Jump to content

Express Bus Advocacy Group


Via Garibaldi 8

Recommended Posts


  • Replies 2.8k
  • Created
  • Last Reply
13 hours ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

 

The QM15 is beneficial, and I also wished it had Sunday service. I definitely believe something similar as was done to get weekend X28 service is needed in this case. I would be down to write to my local lawmakers & sign petitions as well. I've personally written to lawmakers multiple times in the past about it.

As for local council member, I'm assuming you (shiznit) live in district 30 (most of Middle Village is within it). Personally I'm not too impressed with Robert Holden, as he basically ran on wanting to improve transportation. However, he's been against bus lanes on both Woodhaven Boulevard and Fresh Pond Road, and pushed for the subway shutdown (before it happened). The only improvement during his term was to the AM QM25 schedule, but I'm not even sure if he had a part in that.  He's been spending more time on talking about culture war issues too, so IDK exactly how much correspondence you'll get from him. State senator Addabbo is another one that not only was vehemently against bus lanes along Woodhaven Boulevard, but hasn't been active in any other transportation related issues, AFAIC. I've written to my assemblyman (Brian Barnwell) and he sounds more proactive about transportation issues, IMO. 

 

I forgot to say that the City Council members can't do much way, as the (MTA) is a State agency. The Senator and Assemblyman are really the people to contact regarding (MTA) issues. Holden is very active and cares deeply about the areas he represents. If he covered my area, I would vote for him in a heartbeat.

Edited by Via Garibaldi 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Going back to the topic of overnight service for a minute;

The BxM1/2 overnight service was implemented without any consideration from passengers who actually needed them overnight hours, and badly advertised. What they should have done is run the BxM2 and BxM3 concurrent with each other, that way they weren't wasting money on running the BxM1 (which had zero ridership during overnights). 

And the badly advertised reason is the case for the rest of the overnight routes to. I know a friend who lived in Far Rockaway (and commuted to Manhattan at 3 AM) and had no idea the QM17 was running overnight-or the fact that it was free.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 6/17/2021 at 1:48 PM, Lawrence St said:

Going back to the topic of overnight service for a minute;

The BxM1/2 overnight service was implemented without any consideration from passengers who actually needed them overnight hours, and badly advertised. What they should have done is run the BxM2 and BxM3 concurrent with each other, that way they weren't wasting money on running the BxM1 (which had zero ridership during overnights). 

And the badly advertised reason is the case for the rest of the overnight routes to. I know a friend who lived in Far Rockaway (and commuted to Manhattan at 3 AM) and had no idea the QM17 was running overnight-or the fact that it was free.

It's a moot point. They all had low ridership. Aside from that, they struggled to cover the trips, so no point in running service that you can't provide.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Lawrence St said:

@Via Garibaldi 8 What's the possibility of a service like the X90 returning?

Unlikely. That ship sailed. People on the Yorkville/Upper East Side definitely fought to keep it. Their elected officials at the time argued that the (4)(5)(6) was overcrowded, and the M15 didn't serve the same areas that the X90 did.  The (MTA) 's argument was those people could take the subway or take the M15, neither of which were true alternatives to the X90. Since that time, a number of private services started up. There was a van service IIRC that ran for a bit. Not sure what the situation is now.

Doesn't mean there isn't a market for an express bus. People would definitely use it. The X90 did pretty well. It was just overkill on service, but definitely carried well.

Edited by Via Garibaldi 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Via Garibaldi 8 The MTA sent out an email that the 8:00 pm and 10:00 pm Glen Oaks-bound QM5 runs will not run tonight. Do you know if they meant the 8:10 pm run, since there is no 8:00 pm run? I'm actually thinking of taking the 8:10 tonight, so I hope that isn't it...

(I also wonder if they meant the 8 pm Manhattan-bound QM5 and 10 pm Queens-bound QM5. They also screwed up another emailed and referred to the QM35 that departs from Peck Slip LOL)

Edited by QM1to6Ave
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is listed on the Bus Time tracker for the QM2:

Service Alert for QM2 + Click for info

The 5:15 pm QM2 and QM8 bus trips departing Pearl St/Peck Slip will not run today.

The 4:45pm QM2 bus trip from Midtown will not run today.
We're running as much service as we can with the bus operators we have available.

 

That's a mighty long 45 minute gap in buses at the start of the evening rush with the cancellation of the 4:45 PM run.  Not sure how crowded these buses are now but the 4PM QM20 has 21 people on board according to Bus Time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, 7-express said:

This is listed on the Bus Time tracker for the QM2:

Service Alert for QM2 + Click for info

The 5:15 pm QM2 and QM8 bus trips departing Pearl St/Peck Slip will not run today.

