BUS - Random Thoughts Thread

[EastFlatbushLarry]

7 minutes ago, Future ENY OP said:

Personally, the way they botched that new ENY Command Center would make you think if the TA was alot smarter than this the following bus orders and depot construction would of commenced:

Order express buses including: 2018/2019/2020 MCI CT's for Ulmer Park, Castelton, Queens Village, Charleston.

Order more artics: 2018/2019/2020 XD60's, and LFSA's for MaBSTOA and NYCT

Find depot and CMF real estate for Staten Island and Central Brooklyn

Re-construct: Jamaica, Ulmer Park and Flatbush

... remind me when personnel is supposed to work in that building?

 

 

 

don't forget artics for LGA so they can FINALLY give the 60xx's back to NYCTA/MaBSTOA... i mean really: is anybody really thinking that'll happen at this point 🤦🏾‍♂️

remind you? inform ME when SLD's set foot in there, because the way i hear it, TWU (the SSSA & Local 106) told them to f**k off with that bullshit😂

[Calvin]

18 minutes ago, Future ENY OP said:

Stengel and Ulmer were forced to take on artics (IMO).  Ulmer Park especially didn't need those 47xx's plus they don't maintain those buses. Alot of those buses need to be repainted and washed. Too bad they have not explored the B6 as of yet and that route could use a few artics.

The B6 could use artics but, the flaw is that the amount is at least doubled or tripled to what the B1 has. Out of all routes that UP has for local, the B6 is the heaviest and not liked by most ops there. 

The upside for Stengel with the 4700s though is they can shuffle the artics in-service in case the SBS units are out or so (vice-versa with the 4700s, SBS unit can cover the run)

 

Edited November 1, 2021 by Calvin

[Future ENY OP]

2 minutes ago, EastFlatbushLarry said:

don't forget artics for LGA so they can FINALLY give the 60xx's back to NYCTA/MaBSTOA... i mean really: is anybody really thinking that'll happen at this point 🤦🏾‍♂️

remind you? inform ME when SLD's set foot in there, because the way i hear it, TWU (the SSSA & Local 106) told them to f**k off with that bullshit😂

I don't forsee this coming anytime in the future.  The opportunity was right there when the 6234-6286 came in, and that wasn't even enough. The TA is really dragging their feet on creating a new artic order to give the 60xx back to MaBSTOA and FB/LGA could send some of those 60xx to Tuskegee.

[EastFlatbushLarry]

10 minutes ago, Future ENY OP said:

Stengel and Ulmer were forced to take on artics (IMO).

at this point, that's far from an opinion. the way the union heads on Montague talked about artics showing up at UP is the EXACT same way it was described at FB. people "dropped the ball" and failed to inform TAS reps, and then never made efforts to reverse course. i only assume that ATU1056 fought artics at CS.. I can't speak from a place of knowledge re: them. but their reasoning behind fighting would've been legit because of what ended up happening to the Q44 

[Future ENY OP]

1 minute ago, Calvin said:

The B6 could use artics but, the flaw is that the amount is doubled to what the B1 has. Out of all routes that UP has for local, the B6 is the heaviest and not liked by most ops there. 

I wonder why...  needs to have the B6 limited 7 days a week.  That needs to be addressed first. They need to stop being very cheap on that Sunday limited and offer that to Ulmer Park. It's been like this for years.

[Lex]

Just now, Calvin said:

The B6 could use artics but, the flaw is that the amount is doubled to what the B1 has. Out of all routes that UP has for local, the B6 is the heaviest and not liked by most ops there. 

It's funny that you say that, considering how much UP bitched and moaned about other depots (*cough* Flatbush *cough*) covering the route.

[Future ENY OP]

Just now, Lex said:

It's funny that you say that, considering how much UP bitched and moaned about other depots (*cough* Flatbush *cough*) covering the route.

No way in hell Flatbush covers the B6..... Especially when UP had the B82 and they bitched and moaned about that route AND it stops right in the vicinity of the depot.. Where as the B6 stops in the area of the depot also..

[EastFlatbushLarry]

2 minutes ago, Future ENY OP said:

I don't forsee this coming anytime in the future.  The opportunity was right there when the 6234-6286 came in, and that wasn't even enough. The TA is really dragging their feet on creating a new artic order to give the 60xx back to MaBSTOA and FB/LGA could send some of those 60xx to Tuskegee.

is it too early to suggest that artics on the Q70 is a f**king waste? that's why those 60xx's are still at LG imo. really... is the Q70 top 10 in Queens, letalone in LaGuardia Depot itself to warrant artics?

