Express Bus Advocacy Group

[QM1to6Ave]

2 hours ago, 7-express said:

Anecdotally, I have seen fewer front seats blocked off this month but it could very well because of different drivers with this pick.

Yup, some of the worst offenders have disappeared from the runs I take, thankfully. Seems like a lot of different faces this pick 

[7-express]

One thing I've noticed on the newer Prevosts is the poor placement of the Stop Requested buttons in the wheelchair area seats.  They're generally located where people rest their heads or next to the arm rest leading to inadvertent button presses.  I was even on one bus where a new driver got confused and got up at a stop to investigate why he was getting an indication of a stop requested for a wheelchair user, even though there wasn't one on board. 

Also, I've noticed a bunch of people get confused with the wheelchair reading light switch in the wall, which overrides the switch on the overhead panel.  A lot of people don't realize the switch is on the wall and just end up moving the light away from them when they can't shut it off.

Just seems like some bad design choices that should really be addressed at some point in time.

[7-express]

On 4/16/2023 at 7:02 PM, QM1to6Ave said:

(I missed this post somehow until now)

Oh boy, that's ridiculous. I recognize those B/Os, good guys. I've only seen one wheelchair passenger get onto/off of a Prevost, and the B/O didn't really know what he was doing. I think they use the lifts so infrequently that they A- break down and B- the B/Os forget how to use them without regular practice/use

I talked about the incident to one of my usual B/Os and she mentioned that there's someone at CP depot who's main job is to test the lifts every day on every bus so they're supposed to be working when they go out.  So it's pretty surprising to see it fail on that many buses in a row as in this particular incident.

[QM1to6Ave]

On 4/21/2023 at 10:56 PM, 7-express said:

I talked about the incident to one of my usual B/Os and she mentioned that there's someone at CP depot who's main job is to test the lifts every day on every bus so they're supposed to be working when they go out.  So it's pretty surprising to see it fail on that many buses in a row as in this particular incident.

I'd put money on that job being a BS, cushy job for someone with an uncle or whatever high up in the union 

[SevenEleven]

3 hours ago, QM1to6Ave said:

I'd put money on that job being a BS, cushy job for someone with an uncle or whatever high up in the union 

It’s actually picked yard work for an operator. They do go out every day and cycle the lifts on ‘x’ amount of buses due for lift cycling. Any buses that don’t work, get taken out of service to be fixed. 

The problem I’ve always had with the Prevosts was getting the bus to release the wheelchair door. There’s two locks, one that is physical and one that the bus releases. (Maybe with a sensor or whatever) You can have the bus setup correctly for the lift but if the bus didn’t release its lock, the door would not open and it would appear stuck at the top of the bus. 

Sometimes power cycling the bus would work and get it unlocked, sometimes it didn’t. I’ve had one wheelchair on a Prevost while I was an operator and had this happen on a then 2 year old bus. 

[7-express]

Is it just me or has work on the Northern Blvd bus lane stalled?  I haven't seen much progress beyond the work that was done late last year and traffic on Northern Blvd has been insufferable as of late due to a lot of double parking and restricted lanes due to bike lane hardening.

[7-express]

Looks like I got my answer...implementation of the Northern Blvd bus lanes will resume around now: https://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/northern-blvd-broadway-114-st-may2023.pdf

[IAlam]

So yesterday I got on a QM5 to Midtown and the B/O took the GCP to the LIE. I always wondered if that was possible and I got my answer. The bridges are high enough for an express bus.

Makes me wonder why for the Queens redesign there not exploring more route possibilities. Honestly there are so many minor route differences and infrastructure changes that have have a huge impact. Aside from opening up the use of the GCP and Van Wyck for more routes, they should focus on more bus priority. They might not be able to add an HOV lane to the LIE going to Queens but they can add bus lanes and bus signals on surround streets leading up to the LIE ie. VanDam St. and/or the service road leading up to the LIE. 
 

When I was in Seattle earlier this month I was impressed to see how much dedicated bus infrastructure they for commuter buses entering the city. They have dedicated roadways and on/off ramps just for buses, queue jumps, bus lanes, a little bit of everything. They’re by no means perfect, but they’re pulling out every trick they can to speed up buses. I feel like the MTA could learn quite a bit from them. 

[7-express]

On 5/28/2023 at 12:19 PM, IAlam said:

So yesterday I got on a QM5 to Midtown and the B/O took the GCP to the LIE. I always wondered if that was possible and I got my answer. The bridges are high enough for an express bus.

Makes me wonder why for the Queens redesign there not exploring more route possibilities. Honestly there are so many minor route differences and infrastructure changes that have have a huge impact. Aside from opening up the use of the GCP and Van Wyck for more routes, they should focus on more bus priority. They might not be able to add an HOV lane to the LIE going to Queens but they can add bus lanes and bus signals on surround streets leading up to the LIE ie. VanDam St. and/or the service road leading up to the LIE. 
 

