By Philip Newman
If you are in a hurry to get to LaGuardia Airport, hailing a yellow cab might be your best bet.
A taxi trip from 39th Street and 6th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan came in first in a recent “Race to LaGuardia” event sponsored by the Global Gateway Alliance, an airport advocacy agency.
The taxi, of course, was not the cheapest transit mode offered. The trip took 25 minutes and cost $33, including a 20 percent tip.
Coming in second was the NYC Airporter express bus service, which took 44 minutes to reach LGA and cost $13.
The UberX car service was third at 48 minutes and cost $44 followed by CitiBike at 49 minutes at a cost of $2.50. The No. 7 train to the Q70 bus at Woodside took 58 minutes and cost $2.50, while the Long Island Rail Road to the Q70 bus took 56 minutes and cost $8.25.
The No. 4 train to the M60 bus at 125th Street came in last at 61 minutes and cost $2.50.
“The survey found what passengers across the city and the country know all too well,” said Joseph Sitt, founder of the Global Gateway Alliance.
“There isn’t any easy hassle-free way to get to and from LaGuardia. Either you are charged an arm and a leg or you have a long trip on public transportation.”
“With the Port Authority and airlines investing billions of dollars to bring LaGuardia into the 21st century, we need to do better than public transportation to the airport that can be beat by a three-speed bike.”
The Global Gateway Alliance has called for a Bus Rapid Transit super express bus line linking the N subway terminus at 31st Street and Ditmars Boulevard in Astoria directly to LaGuardia, less than 3 miles away.
In addition, the agency called for better marketing and communications for the Q70 bus line as an airport link, including introducing a name that connotes air travel rather than just another route number.
Reach contributing writer Philip Newman by e-mail at timesledgernews@cnglocal.com or phone at 718-260-4536.
