photo(s) Half and Half

[BM5 via Woodhaven]

2015 Prevost X3-45 Commuter Coach 2558 on the X1 at 5 Avenue/40 Street by BM5 via Woodhaven, on Flickr

 

2015 Prevost X3-45 Commuter Coach 2558 on the X27 at 5 Avenue/40 Street by BM5 via Woodhaven, on Flickr

 

2013 MCI D4500CT 2296 on the X17 at 5 Avenue/49 Street by BM5 via Woodhaven, on Flickr

 

2008 MCI D4500CT 2234 on the BM3 at 5 Avenue/ 54 Street by BM5 via Woodhaven, on Flickr

[B35 via Church]

IDK what's going on with Spring Creek lately....Yesterday, I got on a BM3 (speaking of which) that went via Caton....B/o actually tells this one lady that needed the Ocean Pkwy stop (church av), and I quote, "you're gonna have to wait for the 103"!... Couple riders towards the front started telling him that he was the 3 (Bm3), and his snarky response was "Do any of you want to take this bus over".... I'm like wtf? That was not warranted whatsoever, and it is shit like that why I don't say nam near a damn thing to bus operators.....

 

Also, I've mentioned this before in other threads at some point or another, but what is with buses (still) going super express after 7pm? That didn't happen with the Bm3 I took yesterday, but the last 4 or 5 times I've taken a BM from Midtown after work, buses have been going straight to Brooklyn from 23rd.... Now I'm not complaining for myself, but I do think about the people that's been waiting for 1's & 2's (I usually don't take the 3, but last night I took the first thing (BM) that arrived) & here you have these b/o's going super express.....

 

Now that I think about it, I wonder how much time I wasted waiting for buses those times (when I used to work in the 'village) I would walk to Battery pl. for the BM's - Come to find out some of those trips were skipping lower manhattan on the "low"....

[BM5 via Woodhaven]

IDK what's going on with Spring Creek lately....Yesterday, I got on a BM3 (speaking of which) that went via Caton....B/o actually tells this one lady that needed the Ocean Pkwy stop (church av), and I quote, "you're gonna have to wait for the 103"!... Couple riders towards the front started telling him that he was the 3 (Bm3), and his snarky response was "Do any of you want to take this bus over".... I'm like wtf? That was not warranted whatsoever, and it is shit like that why I don't say nam near a damn thing to bus operators.....

 

Also, I've mentioned this before in other threads at some point or another, but what is with buses (still) going super express after 7pm? That didn't happen with the Bm3 I took yesterday, but the last 4 or 5 times I've taken a BM from Midtown after work, buses have been going straight to Brooklyn from 23rd.... Now I'm not complaining for myself, but I do think about the people that's been waiting for 1's & 2's (I usually don't take the 3, but last night I took the first thing (BM) that arrived) & here you have these b/o's going super express.....

 

Now that I think about it, I wonder how much time I wasted waiting for buses those times (when I used to work in the 'village) I would walk to Battery pl. for the BM's - Come to find out some of those trips were skipping lower manhattan on the "low"....

My guess is that the drivers are late and that there's a bus behind it, and that not many have complained about the bypassing of stops. The 1/2/3 each are scheduled to depart every 10 minutes from 57 Street from about the time the last Super Expresses depart, to about 8:30. Before I was at 54 street, I saw another BM3 at 48 Street (walking up 5th Avenue), along with the BM4 (the 8:00 PM one), which were both late. That might've been the reasoning why your bus went bypassing Church (even though it's not justified). Previously (long ago), I've also seen that specific BM4 (8:00 PM) just slide down 5th Avenue, making the BM1 pick up riders, or comes late on purpose. Bus almost bypassed a stop which had some old lady waiting for the bus. 

[Via Garibaldi 8]

IDK what's going on with Spring Creek lately....Yesterday, I got on a BM3 (speaking of which) that went via Caton....B/o actually tells this one lady that needed the Ocean Pkwy stop (church av), and I quote, "you're gonna have to wait for the 103"!... Couple riders towards the front started telling him that he was the 3 (Bm3), and his snarky response was "Do any of you want to take this bus over".... I'm like wtf? That was not warranted whatsoever, and it is shit like that why I don't say nam near a damn thing to bus operators.....

 

Also, I've mentioned this before in other threads at some point or another, but what is with buses (still) going super express after 7pm? That didn't happen with the Bm3 I took yesterday, but the last 4 or 5 times I've taken a BM from Midtown after work, buses have been going straight to Brooklyn from 23rd.... Now I'm not complaining for myself, but I do think about the people that's been waiting for 1's & 2's (I usually don't take the 3, but last night I took the first thing (BM) that arrived) & here you have these b/o's going super express.....