The 4:45pm QM2 bus trip from Midtown will not run today.
We're running as much service as we can with the bus operators we have available.

 

That's a mighty long 45 minute gap in buses at the start of the evening rush with the cancellation of the 4:45 PM run.  Not sure how crowded these buses are now but the 4PM QM20 has 21 people on board according to Bus Time.

CP has been hit really hard this week

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Though the 4:45 PM might have run?  Looking at Bus Time now, there is a bus approaching Lex/59 and another one nearing the 57th Street shortcut.  So that seems to correspond with the 4:45 PM and 5 PM departures?  I'm confused.

Runtimes seem pretty long too now.  I've been tracking the 4 PM QM20 and it's still winding its way through Corona at 17:10.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, QM1to6Ave said:

@Via Garibaldi 8 The MTA sent out an email that the 8:00 pm and 10:00 pm Glen Oaks-bound QM5 runs will not run tonight. Do you know if they meant the 8:10 pm run, since there is no 8:00 pm run? I'm actually thinking of taking the 8:10 tonight, so I hope that isn't it...

(I also wonder if they meant the 8 pm Manhattan-bound QM5 and 10 pm Queens-bound QM5. They also screwed up another emailed and referred to the QM35 that departs from Peck Slip LOL)

I am often Tweeting the Customer Team asking for "clarification" several times a day, and there are so many people complaining in my group about the crappy communication and service. Sometimes they admit their screw up. Other times, they don't even realize the screw up, like the QM10 mess they sent out yesterday. They insisted the info was for the QM10, BUT they mentioned via 3rd Av, which would be the QM40, and did not change it. Then there are the trips that they claim won't run, but they do run because they find an operator, but no one bothers to relay that info to Customer Service (God forbid they had better communication). I have been telling people to just put on BusTime and check beforehand. More times than not, they have been covering a number of these "cancelled trips", and not announcing others entirely. What I can say is they are offering more OT these days and trying to cover more of the trips. Myself and another express bus advocate have been writing directly to the (MTA) president, and I have also been writing to Cuomo to try to get answers about when we can start seeing normal service again. Response below is an example:

197788135_10222769544199654_919191750597

In speaking with my new (MTA) contacts (my previous Government Relations contact retired), I asked for a timeline as to when enough drivers will be hired. I got the usual, "We can't make any promises to provide that info" comment, but the message needs to keep being stated, as there seems to be zero urgency on their part, when they created the hiring freeze. In some ways, I believe our ongoing complaining has helped a bit, as the subway service in terms of cancelled trips has been much much worse. They've cancelled thousands of subway trips already this year. My recent interview with Greg Mocker:

https://pix11.com/news/transit/new-crews-buses-for-mta-post-pandemic/

 

 

2 hours ago, 7-express said:

Though the 4:45 PM might have run?  Looking at Bus Time now, there is a bus approaching Lex/59 and another one nearing the 57th Street shortcut.  So that seems to correspond with the 4:45 PM and 5 PM departures?  I'm confused.

Runtimes seem pretty long too now.  I've been tracking the 4 PM QM20 and it's still winding its way through Corona at 17:10.

There's also a 6:15am QM20 trip that has been MIA a few days. Going to see what happens tomorrow.

2 hours ago, Lawrence St said:

This is what happens when you have a hiring freeze...

And poor communication...

Edited by Via Garibaldi 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I know that this is the express bus advocacy group but we have also have missing scheduled local, limited, select buses as well. I have lost count how many buses that were way too pack with no way to social distance on wood haven blvd (the q52 in particular, and even seen a lot of empty buses (q21 and q41) some times would run but no one would be inside in Howard Beach and in Lidenwood especially during non rush hour. I know that that  this is not just in my area but other places in NYC as well. This is where the MTA is hurting it's self by sending bus that do the run but empty both local and express. Or even worst and I have witnessed this my self, bus drivers that would drive the bus and "do the route" but not in service leaving those buses that do go in Service quite full. Also I have seen some express buses go via Woodhaven blvd with there destination signs on and displaying the BM2 and I am pretty confident that is going no where near it's actual route. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, Sb0 said:

I know that this is the express bus advocacy group but we have also have missing scheduled local, limited, select buses as well. I have lost count how many buses that were way too pack with no way to social distance on wood haven blvd (the q52 in particular, and even seen a lot of empty buses (q21 and q41) some times would run but no one would be inside in Howard Beach and in Lidenwood especially during non rush hour. I know that that  this is not just in my area but other places in NYC as well. This is where the MTA is hurting it's self by sending bus that do the run but empty both local and express. Or even worst and I have witnessed this my self, bus drivers that would drive the bus and "do the route" but not in service leaving those buses that do go in Service quite full. Also I have seen some express buses go via Woodhaven blvd with there destination signs on and displaying the BM2 and I am pretty confident that is going no where near it's actual route. 

