N6 Limited

Might have been a 12-9 at 169th.

Generally, On the way to the subway I check for service changes so i can plan a route change. On the bus, the service change was "Due to police activity, Northbound trains are by bypassing 169th street." So, I'm like "alright."

Arrive at 179th, people are saying no trains are running, go back up stairs, long lines for the Q43, 2 buses were filling up, one pulled off and the other was just about full. MTA employee walks by shouting "trains are running!", People run back downstairs and some hop off the bus. train sits in station for a while to make sure everyone that needs to, gets on because it may be the last train for a while.

We bypass 169th on the express track, there's a stopped on the northbound Express track, and there's a on the northbound local track not fully in the station (I'd say like around the 8 car marker?), with people toward the front looking at something.

Service Change  Posted: 09/18/2013 10:02AM 
 

Due to NYPD activity at 169 St, the following service changes are in effect:

Northbound  trains are running express from Kew Gardens-Union Tpke to 179 St.

Northbound  trains are running local from Forest Hills-71 Av to Briarwood-Van Wyck Blvd.

Southbound  trains are bypassing the 169 St Station.

Customers are advised to use Q43 bus service to Parsons Blvd-Archer Av for  train service.

Allow additional travel time

Has anyone heard anything about the GPS tracking (Bus time-type) app they're planning to implement?

The LIRR is NOT $20 round trip to lynbrook try again. N4x on weekends = only to improve on-time performance. LIRR is $8 to Penn station and $5.25 to Jamaica one way not even close to as high as you make it out to be.

$8 + $8 = $16 which is almost $20

I'd pay $5 for a nice coach seat (instead of sitting on a hard seat for an hour), wifi, and outlets....  Assuming someone still had to transfer to the or it's still a better value than the LIRR considering the transfer to the subway is free.  

A seat on the N6? HAHA. 

Dude the N4 local is there use it. However not stopping at farmers is dumb.

If I had the choice I'd prefer the limited over the local. I used to work in Lynbrook and took the N4 from Central Ave to 5 Corners, I would prefer the N4x over the Local simply because it's faster.

Cindy (Not Full Name) the B/O came to our LIBRU meeting last night and she told us n6x extention is not working at all.

 

Even her B/Os friends and dispatcher told Veolia n6x extention wouldn't work at all. She told us n6x is now always late more than before.

 

Maybe they should have send n22A or n24 East Meadow bus to NCC Campus instead.

How does the scheduling work for that anyway? The N6x to NCC from HTC are one way trips.

How is it NJT's fault when NJT and PATH are separate operations? Please explain

He's saying buses are NJT's problem, not PATH.

No, the New Jersey Transit forum is not the place to discuss Port Authority Trans-Hudson line topics. There is a "Regional Transit Systems" forum for that purpose.

I checked Regional Transit Systems First. 

Service Change  Posted: 09/13/2013 10:40AM 
 

Due to a loss of power at 81 St, the following service changes are in effect:

There are no  &  trains between 59 St-Columbus Circle and 125 St in both directions.

There are no  trains between Brighton Beach and 145 St in both directions.

There are no  trains between Euclid Av and 168 St in both directions.

 trains are running on the  line to 2 Av in both directions.

There are no  trains between Forest Hills-71 Av and Essex St in both directions.

As an alternative, customers are advised to use nearby , , , ,  &  trains or the M10 bus running along Central Park West/8 Av.

Good thing the fasttrack is next week with the signal problems going on the CPW line the past two days.

I don't see a PATH forum, and technically PATH is not NJT, so I'm not sure.

Anyway, I heard that PATH is getting a fare increase to $2.50. It's interesting that their monthly pass will be $80 as opposed to the (MTA)'s $112, though they don't have buses to worry about.

I not sure what happened tonight (Wed night), but the N6 to Hempstead was PACKED around 8:30pm or so.( Mind you, that's when the route is on 15 min headway) There were tons of people waiting, People walked to the terminal and 165th street & Hillside to make sure they got on the bus. 

The bus was so packed, 168th st stop was flagged! Flag city until Nassau County. 

I did see what appeared to be a broken down bus in the eastbound direction on Hillside Ave , I forgot where though, might have been between 169th and 179th or might have been closer to 188th.

Also, I heard the route was packed all evening even the express.

