Allan Rosen

Slain bus driver, Edwin Thomas, who had a street co-named after him this past week. (Source: Edley Thomas)THE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: The major local transit news is that the New York City Transit (NYCT) President Carmen Bianco is resigning this summer after nearly two years at the helm and

Two of the three East River crossings, circa 1981. Source: WikipediaTHE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: Previously we looked at the historical perspective of previous plans to toll the free East River bridges [/the-commute-should-the-move-ny-plan-be-approved/] and briefly discussed the Move NY Plan [http://iheartmoveny.org/]. Now let’s delve a little more deeply

THE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: The MTA is proposing Select Bus Service (SBS) on the B46 Utica Avenue bus route scheduled for autumn implementation this year. It was scheduled for discussion at the MTA Transit Committee meeting this past May 18. The information is provided on the ‘Staff Summary,’ on pages

Two of the three East River crossings, circa 1981. Source: WikipediaTHE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: The answer is obvious to all the car haters out there. However, those who are more objective in their analysis have legitimate reasons to oppose such a plan. Among those is Queens Councilman Rory Lancman. He

Source: Wikimedia (Adam E. Moreira)THE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: Yesterday [/the-commute-how-successful-are-the-mtas-new-bus-routes-part-1-of-2/], we showed how the average number of passengers carried per bus for routes discontinued in 2010 was 17.06. New York City Transit (NYCT) instituted five new routes in 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2014. These were the B32, B84,

Source: Wikimedia (Adam E. Moreira)THE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: Last week [/the-commute-we-now-have-definitive-proof-select-bus-service-sbs-is-a-failure-part-2-of-2/] , we used 2014 ridership data to determine how well the MTA’s Select Bus Service (SBS) routes were performing compared to local and limited routes. We determined that only two of the seven routes performed better than the

The B44 SBS. Source: Patrick Cashin / MTA / FlickrTHE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: Yesterday [/the-commute-we-now-have-definitive-proof-select-bus-service-sbs-is-a-failure-part-1-of-2/] , we looked at SBS routes in the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island. Today we examine the B44 SBS in Brooklyn and future routes. Brooklyn Annual ridership on the B44 is down by 4.4 percent as compared

The Bx12 SBS on East Fordham Road and Webster Avenue in the Bronx. Source: Wikimedia / AEMoreira042281THE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: We know this because 2014 ridership figures [http://web.mta.info/nyct/facts/ridership/ridership_bus_annual.htm] are now available. The two metrics the MTA have been using to tout

Lithograph by Nathaniel Currier (1846). Source: WikipediaTHE COMMUTE [/tag/the-commute/]: The heart of a democratic society is being responsive to its citizens. A dictatorship does whatever it wants. However, our transportation agencies have been more dictatorial than responsive. I wrote about inefficient bus management at Kingsborough Community College here [/commute-mta-bus-service-mismanagement/

Source: Brooklyn ReaderTHE COMMUTE [allan%20rosen, buses, commuting, department of transportation, mass transit, mta, public transportation, subways, the commute, trains]: Last Thursday, I attended the first of three Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) / Select Bus Service (SBS) Woodhaven / Cross Bay Boulevard workshops and asked a Department of Transportation (DOT) consultant a