S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance)

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S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance)
Posted by GOLD_12th on Tue Sep 4 15:36:20 2012 edf40wrjww2msgDetailB:detailStr fiogf49gjkf0d After approximately two miles of red painted bus lanes, 53 less stops and greater enforcement, regular commuters are saving about seven minutes on the new S79 Select Bus Service (SBS) from end to end. While many Islanders who drive their cars along the route -- especially on Hylan Boulevard -- have complained viciously about the change, SBS riders expressed a much more favorable view of the MTA's new service. "It's very good because for me, I go to Brooklyn," said New Springville resident Roland Feng, who commutes from the first stop on March Avenue to the last stop in Brooklyn via the S79 during the weekdays. "The regular bus from my home to Brooklyn is one hour and 10 minutes, but this bus is 50 minutes." But Sunday and Monday were part of a holiday weekend, and the Advance spoke with Feng Tuesday morning. The entire trip from the first SBS stop on Marsh Avenue in New Springville to 86th Street in Brooklyn lasted from 7:05 to 8:08 a.m. -- 63 minutes. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority and many city officials have claimed that riders would save an average of 15 to 20 minutes on their commutes with the SBS. The MTA said last week that the average commute time on the S79 before it shed 53 stops was 70 minutes. To be fair, there are still two big factors missing before anybody could accurately claim the new service as a success or failure. The addition of school children to the equation and their impact will not be known until later this week, and the Transit Signal Priority technology, which will extend green traffic lights or shorten red lights will not be coming to the SBS until 2013. During the Advance's ride it was mostly traffic lights, especially in Brooklyn, that seemed to add time to the trip. Traffic along Hylan Boulevard and Richmond Avenue steered clear of the bus lane, but a few local buses got in the way. "There's less stops; instead of 10 minutes it takes five minutes," said Robert Valentine of Great Kills, who only commutes a short distance up Hylan Boulevard to the Post Office. "Less stops does let you get to where you have to go faster." The stop closest to Valentine's home was not eliminated, but the stop near Luba Pinskaya's Grant City home was axed. Although she now must walk a bit longer to get the SBS, it is a fair trade off for a faster trip. "It's quicker, and I like this much better than it was before," Ms. Pinskaya said. "Of course I regret that they don't have a stop, now, closer to my house, but that's no problem because the bus is faster." But whether riders are actually noticing a real time savings or they just like riding along the route with fewer stops, the overall feedback Tuesday morning was positive. "There used to be stops at every block with the old 79, now this has cut it in half," said Paul Carmel of Annadale. ---http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2012/09/new_service_provides_faster_co.html
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Re: S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance)
Posted by Gotham Bus Co. on Tue Sep 4 18:27:06 2012, in response to S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance), posted by GOLD_12th on Tue Sep 4 15:36:20 2012. edf40wrjww2msgDetailB:detailStr fiogf49gjkf0d [During the Advance's ride it was mostly traffic lights, especially in Brooklyn, that seemed to add time to the trip.] Those traffic lights were always there, so they "added" nothing to the trip.
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Re: S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance)
Posted by LRG5784 on Tue Sep 4 21:20:00 2012, in response to S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance), posted by GOLD_12th on Tue Sep 4 15:36:20 2012. edf40wrjww2msgDetailB:detailStr fiogf49gjkf0d A bus operator told me that he hasn't noticed any difference of the new routing at all. So my question is, how long will the S79 +SBS last before it gets...de-selected?
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Re: S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance)
Posted by checkmatechamp13 on Tue Sep 4 22:03:45 2012, in response to Re: S79 Select Bus Service is faster, but some wonder if it's fast enough (SI Advance), posted by LRG5784 on Tue Sep 4 21:20:00 2012. edf40wrjww2msgDetailB:detailStr fiogf49gjkf0d Eh, give it some time to work out the kinks. We'll see if it makes any difference once school starts. I think I've mentioned it before, but the stop setup in Eltingville needs to be changed. On the S89, it's ETC, Katan, SIR station, Koch, Hylan, but on the S79, it's ETC, Genessee, SIR station, Hylan. I guess it's alright that the S79 skips Koch, but at the very least, they should have both routes stop at Katan.
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