Just to be clear, we don't not cover local buses here. Only express buses. We don't have the personnel available to handle the others. As for the BM2 running down Woodhaven Blvd, that is likely a bus deadheading to or from its destination. 

@QM1to6Ave I had another guy in the group complaining that he had been dropped off to get the 10pm QM5 only to see that the trip was cancelled, so he started walking to the subway when the QM5 blew by him. After all of that he took the 10:30pm QM6 home. Ridiculous. I told him going forward to just wait for a bit and see if it comes because they often cover trips at the last minute and don't update BusTime.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

These afternoon rush hour run times are really pretty dismal now.  It looks like today's 16:00 QM20 didn't even reach Bay Terrance till just after 18:00 today, nearly an hour behind schedule.  And it was a blue sky day too.  With run times like that, it may just be faster to take the 7 express and the local bus to Bay Terrace.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 minutes ago, 7-express said:

These afternoon rush hour run times are really pretty dismal now.  It looks like today's 16:00 QM20 didn't even reach Bay Terrance till just after 18:00 today, nearly an hour behind schedule.  And it was a blue sky day too.  With run times like that, it may just be faster to take the 7 express and the local bus to Bay Terrace.

No shocker. People are driving, and who can blame them with the unreliable train and bus service.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

Just to be clear, we don't not cover local buses here. Only express buses. We don't have the personnel available to handle the others. As for the BM2 running down Woodhaven Blvd, that is likely a bus deadheading to or from its destination. 

@QM1to6Ave I had another guy in the group complaining that he had been dropped off to get the 10pm QM5 only to see that the trip was cancelled, so he started walking to the subway when the QM5 blew by him. After all of that he took the 10:30pm QM6 home. Ridiculous. I told him going forward to just wait for a bit and see if it comes because they often cover trips at the last minute and don't update BusTime.

Yup...exact same thing happened to me with the 8:10 bus yesterday. And today, it looked like the 4:30 QM1 ran even though it said it would not run. This makes the info completely useless, because I have no idea whether it will be true or not! It seems like the MTA is trying to be well intentioned here, but in some ways, it is worse than no updates at all. There was one day where they first sent out a cancellation email, but then sent another one out saying "our dispatchers were able to accommodate service, so the trips will run after all"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For us NE Queens express bus riders, more changes are coming to the Northern Blvd corridor.  They're planning to get rid of the remaining rush hour-only curb lanes and restoring all-day curbside parking.  Granted the curb lane has been more useless as of late due to outdoor dining.  But they do have some design ideas of future curb extensions and bus bulbs coming up that may slow down the corridor further.

Also, they're planning on consolidating a lot of Q66 stops ahead of the Queens bus redesign.

https://www1.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/northern-blvd-broadway-114-st-cb3-jun2021.pdf

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Via Garibaldi 8 said:

I had another guy in the group complaining that he had been dropped off to get the 10pm QM5 only to see that the trip was cancelled, so he started walking to the subway when the QM5 blew by him. After all of that he took the 10:30pm QM6 home. Ridiculous. I told him going forward to just wait for a bit and see if it comes because they often cover trips at the last minute and don't update BusTime.

30 minutes ago, QM1to6Ave said:

Yup...exact same thing happened to me with the 8:10 bus yesterday. And today, it looked like the 4:30 QM1 ran even though it said it would not run. This makes the info completely useless, because I have no idea whether it will be true or not! It seems like the MTA is trying to be well intentioned here, but in some ways, it is worse than no updates at all. There was one day where they first sent out a cancellation email, but then sent another one out saying "our dispatchers were able to accommodate service, so the trips will run after all"

Now that you guys mention it, I've seen emails about BxM4s being cancelled before and then they end up running last minute too. I do appreciate the emails though. A couple weeks ago I was taking a BxM4 into the city and it wasn't tracking on Bustime, but since there weren't any emails about cancelled runs I showed up to the stop. Bus showed up right on time.

