By:Jeff Lipton
More than 75 residents signed a petition in a drive led by the Rev. Paul D. Morant Sr. of Bayview Avenue in Inwood. In a letter to MTA Long Island Bus, Morant said that current bus service fails to cover West Broadway from Cedarhurst Avenue to Rockaway Turnpike, Burnside Avenue to Doughty Boulevard, Doughty Boulevard to Bayview Avenue, Bayview Avenue to Sheridan Boulevard, and Sheridan Boulevard to Far Rockaway.
This would be such a great help to those of us living on this side, Morant said. It is more than a half-mile to the bus stop for some of us who live near the Inwood golf course.
Many of the residents do not own cars, and must walk to the bus stop in bad weather to catch the N31 or N32 bus to go to Hempstead or any of the Five Towns, residents said.
In a response to Morant-s letter, Jean T. Fraser, the manager of quality assurance and customer relations for Long Island Bus, said the company is currently unable to address the service request due to budget constraints. But the request will be considered should the budget improve and the bus company seek funding for service expansion.
Morant called the bus company-s refusal to expand service unacceptable, adding that our request is reasonable, needed and profitable [for Long Island Bus]. There is no logical reason why the bus company can-t make these necessary changes. This is something which is very badly needed.
Jane Pearlson, an LI Bus spokeswoman, said since budget constraints prevent the company from present service expansion, the request will be kept in the company-s files should bus service be extended at some point. Rider demand is one of the key factors in determining which areas receive an expansion of bus service, and the petition could go a long way to furthering the cause of those who signed it, Pearlson said.
There are so many factors that go into it, as well as potential ridership, she said. It has to run along a main road and not a residential road. If residents in that area and businesspeople pursue it further and maybe contact their local legislator.
She said the company also decides which areas to extend service to after taking the results of a mail-in survey.
Jacob Balter, of the Nassau County Planning Department, said Inwood is on the list for service expansion, but the money is just not available in the operating budget. He said the bus company may try to obtain a federal grant from Job Access Reverse Commute (JARC) in 2004 or 2005 to expand the service.
Pearlson said LI Bus currently operates 54 bus routes in Nassau and Suffolk counties and part of Queens, and serves the Jamaica, Flushing and Far Rockaway train stations. About 105,000 commuters ride LI Bus each weekday, and the company has a total of 31 million riders a year. The bus goes to 46 Long Island Rail Road stations each day.
Morant suggested that expanding service to Inwood would not only greatly benefit residents, but also be much more profitable for the bus company, since the service expansion is in such great demand in Inwood.
Fraser said it-s not just the Inwood area that is asking for service. We are always interested in making our service more accessible and convenient to the broadest population we serve, Fraser said. Development of new routes is subject to various factors, including current demand, effect on other routes in the system, potential usage and cost.
Fraser acknowledged that This extended bus route will bring in more money, but added that the present budget situation is preventing this from happening now.
Jonathan Davis, executive director of the Five Towns Community Center on Lawrence Avenue in Inwood, said the areas that are not covered by LI Bus may be covered by Jamaica Bus Co. out of Queens, and suggested that residents look into using that bus service. The Jamaica bus covers Sheridan to Bayview, Doughty to Wanser Avenue, Wanser to Lawrence Avenue, Lawrence to Mott Avenue, and Mott to Rockaway Turnpike.
When County Executive Tom Suozzi was holding his town meetings to gather ideas on economic development, Inwood residents listed public transportation as a major need that needed to be addressed before he could proceed with his plan. They said it was difficult for residents who work in other parts of the county to mobilize without adequate public transportation in the eastern reaches of the county.
We have a very large work force, said one Inwood resident. We have a large blue-collar work force, supplying labor to the rest of Nassau County.
