Waiting For Red Bus Image by Amy Kim Ganter
A frequent topic of concern is whether the Red Bus schedule should continue to be linked with the Tram. The major benefit of linking the Red Bus to the Tram schedule, aside from the convenience of Tram Riders knowing there will be a bus waiting for them when they get off the Tram, is that residents are able to plan the time they leave their apartment in order to catch the bus. As stated in the RIRA letter to RIOC published in the June 16 Main Street Wire:
Up through 2003, the Red Bus was a reliable service, arriving precisely every 15 minutes during normal hours, and every 7.5 minutes during rush hours. All Island residents had their own formula that worked for 30 years:
If I leave the apartment at 11:02, I can catch the bus at 11:06, arrive at the Tram at 11:11, catch the 11:15 Tram, and be in Manhattan by 11:20.
Since 2004, RIOC has been tinkering with the bus schedule. The bus schedule and its variance (variability in waiting times) is so bad that residents have given up on the bus service. Although the bus is supposed to run on average every 7.5 minutes, there is no scheduling at all: during rush hour, one can wait up to 22 minutes for a bus (assuming a seat is available), and outside of rush hours one can wait over 30 minutes for a bus.
However, in a letter to the editor of the Main Street Wire dated June 16, 2007, another view is expressed by a Roosevelt Island resident who thinks it is unfair that the Red Bus is linked to the Tram schedule,
First, and most importantly, is the sense of entitlement that Tram riders have of expecting to never have to wait for a Red Bus. Apparently, a Tram riders 25-cent Red Bus fare is worth more than everyone elses. Far more people depart and arrive on the Island every day using the subway than the Tram. So why does the Red Bus then stop and wait at the Tram while subway riders are piling up at the subway station? And why should a subway rider have to wait for a Tram rider to arrive before a bus shows up? Am I, as a subway rider, a second-class citizen? Is my 25-cent fare worth less than a Tram riders? Why not keep the bus in constant motion in a loop? Eventually everyone, including the Tram riders, will get picked up. But at least everyone will have equal access to the bus service.
A RIRA representative points out that the constant loop bus service advocated above leads to bus bunching as occurs during the continuous service morning rush hour that can stretch waiting times as much as 30 minutes. If the only reason not to institute continuous bus service is the issue of bus bunching I would think that problem could be solved if the bus drivers were in communication with each other via radio/walkie talkie or if there were a traffic dispatcher advising the driver.I think think the Red Bus schedule is a good issue with which to start a new polling feature to Roosevelt Islander. The first polling issue is “The Red Bus schedule should be changed to run on a continuous service schedule and not be linked with the Tram schedule” agree or disagree. The poll is located on the right hand column below the Statement of Purpose.