[Future ENY OP]

Just now, EastFlatbushLarry said:

is it too early to suggest that artics on the Q70 is a f**king waste? that's why those 60xx's are still at LG imo. really... is the Q70 top 10 in Queens, letalone in LaGuardia Depot itself to warrant artics?

Good question.  I believe the Q53 is top 10 in Queens.  Uncertain with the Q70.. *head scratch*

[EastFlatbushLarry]

4 minutes ago, Lex said:

It's funny that you say that, considering how much UP bitched and moaned about other depots (*cough* Flatbush *cough*) covering the route.

THIS. they griped for years about losing Sat/Sun RDO's to Flatbush for those B6 runs between either Rock Station or Ralph Avenue/Glenwood Houses to Nostrand. those were split runs (am & pm pieces) with 5-6 hour swings (and upward of 10-11 hour runs in general). i remember them vividly. 

[Cait Sith]

13 minutes ago, Future ENY OP said:

I don't forsee this coming anytime in the future.  The opportunity was right there when the 6234-6286 came in, and that wasn't even enough. The TA is really dragging their feet on creating a new artic order to give the 60xx back to MaBSTOA and FB/LGA could send some of those 60xx to Tuskegee.

It's not the fact that the order wasn't enough, it was, but at the time, they sent OGs away and lost a few NGs to EC. They requested to keep the 6000s as spares in the event that the 6200s become problematic last I remember. A small number of those 6000s were supposed to go to Quill, with the majority going to Flatbush.

Months later, operators scramble to get a 6000, those 6200s(or the entire series between 6126-6286) are trash. The 6000s are faster and have more power to them on takeoff. The 6200s, in order to get more speed, you gotta hold it in 3rd gear. I've noticed this especially with the Q10 ops, which caught me off guard because I thought this was solely a Manhattan/Q44 thing.

 

6 minutes ago, EastFlatbushLarry said:

is it too early to suggest that artics on the Q70 is a f**king waste? that's why those 60xx's are still at LG imo. really... is the Q70 top 10 in Queens, letalone in LaGuardia Depot itself to warrant artics?

The 6000s were supposed to leave, but then they instead had the idea of converting it to artics because of the overcrowding the 40fters would get.

Last I was told, they weren't supposed to keep the amount of 6000s they have now, it was supposed to be less.

[Lex]

1 minute ago, Future ENY OP said:

No way in hell Flatbush covers the B6..... Especially when UP had the B82 and they bitched and moaned about that route AND it stops right in the vicinity of the depot.. Where as the B6 stops in the area of the depot also..

Years ago (by that, I mean when I went to PS 119, which was between 2002 and 2006), Flatbush actually did cover the route to some degree.

I'm of the opinion that both routes need to be split between Ulmer Park and East New York (I'd consider throwing Spring Creek in the mix for a few runs, but that would require a massive shakeup).

[Future ENY OP]

Just now, Cait Sith said:

It's not the fact that the order wasn't enough, it was, but at the time, they sent OGs away and lost a few NGs to EC. They requested to keep the 6000s as spares in the event that the 6200s become problematic last I remember. A small number of those 6000s were supposed to go to Quill, with the majority going to Flatbush.

Months later, operators scramble to get a 6000, those 6200s(or the entire series between 6126-6286) are trash. The 6000s are faster and have more power to them on takeoff. The 6200s, in order to get more speed, you gotta hold it in 3rd gear. I've noticed this especially with the Q10 ops, which caught me off guard because I thought this was solely a Manhattan/Q44 thing.

Ahh yes I remember this fiasco... I've been on the FB 6000's the pick up is excellent where as the 6100's don't have the good pick up..

Appreciate the clarification @Cait Sith

[Lawrence St]

5 minutes ago, Cait Sith said:

It's not the fact that the order wasn't enough, it was, but at the time, they sent OGs away and lost a few NGs to EC. They requested to keep the 6000s as spares in the event that the 6200s become problematic last I remember. A small number of those 6000s were supposed to go to Quill, with the majority going to Flatbush.

Months later, operators scramble to get a 6000, those 6200s(or the entire series between 6126-6286) are trash. The 6000s are faster and have more power to them on takeoff. The 6200s, in order to get more speed, you gotta hold it in 3rd gear. I've noticed this especially with the Q10 ops, which caught me off guard because I thought this was solely a Manhattan/Q44 thing.

 

The 6000s were supposed to leave, but then they instead had the idea of converting it to artics because of the overcrowding the 40fters would get.

Last I was told, they weren't supposed to keep the amount of 6000s they have now, it was supposed to be less.

They should do what Newark Express does and just run 45 footers on the Q70.

[Cait Sith]

Just now, Lawrence St said:

They should do what Newark Express does and just run 45 footers on the Q70.

