BUS - Random Thoughts Thread

[Calvin]

20 minutes ago, RSMG106 said:

It's disappointing that the Bus Co. NGs are being retired instead of NYCT. I know that Quill, ENY, and Grand are getting their XE40s, but are currently 61 NGs at NYCT. Grand should at least send some of their XD40s to Flatbush or Fresh Pond to retire their NGs. ENY may not send their buses due to them having a shortage, and Quill may also not send their buses away due to a shortage as well.

By the total count at NYCT, Flatbush [10] + ENY [6] + Fresh Pond [14] + Casey Stengel [18] + Manhattanville [19] = they are at 67 units. If you add the New Flyer XDE40 order, 60 units and the future Nova LFS electric bus as to 5 units, you'll get 65. They are two units short for one for replacement. My guess is whether or not, Fresh Pond or East New York will do a fleet conslidation like what they did to LaGuardia and Far Rockaway with their Prevost Express fleet. 

On the outside: to MTA Bus, those Next Gens didn't last long at JFK when they received Eastchester's batch. I remember seeing 4037 and 4081 moved over there only to be retired the next two days that led the next day to being sent to the scrap yard. 

 

12 minutes ago, xD4nn said:

Stengel also needs replacements for the Next Gens

I would say the 7090-7437 batch for Stengel since they did send 7366-7369 to Grand Av. However, it may not be enough and don't want to risk a shortage due to a problem found in their fleet. 

Edited August 18 by Calvin

[RSMG106]

6 minutes ago, Calvin said:

By the total count at NYCT, Flatbush [10] + ENY [6] + Fresh Pond [14] + Casey Stengel [18] + Manhattanville [19] = they are at 67 units. If you add the New Flyer XDE40 order, 60 units and the future Nova LFS electric bus as to 5 units, you'll get 65. They are two units short for one for replacement. My guess is whether or not, Fresh Pond or East New York will do a fleet conslidation like what they did to LaGuardia and Far Rockaway with their Prevost Express fleet. 

On the outside: to MTA Bus, those Next Gens didn't last long at JFK when they received Eastchester's batch. I remember seeing 4037 and 4081 moved over there only to be retired the next two days that led the next day to being sent to the scrap yard. 

 

I would say the 7090-7437 batch for Stengel since they did send 7366-7369 to Grand Av. However, it may not be enough and don't want to risk a shortage due to a problem found in their fleet. 

Thanks for the correction.

[MeeP15-9112]

For a while now I've been fascinated by the various bus stop poles installed by the DOT, since quite a few of them have layers upon layers of stickers and are seemingly reused from other stops.

Recently I've tried my hand at replicating these stop poles (example below).

If any of y'all know of any really bizarre bus stops in the city (be it mismatched colors, incorrect destinations, or just general craziness), it would be greatly appreciated!

Edited August 22 by MeeP15-9112
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[Q43LTD]

What website is that?

[Iron Valiant]

10 hours ago, MeeP15-9112 said:

For a while now I've been fascinated by the various bus stop poles installed by the DOT, since quite a few of them have layers upon layers of stickers and are seemingly reused from other stops.

Recently I've tried my hand at replicating these stop poles (example below).

If any of y'all know of any really bizarre bus stops in the city (be it mismatched colors, incorrect destinations, or just general craziness), it would be greatly appreciated!

There’s a stop in Manhattan with an M102 LTD sign. Forgot what street it’s on, though.

[MeeP15-9112]

3 hours ago, Q43LTD said:

What website is that?

Made it myself in Illustrator using some pictures online.

[NBTA]

1 hour ago, Iron Valiant said:

There’s a stop in Manhattan with an M102 LTD sign. Forgot what street it’s on, though.

Ironically, 42nd.

[IAlam]

16 hours ago, MeeP15-9112 said:

For a while now I've been fascinated by the various bus stop poles installed by the DOT, since quite a few of them have layers upon layers of stickers and are seemingly reused from other stops.