When I was in Seattle earlier this month I was impressed to see how much dedicated bus infrastructure they for commuter buses entering the city. They have dedicated roadways and on/off ramps just for buses, queue jumps, bus lanes, a little bit of everything. They’re by no means perfect, but they’re pulling out every trick they can to speed up buses. I feel like the MTA could learn quite a bit from them. 

I've had a number of QM2/20 drivers taken Northern Blvd to the GCP in Woodside to cut around the crazy traffic in Jackson Heights/Corona.  They can fit just fine but who knows why MTA buses are banned from there.

[MysteriousBtrain]

Not sure if this is happening often again, but it seems like an apparent shortage of CP drivers yet again, as the 4:40pm and 5:40pm QM11 trips are cancelled for the day. Just saw this on my Twitter (sorry, "X") feed.

[7-express]

On 7/24/2023 at 3:16 PM, MysteriousBtrain said:

Not sure if this is happening often again, but it seems like an apparent shortage of CP drivers yet again, as the 4:40pm and 5:40pm QM11 trips are cancelled for the day. Just saw this on my Twitter (sorry, "X") feed.

It was pretty bad on Monday with random missing runs and no notice in NE Queens.  Guess everyone is on vacation and not enough fill-ins.

[7-express]

It's still pretty bad this week with numerous cancelled runs as we're in the heart of summer and vacation season now.  Pretty abysmal to have so many missing runs right as the fare is about to go up.

[IAlam]

15 hours ago, 7-express said:

It's still pretty bad this week with numerous cancelled runs as we're in the heart of summer and vacation season now.  Pretty abysmal to have so many missing runs right as the fare is about to go up.

Dealing with missing trips and long trip times stuck in traffic, and drivers that constantly avoid picking up passengers I can't see myself being able to rely on them. Now that the peak city ticket is coming, I'm at this point where I'm probably giving up on using the express bus unless I absolutely need it. I guess the MTA won, no more express buses for me.

Edited August 2, 2023 by IAlam

[7-express]

16 hours ago, IAlam said:

Dealing with missing trips and long trip times stuck in traffic, and drivers that constantly avoid picking up passengers I can't see myself being able to rely on them. Now that the peak city ticket is coming, I'm at this point where I'm probably giving up on using the express bus unless I absolutely need it. I guess the MTA won, no more express buses for me.

If peak city ticket allowed a free transfer, I could see defections becoming a bigger thing.  The express bus is certainly less reliable this summer because of the staffing shortages.

[Biz711]

Good evening,

I am looking to see how we get an express bus from Far Rockaway, NY to the Wall Street area in New York City. Currently there are many of us that take the ferry from 108th street in Rockaway to Pier 11 Wall Street. However, many of us would like an express bus to get us to the wall street area. I had asked all of us on the Shuttle bus to the ferry if they would like an express bus and they all said yes.  One of the reasons are that the weather is a big factor with taking a ferry from Rockaway to Manhattan and not to mention there is a stop in Brooklyn. We have the QM17 and the QM16 that goes to midtown but nothing that goes downtown.  How would we be able to get this service added for those of us in Rockaway Beach, NY - Far Rockaway, NY. etc.  

Thank you for your assistance and guidance. Greatly appreciate it.

Elizabeth

[Via Garibaldi 8]

On 8/2/2023 at 10:28 PM, Biz711 said:

Good evening,

I am looking to see how we get an express bus from Far Rockaway, NY to the Wall Street area in New York City. Currently there are many of us that take the ferry from 108th street in Rockaway to Pier 11 Wall Street. However, many of us would like an express bus to get us to the wall street area. I had asked all of us on the Shuttle bus to the ferry if they would like an express bus and they all said yes.  One of the reasons are that the weather is a big factor with taking a ferry from Rockaway to Manhattan and not to mention there is a stop in Brooklyn. We have the QM17 and the QM16 that goes to midtown but nothing that goes downtown.  How would we be able to get this service added for those of us in Rockaway Beach, NY - Far Rockaway, NY. etc.  

Thank you for your assistance and guidance. Greatly appreciate it.

Elizabeth

Hi, I'm not active on here on anymore. I will DM you to discuss further.

[7-express]

Does anyone know how to move folded up seats near the wheelchair area on the newer Prevost buses?  I've encountered a number of CP buses with folded up seats around the wheelchair area even though there are no wheelchair users on board.  A lot of folks don't seem to be able to slide them back out for regular and I haven't been able to either.  I thought it was just the yellow foot levers on the floor but it doesn't seem like that's enough to slide the row of seats back.

[TDL]

On 8/2/2023 at 10:28 PM, Biz711 said:

Good evening,

I am looking to see how we get an express bus from Far Rockaway, NY to the Wall Street area in New York City. Currently there are many of us that take the ferry from 108th street in Rockaway to Pier 11 Wall Street. However, many of us would like an express bus to get us to the wall street area. I had asked all of us on the Shuttle bus to the ferry if they would like an express bus and they all said yes.  One of the reasons are that the weather is a big factor with taking a ferry from Rockaway to Manhattan and not to mention there is a stop in Brooklyn. We have the QM17 and the QM16 that goes to midtown but nothing that goes downtown.  How would we be able to get this service added for those of us in Rockaway Beach, NY - Far Rockaway, NY. etc.  

