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Barretto Point Park Bus Service Returns

Posted by
on June 24th, 2009 at 11:16 pm

Now it is time to catch up on transit news from the last couple of days. Early yesterday afternoon, MTA NYC Transit announced it will once again run summer bus service to Barretto Point Park. This service pattern was heavily requested by visitors to the park along with elected officials from the Bronx, & the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation. Here are the complete details courtesy of a press release I received yesterday:

In response to requests from Bronx elected officials and the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation, MTA New York City Transit will again run its summer-only bus to Barretto Point Park for the benefit of city dwellers making their way to the park’s swimming pool. The pool is on a barge located at the park and is expected to be a major summer attraction. NYC Transit’s bus to Barretto Point Park will begin running on June 27 – the day that the pool opens. The service will operate for seventy-three days to the final run on September 7, which is when the pool closes.

The route will not have a number but will be a regular route for the summer. Fares will be collected and the standard transfer policy will apply. The service will operate seven days a week at 30 minute intervals from about 8 a.m. to shortly after 7:30 p.m. Eastbound, the bus will have a destination sign reading, Barretto Point Pool and westbound reading, Hunts Point Avenue Station.

Eastbound buses will travel south from the 6 station on Hunts Point Avenue, west on Lafayette Avenue, south on Tiffany Street, east on Viele Avenue to the terminal at Barretto Point Park. The westbound service will operate from the park, east on Viele Avenue, north on Manida Street, west on East Bay Avenue, north on Tiffany Street, west on Spofford Avenue, northwest on Longwood Avenue (serving the Longwood Avenue 6 station). The bus will continue north on Southern Boulevard, and south on Hunts Point Avenue to the 6 station.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Bus Fuel Contract Update

Posted by
on June 22nd, 2009 at 11:33 pm

Four days ago, I blogged about how the MTA will save money on their next bus fuel contract with longtime provider Sprague Energy Corporation. In that same entry, I alluded to the recent issue between the two parties due to the price gouging that appeared to be going on in the last contract. Towards the end of the entry, I questioned the integrity of Sprague providing the best deal due to their recent actions. The NY1 report I linked to, did not specify any details on other potential bidders.

However this past Friday, MTA NYC Transit V.P. of Corporate Communications, Paul J. Fleuranges took the time to respond to my curiosity/skepticism. Here is what he had to say in his e-mail:

All things being equal, Sprague did in fact provide us with the best (lowest) price going forward for USDL#2

We made a determined effort to garner as much competition as possible for this fuel procurement.

At the end, we had 5 solid proposers —- major distributors and a refining company — and sprague came in well below the others. I don’t have the exact cost per gallon savings but it is substantial over the course of the contract.

I would like to take this moment to thank Mr. Fleuranges for being a loyal reader & taking time out of his busy day to send that e-mail. Lastly, I am glad to hear that competition existed as part of the bidding process as saving money during these tough times is a major priority.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Service Diversions 06-19

Posted by
on June 19th, 2009 at 2:45 pm

I have just updated the service diversions page with the latest scheduled diversions for the weekend & upcoming week (and beyond in some cases). Don’t forget to check in for any changes to the page. I also suggest printing out a copy of the page to use while riding the system. Have a safe & wonderful weekend!

xoxo Transit Blogger

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Metro-North Retaliates Against Injured Workers

Posted by
on June 18th, 2009 at 11:35 pm

Earlier this evening, the New York Post took a look at how Metro-North retaliated against four workers who were injured on the job. The division of the MTA was charged with attempting to cover up the injuries by falsely classifying them as off the job injuries among other things. Tom Namako has more in this brief report:

Metro-North Railroad officials tried to cover up and retaliate against four employees who were injured on the job, according to a federal investigation.

The MTA now has to pay each worker $75,000 for medical expenses, lawyer fees, and lost wages, ruled the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Railroad bigs disciplined the four workers for reporting their injuries, interfered with medical treatment, and reclassified them as off-the-job incidents, said Jordan Barab an assistant secretary at the agency.

Barab called the officials’ actions “unacceptable.”

Unfortunately I am not the least bit surprised these events took place. If you work for the MTA or know people who do, this type of worker abuse is not uncommon. These issues are almost exclusively among the blue collar employees who are the heart & soul of the transit agency. I have lost count of all the political b.s. family members & friends in all parts of the agency have been forced to deal with. I am glad that those guilty of these actions were caught & that the MTA must pay out. Honestly, those responsible should also be terminated without question.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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LIRR Monthly Ticket Sales Decline In May

Posted by
on June 18th, 2009 at 11:27 pm

With the start of new commuter railroad fares yesterday, the MTA Long Island Rail Road must not have been pleased to see that monthly ticket sales took its biggest dip of the year in May. Sales were down 6.1% compared to May 2008. Here is a brief report courtesy of NY1:

Ridership on the Long Island Rail Road is declining.

LIRR officials said today that last month the railroad experienced its biggest drop this year in monthly ticket sales. Sales were 6.1 percent lower this May compared to last May.

The rail road says the number of monthly ticket sales so far this year is 4.7 percent lower than the first five months of 2008.

Overall ridership is down 4.2 percent from this time last year.

The numbers for the month & mainly the year as compared to 2008 are not surprising. With the economy in such dire straits, commuters are being forced to pay more overall due to money being too tight for the upfront expense. Hopefully as the economy improves, sales for the Long Island Rail Road will as well.

xoxo Transit Blogger

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