Bus disgust

To the editor,

Regarding your letters Extra bus service for Ridge is a must (May 12), the MTA is reluctant to provide
this necessary temporary service because a higher priority is placed on balancing the budget, than on
serving its customers.

The MTAs upper management is guided by budget people who forgot the agencys mission is to best serve
its passengers. Non-revenue bus miles are now considered more productive than revenue miles. That is
why you will see several Not in Service buses in a row even when bus schedules exceed 15 minutes. The
MTA believes since buses can travel faster without passengers, it is more efficient to operate them out of
service.

An MTA employee with a public administration and budget background recently tried to explain to me
that since only 20 percent of the MTAs bus routes are profitable, the goal must be to operate as few bus
miles as possible and that balancing the budget is the top priority.

The current thinking is that because of BusTime, 30 minute headways is all that is required during hours
of light usage (60 minutes overnight) and it makes more sense to maximize non-revenue miles, rather
than minimize them. Making bus connections when buses run that infrequently is not possible and greatly
reduces the effectiveness of the system.

The B67 was recently extended at 30-minute headways to terminate three blocks from a major
transportation hub in order to save one single bus. This is the pennywise and pound foolish attitude that
considers operating costs apart from revenue as if they are unrelated.

This emphasis on the budget means that bus dispatchers are more concerned with reducing overtime,
even if it means excessive waits for passengers, rather than taking measures to better serve passengers.
Their numbers have dwindled to the point where they cannot be effective despite new technology
available to them. Buses bunch as much as ever. It is also no longer a priority to fill runs due to operators
calling in sick, and extra buses are no longer provided on beach days.
Some time after the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) was absorbed into the MTA, the primary
goal shifted from caring about the passenger to balancing the budget, as they began trying to operate
more like a private company, emphasizing profitability, and turning passengers into customers. They
failed miserably; the MTA was never profitable. The NYCTA realized that non-revenue miles should be
minimized and that it is most important to best serve the passengers.

A former MTA chairman once told a friend that the subways would run on time if it werent for those
damn passengers who are constantly holding the doors open. Those damn passengers are the reason the
MTA exists and they must not forget that.

Allan Rosen

Sheepshead Bay