Recently I've tried my hand at replicating these stop poles (example below).

If any of y'all know of any really bizarre bus stops in the city (be it mismatched colors, incorrect destinations, or just general craziness), it would be greatly appreciated!

A couple of years ago I saw a Bee Line bus stop in the Bronx using the old signs, and instead of a W they just used an upside down M. 

[NewFlyer 230]

20 hours ago, MeeP15-9112 said:

For a while now I've been fascinated by the various bus stop poles installed by the DOT, since quite a few of them have layers upon layers of stickers and are seemingly reused from other stops.

Recently I've tried my hand at replicating these stop poles (example below).

If any of y'all know of any really bizarre bus stops in the city (be it mismatched colors, incorrect destinations, or just general craziness), it would be greatly appreciated!

Over a decade ago someone on this forum created a website that allowed you to make your own bus stop sign similar to what you did. 
 

But speaking of creating bus stop signs, on Merrick Blvd in Queens there is a stop that shows the Q81 to Jamaica. 

[poopybutt123]

Anyone seen Orion VII NG Hybrid #4642 from JFK? 

[RSMG106]

I never thought that Quill's maintenance on the artic side would sound so horrible. I was on 5503 this morning, and was a loan to Tuskegee Airmen. I only rode it from 103rd street to the 100th street depot, and it sounded like it's about to die. Given that Quill's artics are in service for nearly 24 hours a day, it doesn't help that their maintenance is terrible on the artic side. What is worse is that the shortages continue on, and everyone on-board had to get off, resulting in me to go the 96th street station , and take the M15-SBS to City Hall.

Edited August 27 by RSMG106

[NewFlyer 230]

19 hours ago, RSMG106 said:

I never thought that Quill's maintenance on the artic side would sound so horrible. I was on 5503 this morning, and was a loan to Tuskegee Airmen. I only rode it from 103rd street to the 100th street depot, and it sounded like it's about to die. Given that Quill's artics are in service for nearly 24 hours a day, it doesn't help that their maintenance is terrible on the artic side. What is worse is that the shortages continue on, and everyone on-board had to get off, resulting in me to go the 96th street station , and take the M15-SBS to City Hall.

Speaking of shortage, is it me or does it seem like bus system has gotten worst after the pandemic? I do use the bus system everyday so I am more likely to experience some type of delay or service mishap but it seems like all the time I am experiencing routes with delays in service more than I recall before the pandemic and it doesn’t matter what time of the day it is. It has gotten to the point where I dread using the system. Then the  has the nerve to send me these bus surveys every so often asking me to rate the service as if they are going to listen and fix the service. 
 

[poopybutt123]

I have a feeling Grand is getting the whole XE40 order. They currently have 4971, 4974, 4976, 4980, 5008-5019. They barely transferred anything out which was rumored to retire Next Gen’s at Flatbush and Fresh Pond with 7524 and 7369 I believe. 4980, 4991-4992 are at the JFK Vendor and New Flyer Plant along with a another unknown XE40 probably gonna be delivered to Grand. Only time will tell all honestly. Also how come they barely run them??

 

[Kingsbridgeviewer382]

44 minutes ago, poopybutt123 said:

I have a feeling Grand is getting the whole XE40 order. They currently have 4971, 4974, 4976, 4980, 5008-5019. They barely transferred anything out which was rumored to retire Next Gen’s at Flatbush and Fresh Pond with 7524 and 7369 I believe. 4980, 4991-4992 are at the JFK Vendor and New Flyer Plant along with a another unknown XE40 probably gonna be delivered to Grand. Only time will tell all honestly. Also how come they barely run them??

 

It was already mentioned that Grand is taking the buses that were meant for Quill and ENY.

