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Could this put all B/O out of work in the future?


The Saniter

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As much as some B/Os annoy me, I don't like the idea of some machine driving my express bus.  May wake up from a nap and be in a ditch somewhere or go flying off of the Deegan...  :lol:

 

Haha!! Yea I agree but the way MTA spends money, I wouldnt be surprised if Cuomo really looked into this because he already wants to make these buses more "futuristic"!!  

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Haha!! Yea I agree but the way MTA spends money, I wouldnt be surprised if Cuomo really looked into this because he already wants to make these buses more "futuristic"!!  

Well it would be great from a cost cutting perspective that's for sure.  Use the cuts to provide more service.  Not only that but no moody and rude drivers, and no drivers going the wrong damn way and no drivers with constant road rage, honking at everyone and everything.  

 

I had a bus that I couldn't get for the last few weeks now in the mornings on the BxM1.  The driver insisted that he was instructed to go via Henry Hudson Parkway Southbound below West 239th Street instead of via Riverdale Avenue, and did so for two more days after I confronted him about the problem, so I filed a complaint (actually several with the (MTA)) and then contacted my elected officials as well to investigate where this bus came from that isn't on the schedule, but comes at the same time as the scheduled via Riverdale Avenue bus.  

 

Suddenly yesterday (my complaints likely started going to the right people by then along with elected officials looking into the matter) he started going via Riverdale Avenue, and did so today too, so that means he's been going the wrong damn way for weeks now stranding several of us along the way since we kept wondering why we would see a bus on BusTime exactly around the time we were supposed to get a bus, but one would never come down Riverdale Avenue when it was supposed to.  Incredible...  <_<  It amazes me how often this happens with drivers not knowing the routes nor the stops.  

 

I've also seen numerous instances on the BxM2 where we'll have TWO BxM2's coming up 6th Avenue together when one of the drivers realizes that he is doing the wrong trip.  I had to get off of one bus and onto the other one once and the guy that came in error had to go back down to 34th street. We had another driver on the BxM18 who actually chastises passengers if they don't ring for the stop when she calls it out.  Like really... Just shut up and let us ring the damn bell. She treated this guy like he was a little child.  He got so annoyed that he just told her to drive and he would get off at another stop.  There's also the drivers that let you get on the bus, pay, take a seat in the back and then they ask you what stop you're getting off at if only a few people are riding so then you have walk back to the front to tell them as they'll never hear you all the way from the back. Too much drama and stupidity when you're paying for such expensive service.  Outside of the safety factor, having these buses would eliminate all of the above...  

 

For what it's worth, I've used those automated trains at JFK when flying out to Europe and I was ok with those, perhaps because of the short distance involved and the rail set up?  I think traffic is just too crazy for such a bus here though.

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I've also seen numerous instances on the BxM2 where we'll have TWO BxM2's coming up 6th Avenue together when one of the drivers realizes that he is doing the wrong trip.  I had to get off of one bus and onto the other one once and the guy that came in error had to go back down to 34th street. We had another driver on the BxM18 who actually chastises passengers if they don't ring for the stop when she calls it out.  Like really... Just shut up and let us ring the damn bell. She treated this guy like he was a little child.  He got so annoyed that he just told her to drive and he would get off at another stop.  There's also the drivers that let you get on the bus, pay, take a seat in the back and then they ask you what stop you're getting off at if only a few people are riding so then you have walk back to the front to tell them as they'll never hear you all the way from the back. Too much drama and stupidity when you're paying for such expensive service.  Outside of the safety factor, having these buses would eliminate all of the above...  

 

If it lets them take shortcuts to get everybody (including yourself) home quicker, I have no problem with it. Sometimes you don't know until you get towards the last pickup stop (especially on routes like the SI routes where the majority of the ridership is Downtown: If you get a light load in Midtown, you don't know if that'll necessarily be the case Downtown)

 

Getting mad about not ringing for the stop....I mean, if you had to stop short because you thought you could skip the stop, you'd be a little annoyed too.

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Well it would be great from a cost cutting perspective that's for sure.  Use the cuts to provide more service.  Not only that but no moody and rude drivers, and no drivers going the wrong damn way and no drivers with constant road rage, honking at everyone and everything.  

 

I had a bus that I couldn't get for the last few weeks now in the mornings on the BxM1.  The driver insisted that he was instructed to go via Henry Hudson Parkway Southbound below West 239th Street instead of via Riverdale Avenue, and did so for two more days after I confronted him about the problem, so I filed a complaint (actually several with the (MTA)) and then contacted my elected officials as well to investigate where this bus came from that isn't on the schedule, but comes at the same time as the scheduled via Riverdale Avenue bus.  

 

Suddenly yesterday (my complaints likely started going to the right people by then along with elected officials looking into the matter) he started going via Riverdale Avenue, and did so today too, so that means he's been going the wrong damn way for weeks now stranding several of us along the way since we kept wondering why we would see a bus on BusTime exactly around the time we were supposed to get a bus, but one would never come down Riverdale Avenue when it was supposed to.  Incredible...  <_<  It amazes me how often this happens with drivers not knowing the routes nor the stops.  

 

I've also seen numerous instances on the BxM2 where we'll have TWO BxM2's coming up 6th Avenue together when one of the drivers realizes that he is doing the wrong trip.  I had to get off of one bus and onto the other one once and the guy that came in error had to go back down to 34th street. We had another driver on the BxM18 who actually chastises passengers if they don't ring for the stop when she calls it out.  Like really... Just shut up and let us ring the damn bell. She treated this guy like he was a little child.  He got so annoyed that he just told her to drive and he would get off at another stop.  There's also the drivers that let you get on the bus, pay, take a seat in the back and then they ask you what stop you're getting off at if only a few people are riding so then you have walk back to the front to tell them as they'll never hear you all the way from the back. Too much drama and stupidity when you're paying for such expensive service.  Outside of the safety factor, having these buses would eliminate all of the above...  