 

Now that I think about it, I wonder how much time I wasted waiting for buses those times (when I used to work in the 'village) I would walk to Battery pl. for the BM's - Come to find out some of those trips were skipping lower manhattan on the "low"....

 

 

My guess is that the drivers are late and that there's a bus behind it, and that not many have complained about the bypassing of stops. The 1/2/3 each are scheduled to depart every 10 minutes from 57 Street from about the time the last Super Expresses depart, to about 8:30. Before I was at 54 street, I saw another BM3 at 48 Street (walking up 5th Avenue), along with the BM4 (the 8:00 PM one), which were both late. That might've been the reasoning why your bus went bypassing Church (even though it's not justified). Previously (long ago), I've also seen that specific BM4 (8:00 PM) just slide down 5th Avenue, making the BM1 pick up riders, or comes late on purpose. Bus almost bypassed a stop which had some old lady waiting for the bus. 

lol... I took the BM3 today and had no problems.  I usually get the same guy anyway to and from the city most of the time since I go into Brooklyn and come right back to Manhattan after I see my barber unless I'm going down for something else.  However, I have been burned by BM3 buses skipping the Downtown Loop on Saturdays. I once had a BM1 driver confirm that he saw the BM3 driver go directly into Brooklyn and bypass Downtown. I think with BusTime things have been much better.  Haven't had too many issues, but I did have one guy that was skipping stops right when BusTime debuted in Brooklyn and I wrote in and stated exactly what was happening.  It was a 12:50 Southbound bus. I was waiting at 5th & 48th and was tracking the bus.  The bus was supposedly making its way to 5th and 54th and then disappeared.  The bus never showed up and I was late for my appointment with my barber.  I called Spring Creek and was pissed.  The lady said oh they're on detour.  I said oh really? That's interesting because I've seen every other BM come down 5th except for the BM3 so what detour are they on? Then she became irritated because she knew that I knew that the B/O was playing games. I tracked him going back to Manhattan and saw the same deal on my phone.  Showed up on BusTime at the beginning of the route and then disappeared.  Some of them definitely play games, and I think part of it is because many of them are part-timers so they don't care.  This job isn't their bread and butter.

[B35 via Church]

My guess is that the drivers are late and that there's a bus behind it, and that not many have complained about the bypassing of stops. The 1/2/3 each are scheduled to depart every 10 minutes from 57 Street from about the time the last Super Expresses depart, to about 8:30. Before I was at 54 street, I saw another BM3 at 48 Street (walking up 5th Avenue), along with the BM4 (the 8:00 PM one), which were both late. That might've been the reasoning why your bus went bypassing Church (even though it's not justified). Previously (long ago), I've also seen that specific BM4 (8:00 PM) just slide down 5th Avenue, making the BM1 pick up riders, or comes late on purpose. Bus almost bypassed a stop which had some old lady waiting for the bus. 

One thing I've actually been noticing, are bunching BM4's (of all routes).... It, along with the 5 should be the last two BM's bunching during the PM rush..... Regardless, I'm not so sure if buses are always this late, this consistently to where you're having to have b/o's taking matters into their own hands by skipping lower manhattan..... Certainly there's the possibility of being radioed to skip lower manhattan well after super express service ends on some occasions, but to be frank with you, I'm not buying it.... SC is a depot that has been seeing work taken away from them (esp. weekends), and quite frankly, I believe there's a growing # of b/o's there simply not giving a shit...

 

I don't take them (the BM's) daily anymore to notice passenger interaction, but after having read some of VG8's prior posts about SC & some of the b/o's there as of late, I'm inclined to believe him.....

 

...and to think, I used to herald SC as one of the better depots when it came to things like this.... Along with CP...

I hope CP hasn't taken a turn for the worst like SC has (as far as express service is concerned, I mean)....

 

SC, with the exception of high turnover (because I'm still noticing the same ops on the same trips, over months), is starting to become like YON....

[B35 via Church]

Speak of the devil....

