|
|
| MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions (261092) | |
 |
|
| Home > BusChat | |
[ Post a New Response | Return to the Index ]
|
| (261092) | |
MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Gold_12TH on Fri May 25 20:27:25 2012 video: NY1 newsIf you see someone wearing an MTA Road Operations jacket or vest while waiting for your bus, you are in luck. The employee is a bus manager and wants to hear all your complaints and compliments about bus service. "I hope the customer sees that we care and we're responsive and that we're trying to make a difference," said Cordell Rogers, the MTA's Assistant Buses General Manager. Rogers is one of the managers responsible for 2.2 million bus passengers a day. He and the other managers check bus routes, problem areas and problem intersections in each borough twice a week on a rotating basis. The program's goal is to improve customer safety and service. They give drivers a tip of the day and check how they're driving and whether they're on the phone and belted in. "With a sustained presence out here, the operators out here see us and they know they have to do what they're supposed to do," Rogers said. "It provides another opportunity for them to do the right thing. The bus drivers' union thought management would hound drivers with petty violations, but said so far that hasn't happened. They also appreciate managers being out on the road, especially as attacks against drivers have risen. "The operator feels a little bit of safe as opposed to what's being going on with all the assaults," said Donald Yates, the MTA Division Chairman. Since the program started in March, the MTA says customer injuries not related to traffic accidents are down 6 percent over last year and driver problems, such as steering with only one hand, have been cut in half. Customers are noticing. In Staten Island, a rider recently complained buses weren't waiting for ferries. "There's now seamless service so they now no longer miss their connection with the bus when the ferries come in," said City Councilwoman Debi Rose. "So I thank you for that." The program is expanding to include speeding up the slowest bus route in each borough. That includes coordinating with NYPD and the city transportation department to improve traffic conditions. Managers say this is a new day at the MTA, a day riders are eager to experience. |
|
|
| (261093) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by monorail on Fri May 25 20:53:34 2012, in response to MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by Gold_12TH on Fri May 25 20:27:25 2012. only complaints/compliments???????????? |
|
|
| (261106) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Mr Mabstoa on Sat May 26 01:17:46 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by monorail on Fri May 25 20:53:34 2012. Violations, LOTS of them! |
|
|
| (261108) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sat May 26 01:40:05 2012, in response to MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by Gold_12TH on Fri May 25 20:27:25 2012. Can they get the physical routes changed? I notice that the S89 in the PM rush going northbound usually has very few passengers on it (though I think there's been a slight increase), while the S44 & S59 are fairly crowded. My suggestion was to have them all take the same path near the SI Mall, along the "back" part of Ring Road, so that the loads are a little more even. If I happened to see one, would it be worth suggesting that?How can we identify them? For the past few days, I've been seeing an MTA car at Forest & Richmond, but I thought it was just a regular dispatcher/supervisor. |
|
|
| (261115) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Bill from Maspeth on Sat May 26 07:15:50 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by Mr Mabstoa on Sat May 26 01:17:46 2012. Entrapment squad. |
|
|
| (261118) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by BrooklynBus on Sat May 26 09:42:45 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sat May 26 01:40:05 2012. That is the problem. They can't.The Operations People mean well. I just got a response a few days ago from them regarding the suggestions I made at the bus forum. They said they will investigate all of the suggestions I made and tell me if they use any. However, they have no say over the routes. That is Operations Planning who decides the routes and will give you nothing but excuses why any suggestion cannot be done. If they do eventually accept one, itis five years later and most of the time they will screw it up somehow. This sounds like a great program. It s about time. Too bad Operations Planning won't follow suit because they already have all the answers and the public is nothing but a nuisance. Thats how they see it. |
|
|
| (261130) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Bill from Maspeth on Sat May 26 14:53:49 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by BrooklynBus on Sat May 26 09:42:45 2012. Budget issues have to be dealt with as well.Currently, it's all "revenue neutral". If there is an improvement made in one area, something else has to be cut. |
|
|
| (261148) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by BrooklynBus on Sat May 26 20:11:13 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by Bill from Maspeth on Sat May 26 14:53:49 2012. That's BS. It's just that way because they want it to be that way. A truly revenue neutral considers additional ridership if service is added. The MTA assumes no new riders in most cases.They assumed new riders for the diversion of a bus route to serve the Aqueduct Racino which just happened to almost exactly pay for the diversion. No back up was provided to explain how many new riders there would be. Just a statement that additional riders would cover the increased operating costs. But if any proposal is suggested to them, the response is that there would be no additional riders so the change cannot be done. Also, when there was a budget surplus, they still were insisting on improvements being cost neutral? How do you explain that? |
|
|