I'd rather them send the emails about potential cancelled runs even if the runs turn out to be filled last minute. Most of these buses run too infrequently to be kept in the dark about any potential missed runs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, QM1to6Ave said:

Yup...exact same thing happened to me with the 8:10 bus yesterday. And today, it looked like the 4:30 QM1 ran even though it said it would not run. This makes the info completely useless, because I have no idea whether it will be true or not! It seems like the MTA is trying to be well intentioned here, but in some ways, it is worse than no updates at all. There was one day where they first sent out a cancellation email, but then sent another one out saying "our dispatchers were able to accommodate service, so the trips will run after all"

Yeah, the 4:30 does the 7pm, so I had posted in my group that it was running, and I agree, the communication must be better when trips are re-instated. I think one of the problems is they are cancelling so much service that the Customer Service Reps on social media are overwhelmed. I don't know if they post the subway cancellations, but if they do, they've cancelled thousands of trips. On the bus side, it is constant as well. Since they get the info in bits and pieces, it can be a mess when communication is not consistent or the wrong info is sent to them. That is how they post. They are fed the info, then they relay the info to us. It's one of the biggest criticisms I had and something I brought up at a meeting back in 2019 (one of several I had with them, but this one included the MTA Bus President).

6 hours ago, paulrivera said:

Now that you guys mention it, I've seen emails about BxM4s being cancelled before and then they end up running last minute too. I do appreciate the emails though. A couple weeks ago I was taking a BxM4 into the city and it wasn't tracking on Bustime, but since there weren't any emails about cancelled runs I showed up to the stop. Bus showed up right on time.

I'd rather them send the emails about potential cancelled runs even if the runs turn out to be filled last minute. Most of these buses run too infrequently to be kept in the dark about any potential missed runs.

I want both, and one of the main reasons they're doing it is because of the complaining I've been doing about it via Twitter and directly to Sarah Meyer going back to earlier on during the pandemic (she is in my group along with a few other Customer Service people), so they see what I post in the group and on Twitter (I was surprised, but the MTA follows quite a few groups via social media and they should). There are a few Bronx dispatchers also in my group, so the Bronx lines, Brooklyn and Queens have been seeing more of that, Staten Island less so because the person that works with dispatch who I work with, it is more complicated since ridership is heavier and they keep trying to shuffle buses around to cover the heaviest trips, so on the Staten Island end, since she has a team of dispatchers she works with, I know she will be on it, but occasionally I do speak to some of SI dispatchers as well on the side just to ask about this or that since I have met some of them in person. We share some of the same Staten Island riders, but some are in my group, but not hers, so I still try to work to address their complaints, either by speaking with her, or speaking with the (MTA) about it.

Edited by Via Garibaldi 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, 7-express said:

For us NE Queens express bus riders, more changes are coming to the Northern Blvd corridor.  They're planning to get rid of the remaining rush hour-only curb lanes and restoring all-day curbside parking.  Granted the curb lane has been more useless as of late due to outdoor dining.  But they do have some design ideas of future curb extensions and bus bulbs coming up that may slow down the corridor further.

Also, they're planning on consolidating a lot of Q66 stops ahead of the Queens bus redesign.

https://www1.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/northern-blvd-broadway-114-st-cb3-jun2021.pdf

This may just be a DOT project, not necessaarily related to any Queens bus redesign. People keep asking me when the redesigns are happening. The (MTA) is BROKE, so there is no certainty that the redesigns will happen now because of their financial situation. They added money to the operating budget for the Staten Island express bus redesign, and that is what is expected for the other redesigns, but they don't have money to add anywhere, so it is not certain that will happen. Not only that, but they have no idea what ridership will look like. I spoke to my contacts about it a few weeks ago. They are discussing service weekly and just trying to get a gauge on what ridership patterns will look like (still too early to say with people working from home, people driving, etc.), so the smart thing to do is make NO changes, at least not to the schedules. Consolidating bus stops and Transit Signal Priority is definitely the DOT with the (MTA) in the background. The two agencies work together, but be clear in understanding that the DOT controls the streets and plays a major role in where buses run and bus stops. They made that clear to me when we argued about the express buses that currently run down 57th St. The two DOT reps said they wanted to cap how many express buses were down 57th St, and that was one of the reasons why the QM2, QM3 and QM20 were shifted to Central Park South.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 hours ago, 7-express said:

For us NE Queens express bus riders, more changes are coming to the Northern Blvd corridor.  They're planning to get rid of the remaining rush hour-only curb lanes and restoring all-day curbside parking.  Granted the curb lane has been more useless as of late due to outdoor dining.  But they do have some design ideas of future curb extensions and bus bulbs coming up that may slow down the corridor further.

Also, they're planning on consolidating a lot of Q66 stops ahead of the Queens bus redesign.

https://www1.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/northern-blvd-broadway-114-st-cb3-jun2021.pdf

Northern Boulevard is absolutely awful during the rush hour once you get past the BQE.  There are constantly cars and trucks double parked in the right lane and you're lucky if you make it 3 blocks before the bus gets stuck at another red light.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.