OP-ED: Happy 16th anniversary New York MTA Bus

It was 16 years ago in 2005, when the city of New York completed the purchase of seven remaining private bus operator franchises.

This included Bronx-based Liberty Lines Bronx Express and New York Bus Service, Queens-based Green Bus Lines, Jamaica Buses, Triboro Coach Corporation, Queens Surface and Brooklyn-based Command Bus. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) created a new operating agency, MTA Bus, to continue service previously provided by the private bus operators.

Subsequently, they entered into 50-year lease agreements to utilize and operate all of their franchises, buses and garages. The deal was supposed to benefit riders and taxpayers.

Prior to 2005, the NYC Department of Transportation (NYCDOT), using a combination of city, state and federal funding, provided both capital and operating assistance to all seven private bus operators. Virtually all of the capital funding was provided by grants from the Federal Transit Administration. For decades. these grant funds paid for replacement buses, radios, fare boxes, bus stop shelters, bus washers, facility improvements and new bus garages for Queens Surface in College Point, Queens and Command Bus in Canarsie, Brooklyn. All seven bus companies, including Liberty Lines Bronx Express, New York Bus Service, Green Bus Lines, Jamaica Buses, Queens Surface (formerly Steinway Bus Corporation and Queens Bus), Triboro Coach Corporation and Command Bus, could not survive on farebox revenues alone.

With insufficient income, they all counted on NYCDOT starting in the 1970s to begin purchasing replacement buses, fareboxes, radios and other support equipment for their respective aging bus fleets. In many cases, bus operators had to operate and maintain buses well beyond the industry standard useful life of 12 years and/or 500,000 miles. Too many buses in revenue service were between 12 and 27-years old with far more mileage. It took NYCDOT too many years to complete any bus procurements before operators received and could provide the riding public with new modern buses.

MTA Bus deserves credit for purchasing hundreds of new buses and investments to upgrade antiquated bus garages far more quickly than NYCDOT ever could.

The operational savings for taxpayers never appeared. Instead the $100 million per year NYC subsidy formerly provided to the private bus operators has grown to $500 million for MTA Bus. The private bus company owners earn several million per year from MTA Bus for leasing their facilities. Potential operational savings by consolidation of duplicative routes between NYC Transit Bus, Manhattan and Bronx Surface Operating Authority Bus and MTA Bus never took place. The same was true for reducing deadheading costs by reassigning bus routes between all three divisions to closer garages for reduction of operating costs. Work rules and contracts between different labor unions representing employees at NYCT Bus, MABSTOA and MTA Bus have prevented any changes to the status quo.

We have gone full circle from private to public operators over many decades. Was it was worth it for riders of the original routes operated by the old Liberty Lines Bronx Express, New York Bus Service, Green Bus Lines, Jamaica Buses, Triboro Coach Corporation and Command Bus? Ditto for taxpayers? Time will tell.

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Larry Penner is a transportation advocate, historian and writer who previously worked for the Federal Transit Administration Region 2 NY Office. This included the development, review, approval and oversight for billions of dollars in grants which provided funding for capital projects and programs to the NY MTA, NYC Transit, Long Island and Metro North Rail Roads, MTA Bus, NYC DOT, NJ Transit and more than 30 transit agencies in New York and New Jersey.