With how crowded that Q70 gets....that's a terrible idea, especially for boarding times.

[Future ENY OP]

6 minutes ago, Cait Sith said:

The 6000s were supposed to leave, but then they instead had the idea of converting it to artics because of the overcrowding the 40fters would get.

Last I was told, they weren't supposed to keep the amount of 6000s they have now, it was supposed to be less.

If I remember correctly with the 6200's currently at LG/JFK were brought with federal dollars and therefore cannot be transferred to MaBSTOA & NYCT.

[Cait Sith]

Just now, Future ENY OP said:

If I remember correctly with the 6200's currently at LG/JFK were brought with federal dollars and therefore cannot be transferred to MaBSTOA & NYCT.

I wasn't talking about those.

[SoSpectacular]

4 hours ago, SevenEleven said:

The biggest issue with artics on the 40 is the ferry. We have no business backing one up there. If you’ve been there as of late during PM rush, you know how much of a madhouse it can be, especially when the boat is late and you have 2 boats worth of buses there. 

It’s the same issue in Brooklyn.

Backing articulated buses (ESPECIALLY the newer ones) is a pain in the ass. They also aren't very favored by operators due to their size (many will tell you that they're not suited for our streets and traffic conditions) and the fact that runs tend to get cut whenever a line is changed up to handle such vehicles(they say one articulated bus replaces two standard buses roughly). When Ulmer Park was gearing up for the B1 conversion the writing was on the wall, There was a fair bit of backlash concerning it. The following system pick I was actually surprised to see Ulmer Park have so many open spots while Grand and Gleason were getting picked into heavy.

[Lawrence St]

Unless I was dreaming, i just saw an XN60 on the B68...🤨

[paulrivera]

6 hours ago, EastFlatbushLarry said:

is it too early to suggest that artics on the Q70 is a f**king waste? that's why those 60xx's are still at LG imo. really... is the Q70 top 10 in Queens, letalone in LaGuardia Depot itself to warrant artics?

In 2019-2020 artics were very much warranted on the Q70 since ridership was booming right before COVID.

I haven't seen the Q70 after COVID, but at the time the MTA made the decision to convert it to artics, it was indeed warranted based on the data they had at the time.

Plus, once a line is converted for artics they won't go back on it because they see cost savings with a route running artics (what is it, for every 3 standard buses they'll run 2 artics? Something to that effect)

[Santana04]

The Q70 right now is not like pre-covid  but it has pickup a lot of ridership that some buses you see them kind of full. Idk if they move the 6000 out LGA but we can barely make service on the q53 with what we have righ now a lot of times we get short buses 

[Via Garibaldi 8]

9 hours ago, EastFlatbushLarry said:

I'm so glad you mentioned Charleston. yeah, they were storing upwards of 300 bus at Yukon & Castleton for DECADES. so even if the common number at Castleton specifically is 250+ buses, they're STILL overcrowded TODAY 😂 Castleton looks like it wasn't even meant for 220 back in the Staten Island Depot days. and the same thing they did to Charleston (and Grand Avenue) is what happened when Yukon opened... shove every possible unit in the building. so even if there's a plan for artics on the s79 or the 40/90 (and I've heard victory blvd mentioned for artics as well, don't know if there's any truth to that) where are these buses being stored exactly? will transit finally get off their asses and build a legit 4th yard? will they redesign Meredith to actually be a functional depot, as opposed to a knock off school bus company? tune in for the next episode of transit f**k'ry

The people live around Yukon Depot used to complain about all of the buses everywhere. I have no idea what that situation is like now, but then there's the issue of Castleton needing to be replaced at some point. I'm curious how all of this will work out.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

9 hours ago, Lex said:

Years ago (by that, I mean when I went to PS 119, which was between 2002 and 2006), Flatbush actually did cover the route to some degree.

I'm of the opinion that both routes need to be split between Ulmer Park and East New York (I'd consider throwing Spring Creek in the mix for a few runs, but that would require a massive shakeup).

Spring Creek can't cover the runs that they have now. Routes with a bus an hour and they can't do that. 

[Transit Enthusiast]

I see Archer Avenue (Eastbound) just became an impromptu bus parade! THAT busway is turning out pretty well.

However, MTA Police needs to be patrolling Jamaica Avenue (between Sutphin and 168th) for any busway violators.

[Future ENY OP]

10 minutes ago, Transit Enthusiast said:

I see Archer Avenue (Eastbound) just became an impromptu bus parade! THAT busway is turning out pretty well.

However, MTA Police needs to be patrolling Jamaica Avenue (between Sutphin and 168th) for any busway violators.

In your wildest dreams.. MTA police is going to toss that to NYPD.