Thank you for your assistance and guidance. Greatly appreciate it.

Elizabeth

Any express bus would be longer than the existing subway or ferry. The Belt Parkway does not allow buses so the bus would have to either run via Flatbush Ave/Prospect Expressway from the Marine Parkway Bridge or run via. the Midtown Tunnel first. Not worth it, just stick with the ferry or the 

[IAlam]

On 8/9/2023 at 8:49 AM, TDL said:

Any express bus would be longer than the existing subway or ferry. The Belt Parkway does not allow buses so the bus would have to either run via Flatbush Ave/Prospect Expressway from the Marine Parkway Bridge or run via. the Midtown Tunnel first. Not worth it, just stick with the ferry or the 

The ferry is probably the fastest way into downtown, and to add to that, there is a free downtown shuttle that goes from the east to the west side of the Financial District.

[QM1to6Ave]

On 8/9/2023 at 6:55 AM, 7-express said:

Does anyone know how to move folded up seats near the wheelchair area on the newer Prevost buses?  I've encountered a number of CP buses with folded up seats around the wheelchair area even though there are no wheelchair users on board.  A lot of folks don't seem to be able to slide them back out for regular and I haven't been able to either.  I thought it was just the yellow foot levers on the floor but it doesn't seem like that's enough to slide the row of seats back.

Ha, I posted the same question here a while ago but never got a response. I think this folded up wheelchair seat nonsense is another game the B/Os are playing because I've seen a grand total on 2 wheelchair riders since the Prevosts started running, and I never used to see this on the MCIs. Now I see it on both kinds of buses very frequently.

Even if the seats are properly spaced, sometimes the seat is flipped up and the B/O ties the seatbelt in such a way that it it is very difficult to release the seat down to sit on it. This nonsense drives me insane.

[FLX9304]

On 8/9/2023 at 8:49 AM, TDL said:

Any express bus would be longer than the existing subway or ferry. The Belt Parkway does not allow buses so the bus would have to either run via Flatbush Ave/Prospect Expressway from the Marine Parkway Bridge or run via. the Midtown Tunnel first. Not worth it, just stick with the ferry or the 

There’s another way. The bus route will follow the QM16/17 up X Bay Blvd - Woodhaven Blvd, going non stop, then turn on to the LIE onto the QMT, once it hits Manhattan, it will go down on the FDR to Frankfurt St exit, making all stops in Downtown Manhattan. Coming back, it will go the opposite direction. The question will be how many trips in the morning and how many trips in the afternoon peak will the bus route have. Because using the  will be on delays unless CBTC is implemented on the whole line by the time the R211s are completed. The ferry? The winter runs are very harsh. 

[TDL]

2 hours ago, FLX9304 said:

There’s another way. The bus route will follow the QM16/17 up X Bay Blvd - Woodhaven Blvd, going non stop, then turn on to the LIE onto the QMT, once it hits Manhattan, it will go down on the FDR to Frankfurt St exit, making all stops in Downtown Manhattan. Coming back, it will go the opposite direction. The question will be how many trips in the morning and how many trips in the afternoon peak will the bus route have. Because using the  will be on delays unless CBTC is implemented on the whole line by the time the R211s are completed. The ferry? The winter runs are very harsh. 

Do you realize that the downtown is approximately 1 hour? The express bus would be  longer, non-stop or not. 

[FLX9304]

3 hours ago, TDL said:

Do you realize that the downtown is approximately 1 hour? The express bus would be  longer, non-stop or not. 

Been there, done that. I used to live on the  for 2 1/2 years and even when the  used to run to Rock Park. 

[7-express]

17 hours ago, QM1to6Ave said:

Ha, I posted the same question here a while ago but never got a response. I think this folded up wheelchair seat nonsense is another game the B/Os are playing because I've seen a grand total on 2 wheelchair riders since the Prevosts started running, and I never used to see this on the MCIs. Now I see it on both kinds of buses very frequently.

Even if the seats are properly spaced, sometimes the seat is flipped up and the B/O ties the seatbelt in such a way that it it is very difficult to release the seat down to sit on it. This nonsense drives me insane.

Yeah I'm thinking the seat belts are tied up in some crazy way that makes it difficult to move unless you got on your hands and knees.  Something I'll have to try in the future just to spite them.  CP bus drivers are really the worst.  I'm not even sure why so many wheelchair seats are tied up unless they like sleeping on the floor in between runs or something.

[QM1to6Ave]

4 hours ago, 7-express said:

Yeah I'm thinking the seat belts are tied up in some crazy way that makes it difficult to move unless you got on your hands and knees.  Something I'll have to try in the future just to spite them.  CP bus drivers are really the worst.  I'm not even sure why so many wheelchair seats are tied up unless they like sleeping on the floor in between runs or something.

I think they try to have as few seats available as possible so passengers stop using their runs. Maybe they figure with the bus redesign, half of their runs will get cut anyway