Bus Disgust

[BrooklynBus]

Read the fourth letter.

 

http://www.brooklyndaily.com/stories/2017/21/bd-letters-2017-05-26-bk.html

[trife86]

What's the point of posting this if you have no comments or views or even topic for discussion about it ? Simply posting a link and saying read is silly IMO

[BrooklynBus]

What's the point of posting this if you have no comments or views or even topic for discussion about it ? Simply posting a link and saying read is silly IMO

Because I wrote it. Those are my comments and views that I would like to share. Comment as you see fit.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

What's the point of posting this if you have no comments or views or even topic for discussion about it ? Simply posting a link and saying read is silly IMO

I'm assuming you're a bus operator.  If you read that letter and don't see a problem with it or don't have a comment about it, then I don't know what to say.

 

I'm posting the letter below for those interested:

 

Bus disgust 

 

To the editor,

 

Regarding your letters “Extra bus service for Ridge is a must” (May 12), the MTA is reluctant to provide this necessary temporary service because a higher priority is placed on balancing the budget, than on serving its customers.

The MTA’s upper management is guided by budget people who forgot the agency’s mission is to best serve its passengers. Non-revenue bus miles are now considered more productive than revenue miles. That is why you will see several “Not in Service” buses in a row even when bus schedules exceed 15 minutes. The MTA believes since buses can travel faster without passengers, it is more efficient to operate them out of service.

An MTA employee with a public administration and budget background recently tried to explain to me that since only 20 percent of the MTA’s bus routes are profitable, the goal must be to operate as few bus miles as possible and that balancing the budget is the top priority.

The current thinking is that because of BusTime, 30 minute headways is all that is required during hours of light usage (60 minutes overnight) and it makes more sense to maximize non-revenue miles, rather than minimize them. Making bus connections when buses run that infrequently is not possible and greatly reduces the effectiveness of the system.

The B67 was recently extended at 30-minute headways to terminate three blocks from a major transportation hub in order to save one single bus. This is the pennywise and pound foolish attitude that considers operating costs apart from revenue as if they are unrelated.

This emphasis on the budget means that bus dispatchers are more concerned with reducing overtime, even if it means excessive waits for passengers, rather than taking measures to better serve passengers. Their numbers have dwindled to the point where they cannot be effective despite new technology available to them. Buses bunch as much as ever. It is also no longer a priority to fill runs due to operators calling in sick, and extra buses are no longer provided on beach days.

Some time after the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) was absorbed into the MTA, the primary goal shifted from caring about the passenger to balancing the budget, as they began trying to operate more like a private company, emphasizing profitability, and turning passengers into customers. They failed miserably; the MTA was never profitable. The NYCTA realized that non-revenue miles should be minimized and that it is most important to best serve the passengers.

A former MTA chairman once told a friend that the subways would run on time if it weren’t for those damn passengers who are constantly holding the doors open. Those damn passengers are the reason the MTA exists and they must not forget that.

Allan Rosen

Sheepshead Bay

 

 

-----

I have to agree with BrooklynBus on this one.  I've been noticing an alarming trend with local buses.  They are being run with schedules that you would find express buses using.  People are not going to wait for buses running every 30 minutes unless they are hard pressed to do so, and it discourages usage.  Even with BusTime, if the bus is late, people aren't going to wait unless the bus is coming shortly.  It works with express buses because those are commuter buses taking people from the Manhattan core to areas where transportation generally isn't as frequent or have suburban settings.  You just can't operate local buses in the same manner.  The knows this, but they are taking bus service and gutting it.  They are saying we're doing everything that we can to make bus service better, but at the same time they claim that they can't do much about things like traffic, except elongate schedules, which makes the trips more expensive to operate and leads to them looking for more areas to cut.  

 

It's an ongoing vicious cycle, and I feel for those who need local buses to get around. I don't see the situation improving unless the attitude at the changes. The bus operators need to give a damn because without customers you guys don't have a job.  I sometimes wonder if those guys even use the system because from what I see these guys get off of the bus and into their cushy cars, so perhaps they have a hard time making such connections.  I think the union needs to be speaking up more about improving bus service because the operators are on the road and see what's going on.  I don't think it's enough to say oh well we need to fight for worker safety.  That's a separate issue entirely.  The union should be saying hey listen, we need to help bus operators improve service so that we can encourage usage.  It's a win-win for everyone.  More usage means more work for bus operators.  If the union is doing such things, well put it out there for everyone to see and let it receive media coverage.  The media has been talking about how atrocious bus service is, but yet there seems to no remedy in sight, even on a basic level.