 

For what it's worth, I've used those automated trains at JFK when flying out to Europe and I was ok with those, perhaps because of the short distance involved and the rail set up?  I think traffic is just too crazy for such a bus here though.

 

I've found that a lot of the Yonkers B/O's treat passengers like a bunch of toddlers. I'm glad there's none of that on my usual CP routes. 

It seems like automated driving is in the not-so-distant future from what I've read, but for the benefits to really be seen we will need every vehicle on the road to be automated. Except we also need much better data security to prevent cars from being hacked into while driving. 

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If it lets them take shortcuts to get everybody (including yourself) home quicker, I have no problem with it. Sometimes you don't know until you get towards the last pickup stop (especially on routes like the SI routes where the majority of the ridership is Downtown: If you get a light load in Midtown, you don't know if that'll necessarily be the case Downtown)

 

Getting mad about not ringing for the stop....I mean, if you had to stop short because you thought you could skip the stop, you'd be a little annoyed too.

I'm aware of all of that.  I've been riding for years.  I'm not an idiot.  The point is that this happens on really late night buses or buses that generally don't see that many people.  Don't let passengers get on the bus, pay and then take a seat and then ask what stop they're going to after they have sat down and then they can't hear you and vice versa.  The other situation you're talking about is completely different and understandable in that you aren't expecting there to be so few people riding so you ask after the fact.

 

As for your second point, you again don't understand what I'm saying.  There's a difference between a passenger not ringing the bell on time and a B/O calling out the stops repeatedly and then getting annoyed when the passenger doesn't ring immediately after they call out the stop when the stop is some distance away.  If the bus is at say 116th street and the next stop is 96th street and the B/O calls it out around then, if a passenger rings the bell later and it is still well before 96th street, well then that's fine.  No need to keep calling out 96th street.  Let the passengers ring the bell on their own when they need the stop.

 

I've found that a lot of the Yonkers B/O's treat passengers like a bunch of toddlers. I'm glad there's none of that on my usual CP routes. 

It seems like automated driving is in the not-so-distant future from what I've read, but for the benefits to really be seen we will need every vehicle on the road to be automated. Except we also need much better data security to prevent cars from being hacked into while driving. 

Yes. You and I have been riding for years and are real regulars, so you know what I'm talking about. There is a us vs. them mentality that is quite annoying.  The B/Os complain that passengers write in a lot but that's because you have some B/Os that do things that are just ridiculous.  Here's one for you.  You know that your bus may be broken down because you've been hearing a beeping noise for at least two stops, yet when you finally decide to pull over and investigate, you let all of the people board and pay and then take the bus out of service at the very same stop.  Now those people paid and you don't offer them a transfer.  This was at 207th street and Broadway in Inwood.  Yes, the (A) train is right there, but these people are taking the bus for East Side access, so taking the subway may mean additional transfers that will force them to pay more.  Hmm... Maybe a few people would be pissed for not being told in advance that the bus would likely be out of service so that they didn't waste $6.50 and perhaps more.  No foresight whatsoever...

 

As for the automated driving, I really don't think we're there yet, and I don't see the (MTA) gravitating towards it so soon because of liability issues.  I think having it with the subway is wayyy different than with the buses.  Fewer variables involved.

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I'm aware of all of that.  I've been riding for years.  I'm not an idiot.  The point is that this happens on really late night buses or buses that generally don't see that many people.  Don't let passengers get on the bus, pay and then take a seat and then ask what stop they're going to after they have sat down and then they can't hear you and vice versa.  The other situation you're talking about is completely different and understandable in that you aren't expecting there to be so few people riding so you ask after the fact.

 

As for your second point, you again don't understand what I'm saying.  There's a difference between a passenger not ringing the bell on time and a B/O calling out the stops repeatedly and then getting annoyed when the passenger doesn't ring immediately after they call out the stop when the stop is some distance away.  If the bus is at say 116th street and the next stop is 96th street and the B/O calls it out around then, if a passenger rings the bell later and it is still well before 96th street, well then that's fine.  No need to keep calling out 96th street.  Let the passengers ring the bell on their own when they need the stop.

 

Yes. You and I have been riding for years and are real regulars, so you know what I'm talking about. There is a us vs. them mentality that is quite annoying.  The B/Os complain that passengers write in a lot but that's because you have some B/Os that do things that are just ridiculous.  Here's one for you.  You know that your bus may be broken down because you've been hearing a beeping noise for at least two stops, yet when you finally decide to pull over and investigate, you let all of the people board and pay and then take the bus out of service at the very same stop.  Now those people paid and you don't offer them a transfer.  This was at 207th street and Broadway in Inwood.  Yes, the (A) train is right there, but these people are taking the bus for East Side access, so taking the subway may mean additional transfers that will force them to pay more.  Hmm... Maybe a few people would be pissed for not being told in advance that the bus would likely be out of service so that they didn't waste $6.50 and perhaps more.  No foresight whatsoever...

 

As for the automated driving, I really don't think we're there yet, and I don't see the (MTA) gravitating towards it so soon because of liability issues.  I think having it with the subway is wayyy different than with the buses.  Fewer variables involved.

 

 

Agree with all of that

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Haha!! Yea I agree but the way MTA spends money, I wouldnt be surprised if Cuomo really looked into this because he already wants to make these buses more "futuristic"!!

Thankfully Cuomo only has two terms as Governor....

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  • 2 months later...

It’s not going to eliminate staff on the buses. Bus operators might lose their job or double up as security personnel. With NYC teens and young adults (read as: man children), a fully-automated bus with no staff on-board is going to be a self-driving can of garbage.

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