[RSMG106]

6 hours ago, NewFlyer 230 said:

Speaking of shortage, is it me or does it seem like bus system has gotten worst after the pandemic? I do use the bus system everyday so I am more likely to experience some type of delay or service mishap but it seems like all the time I am experiencing routes with delays in service more than I recall before the pandemic and it doesn’t matter what time of the day it is. It has gotten to the point where I dread using the system. Then the  has the nerve to send me these bus surveys every so often asking me to rate the service as if they are going to listen and fix the service. 
 

I did counting at Tuskegee Airmen, and they have 55 buses that are OOS. This is compared to Quill with 40 buses, The worst contender of this is Castleton with 79 buses, and Yukon with 77 buses OOS.

Edited August 28 by RSMG106

[JAzumah]

19 hours ago, RSMG106 said:

I did counting at Tuskegee Airmen, and they have 55 buses that are OOS. This is compared to Quill with 40 buses, The worst contender of this is Castleton with 79 buses, and Yukon with 77 buses OOS.

Parts might be a factor.

[Calvin]

The 5 New Flyer XD-60s out of LGA: 6169-6170, 6172, 6173 and 6174 are expected to be back at Flatbush Depot by this weekend. I think around Labor Day, the Q53-SBS uses either the 40 footers or XD-60s out of JFK or BP to cover the 5 that were moved back. 

[NewFlyer 230]

Three Q25’s are bunched up at 7am in the morning on a Saturday. The same thing occurred last Saturday as well. People say it’s a CP depot thing but I can name several routes in Queens that are just as bad. The MTA is a joke and they treat their riders as a joke! I wonder what their excuse is for that because traffic can’t be the culprit as the streets are clear at 7 in the morning. The scheduled trip before the one I normally take came on time as it did last week. 

[R32 3838]

On 8/31/2024 at 7:23 AM, NewFlyer 230 said:

Three Q25’s are bunched up at 7am in the morning on a Saturday. The same thing occurred last Saturday as well. People say it’s a CP depot thing but I can name several routes in Queens that are just as bad. The MTA is a joke and they treat their riders as a joke! I wonder what their excuse is for that because traffic can’t be the culprit as the streets are clear at 7 in the morning. The scheduled trip before the one I normally take came on time as it did last week. 

It's drivers playing games, That line and The Baisley lines are the worst. baisley used to be somewhat decent but it's gotten worse even with the new people. JFK with the Q60 also have this issue. A good portion of Bus operators love to play games where they would crawl while their leader picks up everyone. The Q60 is notorious for this.   seriously need to crack down hard on this. I have B/O friends who can't stand that shit.

 

On 8/26/2024 at 8:44 PM, RSMG106 said:

I never thought that Quill's maintenance on the artic side would sound so horrible. I was on 5503 this morning, and was a loan to Tuskegee Airmen. I only rode it from 103rd street to the 100th street depot, and it sounded like it's about to die. Given that Quill's artics are in service for nearly 24 hours a day, it doesn't help that their maintenance is terrible on the artic side. What is worse is that the shortages continue on, and everyone on-board had to get off, resulting in me to go the 96th street station , and take the M15-SBS to City Hall.

MaBstoa is just garbage in general. They have more buses OOS than NYCT and Bus company combined. All the Next gens they sent from MaBstoa were in terrible shape and ran like garbage. The only MabStoa Depots that are decent are MHV (only issue is roaches),MCH, MJQ to an extent and WF (somewhat decent), Everything else is trash.

 

Maintanice wise for MTA bus, JFK and LGA improved while Baisley slightly degraded and College point also degraded over the years.

[Cait Sith]

On 8/26/2024 at 8:44 PM, RSMG106 said:

I never thought that Quill's maintenance on the artic side would sound so horrible. I was on 5503 this morning, and was a loan to Tuskegee Airmen. I only rode it from 103rd street to the 100th street depot, and it sounded like it's about to die. Given that Quill's artics are in service for nearly 24 hours a day, it doesn't help that their maintenance is terrible on the artic side. What is worse is that the shortages continue on, and everyone on-board had to get off, resulting in me to go the 96th street station , and take the M15-SBS to City Hall.

