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Select Bus Service Discussion Thread


Union Tpke

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Makes you wonder how many other times this has happened to riders throughout the city. I had to relate this story because it's bugged me over the years and I'll never forget it. Carry on.

 

I remember somebody who told a story about a route that showed zero riders during the overnight hours, and when it was investigated, it turned out that the B/O would take the bus, drive to some secluded location and take a nap instead of driving the overnight run (I believe it was BrooklynBus talking about the B34 but I could be wrong).

 

I guess that's one advantage of BusTime: It makes B/Os aware that they can't just randomly short-turn the bus somewhere a few miles short of the actual terminal or pull any tricks like that, so you don't have to rely on passengers reporting incidents like these.

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So in other words, the M14 SBS will be just as slow as the M14A/D, just with off-board fare payment.

 

And maybe signal prioritization. But blue lights and fancy vinyls though. Thanks Andy C!!!

 

====

 

Since M14A/D basically run the same route except at the east end, if dropping stops on 14th St isn't going to happen, alternation should be the method: ie the A stops at 5th Av, the D at 6th, A at 7th, D at 8th and so on. Might speed up the line.

 

DOT and MTA have now officially said that one of the options they are considering is a bus-only 14th St for either just the middle or river to river.

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I honestly believe that one of the North-South thoroughfares should be buses only from about 26 Street to 59 Street. Perhaps 5th Avenue, or Madison Avenue could work. 

Not could. It should be 5th and Madison. No cars during certain periods. Even on weekends now, 5th is like a parking lot at times. Problem is both 5th and Madison have political clout going back to the old days when residents on 5th blocked any attempt at subway service which remains the case today.

Edited by Via Garibaldi 8
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What BS. If the (MTA) can get the DOT to make such changes to speed up buses, why can't we have bus only streets elsewhere?

Well technically, the first bus only zone has been effective for quite sometime now in downtown Brooklyn. Many people however in Manhattan don't know any bus only zones. The city has been talking about 14th street pedestrian and bus only for quite sometime now. Truth be told I think that's the ONLY reason the M14 has not gone SBS yet. They want the pedestrian plaza installed first....

 

That is actually a part of the plans and since I was mentioned I figured I may as well comment on it......

Edited by East New York
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Not could. It should be 5th and Madison. No cars during certain periods. Even on weekends now, 5th is like a parking lot at times. Problem is both 5th and Madison have political clout going back to the old days when residents on 5th blocked any attempt at subway service which remains the case today.

 

Such an idea would only frustrate motorists and make driving into the city even more stressful. The congestion will just spill onto the side streets, or next available avenue if cars were banned on 5th and Madison during certain periods.

Edited by NY1635
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Such an idea would only frustrate motorists and make driving into the city even more stressful. The congestion will just spill onto the side streets, or next available avenue if cars were banned on 5th and Madison during certain periods

....which is what's been going on in Manhattan for years, without any pre-existing bus only segments!

Not that I do much driving into Manhattan anyway, but I could only imagine trying to navigate around 14th whenever this comes to fruition....

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Well technically, the first bus only zone has been effective for quite sometime now in downtown Brooklyn. Many people however in Manhattan don't know any bus only zones. The city has been talking about 14th street pedestrian and bus only for quite sometime now. Truth be told I think that's the ONLY reason the M14 has not gone SBS yet. They want the pedestrian plaza installed first....

 

That is actually a part of the plans and since I was mentioned I figured I may as well comment on it......

So are the plans for 14th St expected to be similar to Fulton St in Brooklyn, or something grander like Market Street in San Francisco, sans streetcars?

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....which is what's been going on in Manhattan for years, without any pre-existing bus only segments!

Not that I do much driving into Manhattan anyway, but I could only imagine trying to navigate around 14th whenever this comes to fruition....

 

Driving in Manhattan has been a great way to reduce your own sanity since the horse and buggy. At this point any talk of congestion in Manhattan should come with the caveat that anything we do will probably not make the situation any better than it is now, or any worse, since Manhattan traffic seems to equalize at 'least tolerable'.

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Such an idea would only frustrate motorists and make driving into the city even more stressful. The congestion will just spill onto the side streets, or next available avenue if cars were banned on 5th and Madison during certain periods.

Such a plan would have to be done with other measures in place. As it stands currently, it doesn't pay to take mass transit because people can just drive in. I don't think $2.75 would be enough either to deter people. You need a higher fee AND better transportation all around in order for something like this to work. Buses that are faster, but more importantly prompt. I have yet to use the M79SBS, but my prediction is that it will compete with the M86SBS.
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Such a plan would have to be done with other measures in place. As it stands currently, it doesn't pay to take mass transit because people can just drive in. I don't think $2.75 would be enough either to deter people. You need a higher fee AND better transportation all around in order for something like this to work. Buses that are faster, but more importantly prompt. I have yet to use the M79SBS, but my prediction is that it will compete with the M86SBS.