 

lol... I took the BM3 today and had no problems.  I usually get the same guy anyway to and from the city most of the time since I go into Brooklyn and come right back to Manhattan after I see my barber unless I'm going down for something else.  However, I have been burned by BM3 buses skipping the Downtown Loop on Saturdays. I once had a BM1 driver confirm that he saw the BM3 driver go directly into Brooklyn and bypass Downtown. I think with BusTime things have been much better.  Haven't had too many issues, but I did have one guy that was skipping stops right when BusTime debuted in Brooklyn and I wrote in and stated exactly what was happening.  It was a 12:50 Southbound bus. I was waiting at 5th & 48th and was tracking the bus.  The bus was supposedly making its way to 5th and 54th and then disappeared.  The bus never showed up and I was late for my appointment with my barber.  I called Spring Creek and was pissed.  The lady said oh they're on detour.  I said oh really? That's interesting because I've seen every other BM come down 5th except for the BM3 so what detour are they on? Then she became irritated because she knew that I knew that the B/O was playing games. I tracked him going back to Manhattan and saw the same deal on my phone.  Showed up on BusTime at the beginning of the route and then disappeared.  Some of them definitely play games, and I think part of it is because many of them are part-timers so they don't care.  This job isn't their bread and butter.

Yeah, when I worked saturdays when I worked in Manhattan, I'm almost certain b/o's were skipping lower manhattan..... I specifically remember one time when it was pouring rain out, where I got up to the Peck slip stop, to where the lady asks me am I waiting for the express... I says yeah.... She then goes, which bus... I believe I said anything but the 3.... She was waiting for the 1, and then proceeds to tell me that she's been waiting ever since 1:30 (it was around 3 when I got to that stop).... I just shook my head.... She then went on to mention something about taking the train, but to be honest, I had already tuned her out after I smh'd.... Besides, it wasn't 5 mins. after that short convo. ended where two BM's arrived back to back....

 

...unlucky for her, it was a 2 & a 4 (I got on the 2 that day).

 

What it was (I believe) is she missed the bus that was supposed to come in the 1 o'clock hour, the bus that was s'posed to come in the 2 o'clock hour skipped lower manhattan, and she probably caught the bus that was set to come in the 3 o'clock hour (which would have been late, if it came after the 2 & the 4.... Because I remember the "order" (if you will): Starting from the top of the hour, it went BM3,1, 2, 4) minutes after the BM2 I got on.... To sum it up, that was a 2 hour wait, which I personally would not have done.... Unless she actually walked over to wall st or whatever....

[BM5 via Woodhaven]

One thing I've actually been noticing, are bunching BM4's (of all routes).... It, along with the 5 should be the last two BM's bunching during the PM rush..... Regardless, I'm not so sure if buses are always this late, this consistently to where you're having to have b/o's taking matters into their own hands by skipping lower manhattan..... Certainly there's the possibility of being radioed to skip lower manhattan well after super express service ends on some occasions, but to be frank with you, I'm not buying it.... SC is a depot that has been seeing work taken away from them (esp. weekends), and quite frankly, I believe there's a growing # of b/o's there simply not giving a shit...

 

I don't take them (the BM's) daily anymore to notice passenger interaction, but after having read some of VG8's prior posts about SC & some of the b/o's there as of late, I'm inclined to believe him.....

 

...and to think, I used to herald SC as one of the better depots when it came to things like this.... Along with CP...

I hope CP hasn't taken a turn for the worst like SC has (as far as express service is concerned, I mean)....

 

SC, with the exception of high turnover (because I'm still noticing the same ops on the same trips, over months), is starting to become like YON....

I haven't observed BM4 buses, but BM5 buses also have tendency to bunch as well, but it doesn't happen every day. In my opinion, SC Express Bus service (in all aspects) is a joke to me. The good thing is that I have other options (well, since my area is mainly JFK, CP, and LGA territory). I could also see those BO's not giving a shit about providing service (the service conditions can be compared to dare say, NICE Bus, besides cleanliness). Those buses are never given enough time to go from one point to another or are just simply late for whatever (justified/unjustified) reason. Service is cut to the bare bones, they went out for reducing midday service from 30 to 60 minutes, to then to 70-75 minutes, and cutting the few AM outbounds). Then it was the weekend service, and then after that was done, they started cutting evening service (both weekday and weekend).

 

Thankfully, I've had the more courteous drivers on the BM5, however that hasn't always been the case. The last time I went to SI to do some express bus fanning (the day before Mother's Day), the regular driver out. I noticed this from viewing the bus from a distance, so I waved the bus down so it can stop. The driver clearly saw me, and the didn't even bother to stop, instead went faster and sped off. I thought that was the damn nerve, and I made a complaint immediately after (My trip to SI consisted instead of a local ride > > S79, instead of the planned BM5/X17 trip). A guy was there waiting for the Q11, and he was kinda surprised that the bus didn't stop too, especially when the stop sign says "BM5". Wonder what the drivers "excuse" would've been for not stopping. He told me I could wait for the QM15 (which I already knew, but wasn't expected to arrive until half an hour later, which I was not gonna do). The following week, there was a different fill-in (who was much more understandable, since he saw like 3 buses at the little island of a bus stop, and just waited for them to leave. 