[East New York]

I have to say that I would definitely love to add this to my State of The MTA Report. It is 100% spot on and I couldn't agree more. My job as a Transit Consultant and Advocate is to make sure MTA knows exactly why ridership is falling, and bridge the gap between passenger-employee-upper management.

 

If only more employees would make statements like things or think this way things could be much better.

[BrooklynBus]

I would like to say one thing about bus operators. As with everything else, there is a mix of both good and bad ones. You wish some to have a nice day and they won't even bother to respond as if you are not human. Others give an enthusiastic response. Some are so friendly, I have to ask if I met them before or if they know me. Some really care about the passengers while others consider it just a job. And it's always easy to see which ones hate their job by the way they act, as well as which ones who love their job.

 

I would like to share one recent experience. It was 9:30 PM and I has just missed a bus so I decided to walk the 3/4 mile home although I was very tired. Would you believe that at that hour, the MTA has the nerve to operate buses "Not in Service" when the headway is scheduled for one bus every 16 minutes? So I start walking home and when I am less than a quarter mile from home, I see a bus and try flagging him down without noticing it is Not in Service. The operator stops a half block after the stop and opens his door so I figured he is waiting for me. So I get on and try to swipe, but he places his hand over the farebox because he is not supposed to pick up fares. I thank him for stopping, then ask him what is going on and why are they running buses out of service at this hour. He responds something about it being mealtime for all the drivers. I really didn't understand what he was saying but we couldn't discuss it further since I was only on the bus for about a minute. When you are tired, even the 800 feet he saved me made a difference.

 

Also a few months ago, a Q53 stopped between stops when I flagged him down saving us 15 minutes. That will never happen once SBS begins.

 

I would like to say one thing about bus operators. As with everything else, there is a mix of both good and bad ones. You wish some a nce I was on,y on the bus for about a minute. When you are tired, even the 800 feet he saved me made a difference.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

I would like to say one thing about bus operators. As with everything else, there is a mix of both good and bad ones. You wish some to have a nice day and they won't even bother to respond as if you are not human. Others give an enthusiastic response. Some are so friendly, I have to ask if I met them before or if they know me. Some really care about the passengers while others consider it just a job. And it's always easy to see which ones hate their job by the way they act, as well as which ones who love their job.

 

I would like to share one recent experience. It was 9:30 PM and I has just missed a bus so I decided to walk the 3/4 mile home although I was very tired. Would you believe that at that hour, the MTA has the nerve to operate buses "Not in Service" when the headway is scheduled for one bus every 16 minutes? So I start walking home and when I am less than a quarter mile from home, I see a bus and try flagging him down without noticing it is Not in Service. The operator stops a half block after the stop and opens his door so I figured he is waiting for me. So I get on and try to swipe, but he places his hand over the farebox because he is not supposed to pick up fares. I thank him for stopping, then ask him what is going on and why are they running buses out of service at this hour. He responds something about it being mealtime for all the drivers. I really didn't understand what he was saying but we couldn't discuss it further since I was only on the bus for about a minute. When you are tired, even the 800 feet he saved me made a difference.

 

Also a few months ago, a Q53 stopped between stops when I flagged him down saving us 15 minutes. That will never happen once SBS begins.

 

I would like to say one thing about bus operators. As with everything else, there is a mix of both good and bad ones. You wish some a nce I was on,y on the bus for about a minute. When you are tired, even the 800 feet he saved me made a difference.

There are some that are great.  Seems like those guys don't get seniority or move on.  The ones that are miserable stay.  Saturday I was on 86th street actually waiting for an express bus, when a BxM1 is rolling by and he sees me eating and stops his bus thinking that perhaps I wanted him, but I didn't.  I thought it was very nice of him.  Gave him a thumbs up for stopping since I was nowhere near the bus stop.  

[trife86]

I got no problem with the article, I just thought more detail was needed is all instead of LOOK HERE READ. if it is your article why not a simple "Hey look my article about service made it here" at least it adds a little background and makes it more relevant, adding a link and just saying read sounds like spam without more info.

 

 

Thumbs up to you for making a article and stirring up talk (good or bad). More than I bother to do lol

[BrooklynBus]

I got no problem with the article, I just thought more detail was needed is all instead of LOOK HERE READ. if it is your article why not a simple "Hey look my article about service made it here" at least it adds a little background and makes it more relevant, adding a link and just saying read sounds like spam without more info.

Thumbs up to you for making a article and stirring up talk (good or bad). More than I bother to do lol

I guess I am lazy since I post my articles in numerous places. And I also see no reason to brag. Most readers here know that I frequently have my letters published.