56.0°,
Overcast MTA cancels N2 bus line extension
Valley Stream stops stay, but Jamaica Avenue service gone
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority cancelled the Jamaica Avenue extension of the N2 bus line on Sunday, citing budget problems as the cause of action that would reroute commuters in Valley Stream traveling west onto alternate bus routes such as N6.
“We are only getting rid of service to Jamaica Avenue, which is just part of the day during peak periods,” said Long Island Bus and MTA Spokesman Jerry Mikorenda. “Service will remain between Floral Park and Green Acres shopping center.”
The N2 bus line serves Valley Stream with several stops — North Fletcher Avenue at Dutch Broadway and the Valley Stream State Park Entrance, the LIRR station, and Green Acres Mall — and runs to Elmont and Floral Park. Stops beyond to Jamaica Avenue are being eliminated.
The MTA board proposed several measures to close a budget gap, including service reductions, last December. They revised their proposal in January using different ridership statistics to update service changes and achieve a balanced operating budget, which the MTA is required by law to do.
According to Mikorenda, there is a projected budget shortfall of $383 million this year due to decreasing revenue from sources such as taxes and direct government subsidies. “We are shortening the line because of the whole budget situation,” he said of the N2. “We are faced with a huge budget gap. Because of the shortfall, we had to take a series of very painful actions here on the Long Island Bus.”
With such a huge pitfall, service reductions were a necessary option that would help the MTA to provide more efficient service and reduce operating costs for their buses, Mikorenda said. The total cost per passenger is $16.87, with a direct operating cost of $10.89 for each rider, according to a 2010 MTA Long Island Bus Services Reduction Report. Mikorenda said that an average of 75 passengers are affected on the N2 line, which is about seven riders per trip.
“We tried to prune the lower ridership routes,” Mikorenda said. “We kept in mind that other routes are available for commuters so the [N2 line] bus change will have less of an impact.”