| (261150) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sat May 26 20:17:59 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by BrooklynBus on Sat May 26 20:11:13 2012. I think they said that there would be 2 additional riders per trip, which is about 125 per day. Of course, for all we know, they just made up that number because it coincidentally happened to be what they needed for it to be cost-neutral.In any case, I have a whole bunch of ideas on how to fix SI bus service, and I can think of one simple one that would likely be cost-neutral or close to it (It's not my S93 extension, though I'm still working on that). But I guess I'd have to propose it to OP. So basically, what's the point of this program? To see if there are any issues with overcrowding so they can add more buses, or any traffic choke points so maybe they could short-turn some buses and things like that? |
|
|
| (261151) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Bounad Hanhic on Sat May 26 20:19:53 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sat May 26 20:17:59 2012. It will be a tough fight. |
|
|
| (261157) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by mr mabstoa on Sat May 26 23:18:49 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by Bill from Maspeth on Sat May 26 07:15:50 2012. Contract shenanigans. |
|
|
| (261161) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Mr Mabstoa on Sun May 27 01:05:04 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by BrooklynBus on Sat May 26 09:42:45 2012. I remember from presentation to actual schedule change it took two years on a M7 project a road super and I did.So I guess we were lucky! |
|
|
| (261163) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Danny at 103rd street on Sun May 27 03:31:30 2012, in response to MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by Gold_12TH on Fri May 25 20:27:25 2012. "In Staten Island, a rider recently complained buses weren't waiting for ferries"Yes, My complaint went through :-D |
|
|
| (261172) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by BrooklynBus on Sun May 27 11:02:42 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sat May 26 20:17:59 2012. There are many operational issues they could learn about like which drivers they need to watch because of complaints from other ones, and little things like drivers not pulling tithe curb o drivers not stopping when there is room, etc.Even if your proposal is cost neutral, they will lie and tell you it will cost extra like they did with one of mine by wrongly measuring the present route. Sometimes they don't even do it on purpose but just because they are sloppy. In my case they neglected to consider the non-revenue miles of the B42 as it makes it's turn around between the last and first stop which was about a quarter-mile in one direction or an eighth of a mile if divided by two to determine route length. That minuscule distance translates into about $125,000 in additional operating costs. Since my proposal to create a branch of the B42 to take Seaview to E108 Street would no longer use that route I subtracted the turn around distance when computing the extra mileage and they didn't. Also my proposed branch had fewer traffic signals so although the distance might have been an eighth of a mile longer, the running time was the same so it was cost neutral. They added the extra eighth of a mile and did not subtract the eighth of a mile from the turnaround they failed to count and concluded my proposal was an extra quarter mile and $250,000 more which wasn't true. So don't expect them to measure your proposals the way you did. They will find a way to make them cost extra. Only if you propose a cut will they consider it. Also whenever I made a proposal and stated only 2 persons per trip were needed for cost neutrality, their response was always we can't assume there will be any new riders as a result of the improvement. |
|
|
| (261173) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sun May 27 12:16:58 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by BrooklynBus on Sun May 27 11:02:42 2012. Eh, unless there's a senior boarding or something, that doesn't really bother me when buses don't pull to the curb. If I'm physically capable, there's no point in slowing down service for everybody else.And my plan would make the S55, S56, S79, and S89 marginally shorter, and make the S44/S94 and S59 marginally longer (the S61/S91 and X17/X31 would remain unchanged). It might increase costs slightly, but it gives everybody the maximum number of options, instead of having the services split up between the different streets (so if somebody's going up Richmond Avenue, they have the S44, S59, & S89 right there, instead of having the S44 & S59 on one side of the SI Mall and the S89 on the other side). Aside from that, there is a residential area on that side of the SI Mall, and they'd have easier access to the S44 & S59, which currently stop on the non-residential side of the mall (Which I can practically guarantee you would increase ridership and revenue) Of course, you're probably convinced, but obviously it's the MTA I have to convince. On a side note, they said that the implementation of the S79 +SBS+ (which is is really a glorified limited because it lacks a POP system, but I don't think it's needed anyway) would cost $300,000 extra because they'd have to add service on the parallel local lines. They didn't mention anything about additional riders covering those costs, but maybe somehow if I could relate it to the +SBS+ plan, it might pass. |
|
|
| (261174) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by Bounad Hanhic on Sun May 27 12:22:53 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sun May 27 12:16:58 2012. And you need political pressure and political pressure might be hard to come by, especially when it is a political push with regards to a local bus route. But political pressure will not always be hard to come by, especially in an election year. |
|
|
| (261176) | |
Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions |
|
|
Posted by checkmatechamp13 on Sun May 27 12:45:16 2012, in response to Re: MTA Sending Bus Managers To Hear Customer Suggestions, posted by Bounad Hanhic on Sun May 27 12:22:53 2012. There was a politician who seemed responsive when I proposed something else, so maybe I'll try again. |
|
|