TO:

Community Board 5 Transit Committee

61-23 Myrtle Avenue
Glendale, NY 11358

FROM:

Derek Sokolowski
53-94 65th Place 1st FL
Maspeth, NY 11378-1655

RE:

IMPROVEMENT PROPOSALS
ON THE Q18 BUS ROUTE IN MASPETH, NY

BACKGROUND:
The Q18 MTA Bus route is a route that spans many neighborhoods in
Queens but stop and starts its route in Maspeth. As usual, the morning commute is
very active with many bus riders taking people to work and children to school such
as PS 229 located on Maurice Ave and 69th Street, directly adjacent to the Q18 bus
route. However, as ridership begins to increase as public awareness for climate
change and the conveniences of mass transit prices due to the effects of the recent
recession on the economy and working class, the Q18 struggles to handle the
crowds of people traveling to and from work or school on the 5 local NYC Transit
Subways and the MTA Long Island Railroad.
In particular, many people wait long times during rush hour to wait for a bus
in inclement weather beyond a reasonable amount of time. Also, the Q18 bus route
between the corner of 65th Place and 53rd Avenue and the corner of 65th Place and
50th Avenue hits major traffic and street obstacles in both directions. The following
proposal will address the issues and provide a variety of alternative solutions to
maximize ridership efficiency by reducing travel times and increasing comfort
levels within the bus ride during rush hour. A possible benefit of some alternatives
would be an increase in road safety especially within the area around PS 229.

PROBLEM:
Many problems plague the Q18 bus route with both ridership comfort and route
obstructions and recurring delays.
Many of these problems include:
1.) Overcrowded buses due to bus piggybacking where more than one bus
arrives at the bus stop at the same time to accommodate massive lines at
certain bus stops
2.) Excessive delays due to not only inclement weather but also by the bus
route itself causing traffic obstructions on certain streets in the Maspeth
Plateau area

SOLUTIONS
1.) Overcrowded buses due to bus piggybacking where more than one
bus arrives at the bus stop at the same time to accommodate massive
lines at certain bus stops
SOLUTION 1.1
Ask the MTA Bus Company to increase in the frequency of busses during
major rush hour times in the correct direction of traffic, particularly between
4:30PM and 8:30PM in order to reduce the wait times for bus riders and
reduce the amount of time a bus rider has to wait in poor weather conditions.
SOLUTION 1.2
Promote the implementation of the new MTA Bus Time service to all bus
riders of the Q18, which utilizes Global Positioning Systems (GPS) to
inform a rider possessing a smartphone or tablet to be able to wait within
local businesses to either shop or dine without having to miss their desired
departure time on busses.
UPDATE( As of February 24th, 2014) : See Article on the MTA Website
http://new.mta.info/news-bus-time-buses-brooklyn-queens/2014/02/24/mta-realtime-bus-tracking-arriving-brooklyn-and
SOLUTION 1.3
Request the MTA Bus Company to change the current bus make and model
to a bus make and model that includes an extended bus to accommodate
more bus riders that may be able to enjoy the comforts of a seat and not
force people to wait at the bus stop for the next bus.
3

SEE FIGURES ON PAGES 7 AND 8

2.) Excessive delays due to not only inclement weather but also by the
bus route itself causing traffic obstructions on certain streets in the
Maspeth Plateau area

SOLUTION 2.1
Implement a new Q18 Limited Service route that bypasses many local
stops on the bus route except for any major connection opportunities with
other bus and subway connections
SOLUTION 2.2
Ask the MTA to reroute the current route of the Q18 MTA bus between
65th Place & 53rd Avenue and 65th Place & 50th Avenue to run directly
down 65th Place from Jay Avenue to Woodside Avenue.
SEE FIGURE ON PAGE 5 and 6

SOLUTION 2.3
Ask the MTA to reroute the current route of the Q18 MTA bus between
65th Place & Woodside Avenue and 65th Place & 50th Avenue to run
directly down 69th Street between Woodside Avenue and 50th Avenue
then turn on 50th Avenue and turn onto 65th Place and continue down 65th
Place until Grand Avenue.
SEE FIGURE ON PAGE 9 AND 10

Q18 BUS ROUTE AS OF FEBRUARY 25th, 2014

NEW PROPOSED BUS ROUTE CHANGE FOR Q18

New
Route
Proposed

CURRENT Q18 BUS MAKE AND MODEL OF THE Q18

PROPOSED BUS MAKE AND MODEL FOR THE Q18

CURRENT Q18 BUS ROUTE

SECOND PROPOSED Q18 BUS ROUTE

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