By Howard Koplowitz
The MTA shot down a plan by eastern Queens civic leaders to extend the Q36 bus line into a north-southroute in their neighborhoods because the agency said the proposal was too costly.
“We have said previously that reinstating service would have to be cost neutral and the proposal made by the coalition for an extension to the Q36 does not meet that criterion,” said Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Kevin Ortiz.
The Q36 runs from the Jamaica bus terminal to 256th Street in Floral Park.
The area does not have any north-south bus routes.
Ortiz said the plan would have cost the MTA $400,000 to add one more bus an hour to the line and have it run to eastern Queens neighborhoods.
Glen Oaks, Floral Park, New Hyde Park and Bellerose are without a north-south bus line after the MTA dissolved the Q79 last year, citing poor ridership.
Ortiz said the line had the second-lowest ridership in the city, with about 650 weekday customers a day and 160 Saturday customers a day on average. The average ridership in the city was about 12,000 customers a day.
The city Taxi & Limousine Commission instituted a commuter van pilot program in the area, but it was discontinued after three months because of low ridership.
Glen Oaks Village President Bob Friedrich, who helped devise the plan, said the proposal did not stand a chance during a meeting last Thursday with the MTA organized by City Councilman Mark Weprin (D-Oakland Gardens).
“The local civics really did provide a plan that would make a lot of sense,” Friedrich said.
He said the MTA came to the meeting “with preconceived notions.
“It was apparent that when we got to this meeting that this plan was dead on arrival,” he said. “They didn’t even come back with an alternative. They didn’t even make suggestions.”
Bruno DeFranceschi, president of the North Bellerose Civic Association, agreed.
“I had suspicion that as soon as we presented our proposal that it was DOA because they were unwilling to compromise on anything,” he said. “They had no homework done to answer any of our questions.”
Weprin said the communities deserve bus service.
“People in eastern Queens are discriminated against already” when it comes to transportation, Weprin said, referring to a lack of bus service and no subway stations in the area.
Weprin said he wants the eastern Queens neighborhoods to be the first communities the MTA considers when and if it is able to restore bus lines in better financial times.
“I can’t say I was shocked to hear they don’t have any money,” the councilman said.
Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at hkoplowitz@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4573.