That's not on Quill to blame if you rode it when 100th Street had it....100th Street is to blame especially when they were the ones taking care of it, not Quill.

Edited September 1 by Cait Sith

[RSMG106]

31 minutes ago, Cait Sith said:

That's not on Quill to blame if you rode it when 100th Street had it....100th Street is to blame especially when they were the ones taking care of it, not Quill.

You're right. However, with what is going on at MaBSOTA, 100th Street has one of the worst maintenance in the city. Right now, over 45 buses are OOS for mainteance. On a weekday, you will be waiting for the bus for more than 30 minutes to an hour, before taking the subway.

[NewFlyer 230]

2 hours ago, RSMG106 said:

You're right. However, with what is going on at MaBSOTA, 100th Street has one of the worst maintenance in the city. Right now, over 45 buses are OOS for mainteance. On a weekday, you will be waiting for the bus for more than 30 minutes to an hour, before taking the subway.

In general I think it’s just a lack of concern for the people who rely on the bus. As long as they are collecting a check that is all that matters.

 

2 hours ago, R32 3838 said:

It's drivers playing games, That line and The Baisley lines are the worst. baisley used to be somewhat decent but it's gotten worse even with the new people. JFK with the Q60 also have this issue. A good portion of Bus operators love to play games where they would crawl while their leader picks up everyone. The Q60 is notorious for this.   seriously needs to crack down hard on this. I have B/O friends who can't stand that shit.

Maintenance wise for MTA bus, JFK and LGA improved while Baisley slightly degraded and College point also degraded over the years.

What also makes it bad is that people don’t complain enough about this stuff. Therefore it definitely gives the impression that nothing is wrong. Monday evenings I like to go to the gym after work and my gym is right off of the Q54 route. The Q54’s on time performance is garbage. I’ll get to Jamaica Ave & 169th street to wait for the Q54 around 8:00-8:10pm and for whatever reason two or three Q54’s are always bunched up and I don’t end up getting on a Q54 until 8:40-8:45pm.

The routes that I know of with the worst on time performance in Queens are Q25, Q36, Q38, Q54, Q59, Q77, Q110. Then there are some routes like the Q3, Q8, Q23, Q24, Q41, Q56, Q60, Q65, Q112 that often have its moments as well, but not as bad as the first lists of routes I mentioned.

As far as maintenance goes I was very surprised to find out CP was struggling with its buses because their maintenance was always better compared to JFK, LGA and BP. JFK and LGA improved a lot overs the years but some in the transit community are still harsh towards those two depots. 

[Calvin]

I was on the Q35 going to Brooklyn College today and seeing the Q35s going to Rockaway Park, almost all the buses are fully packed and some riders (I can see beach chairs and coolers) have to be forced to take another bus behind. Also, since today's the new pick, the Riis Park trippers are not in effect. From the south terminal of the Q35, it's also packed as well but 1/2 the crowd got off as there's transfers to other bus routes and the stop I was at is near Kings Plaza at Avenue U. 

 

Also, since it's the new pick. The routes afftected with the fare-free program are back to metrocard and coin payments on-board. 

 

Edited September 2 by Calvin

[Cait Sith]

21 hours ago, RSMG106 said:

You're right. However, with what is going on at MaBSOTA, 100th Street has one of the worst maintenance in the city. Right now, over 45 buses are OOS for mainteance. On a weekday, you will be waiting for the bus for more than 30 minutes to an hour, before taking the subway.

Gun Hill had somewhere north of 50 buses OOS. 100th Street has been the worst in Manhattan for a few years now.

[RSMG106]

16 minutes ago, Cait Sith said:

Gun Hill had somewhere north of 50 buses OOS. 100th Street has been the worst in Manhattan for a few years now.

With that, you get less runs on all of the routes. And addition, creating inconveniences to anyone who rides the bus everyday, causing them to take either cab services, or take the subway or railroad.