 

In terms of CP, they just need to be more on time. Those buses come late, or bunch, because they aren't given enough runtime, especially on weekdays. During rush hour, the buses are given 10 minutes to do a 20-25 minute segment, while on Saturday nights, the buses are given 25 minutes on the same segment which needs only 10-12 minutes (36/6-57/3). The discrepancy is evident, but in the wrong places. CP is much better in terms of express bus service. It and EC are the only depots that have inbound buses as late as 11:30 PM and even later departing from their terminals, and the service has stayed the same, if not improved (besides the QM10 Empty-Box-On-Wheels Express and the QM12). They're also pretty frequent, and even on the less frequent ones, they're decent.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Speak of the devil....

 

Yeah, when I worked saturdays when I worked in Manhattan, I'm almost certain b/o's were skipping lower manhattan..... I specifically remember one time when it was pouring rain out, where I got up to the Peck slip stop, to where the lady asks me am I waiting for the express... I says yeah.... She then goes, which bus... I believe I said anything but the 3.... She was waiting for the 1, and then proceeds to tell me that she's been waiting ever since 1:30 (it was around 3 when I got to that stop).... I just shook my head.... She then went on to mention something about taking the train, but to be honest, I had already tuned her out after I smh'd.... Besides, it wasn't 5 mins. after that short convo. ended where two BM's arrived back to back....

 

...unlucky for her, it was a 2 & a 4 (I got on the 2 that day).

 

What it was (I believe) is she missed the bus that was supposed to come in the 1 o'clock hour, the bus that was s'posed to come in the 2 o'clock hour skipped lower manhattan, and she probably caught the bus that was set to come in the 3 o'clock hour (which would have been late, if it came after the 2 & the 4.... Because I remember the "order" (if you will): Starting from the top of the hour, it went BM3,1, 2, 4) minutes after the BM2 I got on.... To sum it up, that was a 2 hour wait, which I personally would not have done.... Unless she actually walked over to wall st or whatever....

lol... I use the BM1 and BM4 as backups or if it's really a mess I'll take the X27 in and take the B4 over from there.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

One thing I've actually been noticing, are bunching BM4's (of all routes).... It, along with the 5 should be the last two BM's bunching during the PM rush..... Regardless, I'm not so sure if buses are always this late, this consistently to where you're having to have b/o's taking matters into their own hands by skipping lower manhattan..... Certainly there's the possibility of being radioed to skip lower manhattan well after super express service ends on some occasions, but to be frank with you, I'm not buying it.... SC is a depot that has been seeing work taken away from them (esp. weekends), and quite frankly, I believe there's a growing # of b/o's there simply not giving a shit...

 

I don't take them (the BM's) daily anymore to notice passenger interaction, but after having read some of VG8's prior posts about SC & some of the b/o's there as of late, I'm inclined to believe him.....

 

...and to think, I used to herald SC as one of the better depots when it came to things like this.... Along with CP...

I hope CP hasn't taken a turn for the worst like SC has (as far as express service is concerned, I mean)....

 

SC, with the exception of high turnover (because I'm still noticing the same ops on the same trips, over months), is starting to become like YON....

Yonkers has high turnover because guys do sh*t to get them fired, but aside from that there's another reason.  Bus pays less than NYCT and so if some guys want to make money they leave. I had one guy who picked me up one night on the BxM2 going to the city. I made a quick trip to Whole Foods and got him coming back to Riverdale.  Never saw him again.  Fast forward several months later.... I have bags and was heading over to the BxM2 and see a bus coming (think it was an M3).  I walk to the stop and signal that I want the bus.  I get on and dip and the guy goes this isn't an express bus and I said I know.  Then I said wait a minute... How do you know I use the express bus?  Then I recognized the guy and realized he had transferred to Manhattanville.  He explained why and it made sense.  Some guys are forced out to other depots where they are needed. This one Puerto Rican guy I know has been at Yonkers for a while but he fills in where needed.  Didn't see him for a while, then he reappeared again and told me he had been assigned to CP for a while and didn't know any of the routes and didn't know Queens very well and told me about the horror stories he had bypassing portions of the route, etc. 

 

I know of a Jamaican guy out of Yonkers that would prefer Eastchester because it's closer to his residence, so some guys move because of location as well.