Lots of people complaining n4x needs to stop at Central Av or Grant Park for n1 connection.

n4x Freeport aren't pickup passenger at Farmers Blvd, even with passenger waiting for bus.

I hope those people are complaining to NICE so that they're aware of "unaware" drivers

They should probably put up signs at each N4x stop showing which stops it stops at. Also they should have a dispatcher in Jamaica Center and elsewhere (5 corners , etc) funneling people to the N4x if they're getting off at any of the express stops. When they realize how much faster it is they'll be hooked.

5:25pm n4x Freeport yesterday and today's 4:36pm n4x Freeport has not been stopping at Farmers Blvd for pickup yet because there's no n4x Sticker on it. 4:36pm n4x Freeport driver forgot to pickup passengers at South Nassau Hospital.

 

I'm going to take n6x NCC tomorrow from Jamaica Bus Terminal, properly my plan.

NICE dispatcher gave me few copy of n6x and n4x service poster.

Were you able to ride it?

 

 

On the bright side, the n6 and n6x was nice and calm today with the new headways arraignment.

 

 

Whats the new headways arrangement?

n4x express is also stopping at Farmers Blvd for Q3 connection.

Good Idea,

Edit: Has anyone taken the N6x to from NCC?

The trip through Queens seems to take forever on the 22 and 24 compared to the 4 and Merrick Boulevard.

That's because the trip is actually longer. The northern part of Queens bulges out to about 260 something street.   On the N4 Hook Creek Blvd is around 246th st

Yesterday's commute was a nightmare...

 

That n6 is absolutely horrible... I think that 12 minute headways during the day is horrible..

 

I get on the 11:00 Jamaica n6 out of HTC and by Westminster, we are crush loaded with no room on the bus... and we kept dropping off at every stop. And then we got to Elmont Rd (10 mins late btw) and there is literally 20 people waiting for the n6...

 

We were supposed to be due 179 @ 11:43 and we didn't get there until 11:57..

 

Going home wasn't as bad, but was really uncomfortable..

 

I was waiting at 169 @ 8pm and teh 8:04 comes and all the seats are gone and there are quite a few standees from 165.. so the bus is completely crushed (worse than the n6 I took to Jamaica) and it is literally like this all the way to Elmont Rd (we didn't stop until then.)

 

I get to HTC @ 8:50 (only 2 mins late at least) and as im waiting for the 9:00 Long Beach n15, I see 3 HTC bound n6s coming in behind around 8:57. This route bunches up worse than the MTA routes

 

I think something should be done about the traffic and the lights on Hempstead Tpke... Idk how none of the lights coordinate (one will be red, next will be green, next will be red, I thought this was a Nassau thing in general, but I don't really see those occurrences around WH & Lakeview..) and I think midday headways should be 8 or 10 minutes, not 12.

 

 

EDIT : As I'm reading the Sept 1 schedule for the n6/n6x seems like NICE has read my mind. Middays, headways are 10 mins...

but at night.... headways are 15 mins after 7:30 (currently, it is 10 mins until 8pm, where it is 15). (weekdays ofc).

That's why the N6X skipping Elmont Road was a dumb idea. They figured that the N1 would pick up the slack, but there are many going between Elmont Road and HTC also. 

If the buses are going to 15 min headways after 7:30pm that's going to suck. Sometimes If I'm in the city If its getting too close to the end of rush hour, I won't head back to Jamaica until later when the bus is less crowded, because it's crazy coming from Jamaica in the evening. 

N6 rules:

Rule 1. Get off the at 169th street, If you don't you may not be able to board the bus!

Rule 2. If the line is long, walk to 165th street & Hillside and get on there, if the bus is extremely late just go to the bus terminal if you want a seat. It is definitely possible for the bus to be SRO from the terminal, and it still has to pick up at the subway!

Some people still get off at 179th street, I've been on buses that left them behind! Some drivers still stop, and enough people shuffle for them to board, but after that everyone else is screwed. Someone is usually passed at Hillside & Francis Lewis, Jamaica & Francis Lewis, and several people are generally screwed at Springfield Blvd. The N6X stopping at Springfield is going to help during rush hour, but outside of rush hour it's still a problem. 