$2.75 is just to get it started. After a year it probably would be $5; then 7.50 in two years; $10 in 3 years; $15 in four years, etc.

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I saw on twitter that DOT put out a PDF about the (L) shutdown. According to that document, the M14 SBS is an addition to the M14A/M14D and only operates between 8 Av and Av C-20 St where the ferry to Williamsburg will be. 

 

http://web.mta.info/sandy/pdf/Canarsie-6-08-17_website.pdf

34358133184_3fe2f09a7c_b.jpg

 

35162460136_1826b5df5c_b.jpg

Is this ferry service going to be in addition to the ferries that currently serve North Williamsburg and South Williamsburg? If so, this will be interesting. They're going to need a lot of ferries to move all of those people.

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The ferry will be in addition. 

 

  • Proposed Hours:
    Weekdays/Sunday: 6 AM Midnight Friday/Saturday: 6 AM 2 AM 

  •  

    • Temporary ferry service between N. 6th St. and E. 20th St.

    • Up to 8 boats per hour (every 7.5 minutes) maximum docking capacity

    • Capacity for approximately 1,200 riders per hour (about the capacity of one L train or 22 standard length buses)

    • Fare will be integrated into M14 SBS and M23 SBS system

    • Some customers may take NYC Ferry, particularly people going to the East 30s or Wall St

    • MTA, NYCEDC and NYCDOT are working together to provide this service 

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Where will the L shuttle bus be running to and from?

There will be 3 kinds:

 

Route 1: Bedford Av (L) to Bway-lafayette (6)(B)(D)(F)(M) via Marcy Av, Essex St, and Prince/Spring St (6) and (R)(W)

Route 2: Grand St (L) to 1 Av/14 St via Essex St

Route 3: Grand St (L) to Bway-lafayette (6)(B)(D)(F)(M) via Essex St, and Prince/Spring St (6) and (R)(W)

Edited by ShadeJay
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I saw on twitter that DOT put out a PDF about the (L) shutdown. According to that document, the M14 SBS is an addition to the M14A/M14D and only operates between 8 Av and Av C-20 St where the ferry to Williamsburg will be. 

 

http://web.mta.info/sandy/pdf/Canarsie-6-08-17_website.pdf

34358133184_3fe2f09a7c_b.jpg

 

35162460136_1826b5df5c_b.jpg

 

I actually applaud them for using Grand Street....there's more than enough space for all those buses to navigate through.

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Hatin on the Bx6 already and its service starts next pick? Let me have a say on who should get a SBS if you wanna put it this way:

A bus route that does not duplicate the subway, so Q32 is OUT of the pic. Q102/103 mirrors the N & F lines, plus lines are too short for that.

The Bx19 deserves a LTD, but service is variant ever since the articulated transition in 2003 when WF depot opened. Plus, it mirrors the 2/5/6 lines up to 174th St. if anybody should get a desperately seeking LTD, it should be the Bx28. The Bx38 can be local only during peak hours, but GH would need 20 extra 40' buses or 10 articulated buses to serve that route.

 

My question is what's the situation with the Woodhaven Blvd SBS? Last time I heard it was a seesaw battle between communities and officials about what to do with parking on the Ave.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using NYC Transit Forums mobile app

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Hatin on the Bx6 already and its service starts next pick? Let me have a say on who should get a SBS if you wanna put it this way:

A bus route that does not duplicate the subway, so Q32 is OUT of the pic. Q102/103 mirrors the N & F lines, plus lines are too short for that.

The Bx19 deserves a LTD, but service is variant ever since the articulated transition in 2003 when WF depot opened. Plus, it mirrors the 2/5/6 lines up to 174th St. if anybody should get a desperately seeking LTD, it should be the Bx28. The Bx38 can be local only during peak hours, but GH would need 20 extra 40' buses or 10 articulated buses to serve that route.

 

My question is what's the situation with the Woodhaven Blvd SBS? Last time I heard it was a seesaw battle between communities and officials about what to do with parking on the Ave.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using NYC Transit Forums mobile app

 

By that logic, the M15 SBS should be scrapped as soon as possible, because it parallels the (Q) . I don't see why the subway should be a sticking point for not giving buses LTD or SBS service. The Bx1 has LTD service, runs articulated buses, runs with the Bx2, and parallels the (D) for a good portion of the route. 

 

Also, since when does the Q103 mirror any subway line?

 

The Q102 is longer than the crosstowns from end to end. The Astoria-bound route is shorter than the Roosevelt Island-bound route (since it doesn't serve the northern parts of the island), but is 4.9 miles long. The M34A is 2.9 miles long, the M34 is 1.9 miles long, the M23 is 2.5 miles long, and the M79 is 2.2 miles long. 

Edited by BM5 via Woodhaven Bl
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