Post
by Irish Chieftain » Wed Sep 29, 2004 3:44 pm
Ain't any bus that can get around the traffic, unless you want to spend extra for bus lanes all the way up Route 23, and/or on Route 15 and I-80. And you can imagine that those bus lanes will themselves get jammed the closer you get to the Stinkin' Lincoln.
Paying for free bus service will not be the same as buying a good train service—at all. The trains will still get people in and out of the metro area faster than any bus, and getting people to work on time and in less time than driving reduces lost work time costs immensely and results in healthier employees.
When I was still working in Linden NJ driving from the Mount Pocono area, I always saw the Martz Bus crawling down I-80, no faster than any of the other cars. And when there is light to moderate traffic, the Martz Bus speeds, which is quite illegal—that in and of itself ought to be construed as "unfair competition" to the railroads who cannot exceed their own speed limits without serious signaling and infrastructure investment.
(Incidentally, the 195 bus runs between Willowbrook Mall and PABT, serving Little Falls and Cedar Grove via a very circuitous route. Route 194 diverts via the 195 Cedar Grove route on the weekends. The 196 and 197 are the buses for Ringwood.)