The crowding is the main reason I avoid the n6 and it has always been packed. In fact its been so long since I've been on it, the last time we were on it we had the Cummins powered V's and I had one of the 200s and it was jam packed. This route has been needing artic buses for the longest time. The traffic lights are serious problem, one that I have brought up to NICE on numerous occasions. But they are out the control of NICE, and are maintained by the NYS DOT on State Roads and the County on other roads. The NYS DOT signals happen to be the worst. It sounds like Hempstead Turnpike (NYS 24) is similar to Jericho Turnpike (NYS 25). For instance all the lights in Floral Park are out of sync, whenever I'm on the n24 we wind up stopping at nearly every one. Even if we leave Jamaica on time, we're 10-15 min in the hole by Mineola. In Suffolk County many of the lights have a sensor to turn green for emergency vehicles, I would like to see such a system in place in Nassau and be used by both emergency vehicles and buses. Traffic signal priority is now being used in NYC, and it needs to expand to all the major roads with the busiest bus lines. It is a win-win situation, buses move faster, cost savings in operation, and passengers are happier. But it's an uphill battle when the average politician cares more about the motorist than the bus rider. And the motorists dont think they should have to wait for buses. But at least have the friggin lights in sync. Having to stop every other minute results in traffic jams, extra pollution, and wear and tear on all vehicles. What is the benefit of the current traffic signal setup...I don't know. A central computer should control all the lights so traffic is moved along as quickly and safely as possible.  

Hempstead Tpke used to be in sync all the way down, You would be able to go the From Elmont to Hempstead with the longest wait being Franklin Ave. But now I think they intentionally make signals out of sync for "traffic calming" and "safety".  Traffic signal priority would be great, I think it would increase bus ridership, especially in NYC as almost 50% of NYCT bus trips are stationary.

200-300 passengers?

Fastrack IS a GO.

Like a Typical GO....

This is very different from the previous Queens Blvd Fastracks. They had been shutting down the 53rd st tubes and the express tracks as well. I guess they've finished their work on the tubes and the express tracks and just have work on the locals. Hopefully my station gets some love this time. 

Interesting Fastrack, Almost like a G.O.

How come train drivers does not know? I thought n22 was easy route.

I remember I took n22a first time during Able-Ride public hearing, male B/O pull over near Tsui Foundation Temple thing at Roslyn Rd to comfirm how to get to/from RFM from area by cell phone.

The n22 is easy as a passenger if you've ridden it many times, But if you're a new driver thrown onto a route it's not "easy" if you don't actually know the route.

When I rode it to RVC, A LOT of people got off at Central Ave for the n1, RVC (Park Av) with me, and Lynbrook/5 Corners.

 

I don't think the n4x will have as much controversy as the n6x did.

I used to take the n4 to work, The main stops are basically the proposed n4x stops, in addition to Central Ave, and to a lesser extent, Horton Ave which always seems to get passenger exchange.

The one benefit of the 45 & 51 being rerouted to the parking field #3 stop is it should lessen the crowds that board at the student union stop, since they now have to walk over to there for the 45 & 51.

Also some students take whichever bus comes first to get to the Mall. If your class is by the clusters the stop by Endo Blvd is more convenient

Keep In Mind that the N6 is heavily congested and boards most of it's passengers at the first stop. The N6 has to stop at 169th and 179th street. Also Merrick Road has better traffic flow. The N4x should be really fast.

I meant to say that the N4 gets most of its passengers at the first stop. The N6 gets passengers at the Terminal, and two subway stations. 

The communities listed in the poster seem to be the communities that use the bus the most to go to ncc in addition to the ones that get direct bus service to ncc. Nice could care less about LIRR. I believe some of you are reading to much into it.

I did kind of an experiment yesterday and today...

 

I took the N4 and N6x leaving Jamaica around the same time... (N6x from 165-HTC) and (N4 from Parsons-Archer to RVC Park Ave/Merrick Rd)...

 

I took the 6:50pm N4 and the 6:38pm N6x. Got to HTC at 7:24 and got to RVC at 7:25 (both operators were moving VERY NICEly too)

 

It is interesting that the N4 is faster even though the N6x is an "express". I can't wait for the N4x. I wanna see how much time I saved!

 

Rode Orion V CNGs on both too (1626 on N4 and 1660 on N6)

Keep In Mind that the N6 is heavily congested and boards most of it's passengers at the first stop. The N6 has to stop at 169th and 179th street. Also Merrick Road has better traffic flow. The N4x should be really fast.