.

Ya know what they say, no good deed goes unpunished.

[XcelsiorBoii4888]

I feel that the strobe lights on the Orion VIIs is what killed the flashing lights. They should of kept them blinking like the LFSAs, maybe those people would think different. 

[Culver]

Just use magenta or violet LEDs. It's not any of the emergency colors, but it's noticeable enough.

[FlashThunder]

M34 SBS isn't running with any flashing lights. Really a loss, thank the bozos in SI who couldn't tell a bus from a police car and the idiots they elected.

 

it's really odd seeing M34 SBS without the flashing blue lights on 34th street...

[Gorgor]

White lights flashing at the top would be fine.  Any color is fine as long as they're flashing so that people can clearly identify a select bus.

[aemoreira81]

I wonder if the buses should have a sign that flashes +SELECT BUS+ (independent of a route sign) as one of the signs. For example, an M15 SBS sign might read:

 

+SELECT BUS+

M15SBS Houston St

[Fresh Pond]

They already say +select bus service+ in the signs

[QM1to6Ave]

I don't think the loss of the lights is a big deal. I could still see my M34A 2 blocks away from the stop this morning

[Turbo19]

This got me thinking, If there is no lights and the only way to distinguish a select from a local/limited is the haedsign, then they should just remove the damn wraps from the select buses and distribute the fleet evenly. Maybe we'd see some D60's on the Bx12 & M14.

[Fresh Pond]

That's was the whole point of the wraps...the wrap, the flashing blue lights and the sign was the way to tell a SBS from a non-SBS

[Turbo19]

That's was the whole point of the wraps...the wrap, the flashing blue lights and the sign was the way to tell a SBS from a non-SBS

Well nothing seems to matter anymore so...   

[Culver]

That's was the whole point of the wraps...the wrap, the flashing blue lights and the sign was the way to tell a SBS from a non-SBS

The wraps are pointless, really. If they wanna go back to the retro dark blue+light blue paint scheme for all MTA buses, that's fine by me.

[Turbo19]

The wraps are pointless, really. If they wanna go back to the retro dark blue+light blue paint scheme for all MTA buses, that's fine by me.

Props to you.

[paulrivera]

This got me thinking, If there is no lights and the only way to distinguish a select from a local/limited is the haedsign, then they should just remove the damn wraps from the select buses and distribute the fleet evenly. Maybe we'd see some D60's on the Bx12 & M14.

To this day there are some LFSA's without wraps running on the Bx12 SBS so the Bronx isnt too far off.

 

I'm waiting for the day I see a SBS Pelham Bay short turn with a non-wrapped bus since most B/O's sign those up as locals (as opposed to the SBS reading which would actually say "SELECT BUS SERVICE" on the display).