Suffolk County Transit
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 Suffolk Transit #5008 picks up customers in Bay Shore on the S41 to East Northport. |
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| Founded | 1980 |
| Headquarters | Yaphank |
| Service area | Suffolk County and southeastern Nassau County |
| Service type | Local bus service |
| Routes | 53 |
| Fleet | 166 fixed-route, 102 SCAT[1] (2009 figures) |
| Daily ridership | 22,215 (weekday) 15,557 (Saturday)[1] |
| Fuel type | Ultra-low sulfur diesel |
| Operator | See operator list below |
| Chief executive | Gilbert Anderson, Commissioner, Garry Lenberger, Acting Director Transportation Operations |
| Web site | Official Website |
Suffolk County Transit is the provider of bus services in Suffolk County, New York on Long Island in the United States and is an agency of the Suffolk County government. It was founded in 1980 as a county-run oversight and funding agency for a group of private contract operators which had previously provided such services on their own. While the physical maintenance and operation of the buses are provided by these providers, other matters ranging from bus purchases to route and schedule planning to fare rules are set by Suffolk Transit itself.
Though serving the entirety of Suffolk County, the one exception is in Huntington, located in the northwestern part of the county, where that town's private operator declined to join Suffolk Transit. Instead, Huntington took over that town's system which became Huntington Area Rapid Transit, or HART. Most of HART's routes do connect to both Suffolk Transit and Nassau Inter-County Express and one can transfer between HART and Suffolk Transit fairly easily. [2] In addition, the village of Patchogue has its own local bus service.[3]
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[edit] Fare
The current Suffolk County Transit base fare for most one-way local bus travel is $1.50. For seniors and the disabled, the base fare is $0.50; personal care attendants (PCA) may ride for free when traveling with seniors or the disabled. Students with school-issued identification pay a reduced fare of $1.00. Children under five years of age are free, with a limit of three children for every adult. On routes S92 and 10C, the base fare is $2.00[4]
Fare payment is conducted with the use of coins or paper currency, and must be exact. Bus transfers cost an additional $0.25, and must be requested and paid for upon boarding the bus. These transfers are valid for two hours after issue and can be used on Suffolk County Transit connecting routes, or to Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) connecting routes with a special transfer request slip (transfers to NICE require payment of a "step-up" fare).[4]
[edit] Bus service hours
Most Suffolk Transit bus service runs operate only Monday through Saturday at 5:00 am to 8:00pm, with the exception of the S69 which runs until 10:30PM Monday to Saturday, the S1, S40, S45, and S54, which run until 10:30pm Monday to Friday, and the S27 and S33 which run until 9:30pm Monday to Friday. The S47 runs June through September, 7 days a week.
With the exception of the S47, S92, and 10C, there is no service on Sunday, New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day.[5]
[edit] Routes
Main routes are prefixed with a "S" to signify "Suffolk County" to fall in line with other nomenclature used by the MTA. Nonetheless the agency has no ties to the MTA, and in fact the "S" prefix is already used for Staten Island routes. Feeder routes do not have the "S" prefix, however they have various letter suffixes.
[edit] Suffolk County Accessible Transportation
Suffolk County Accessible Transportation (SCAT) is Suffolk Transit's federally-mandated paratransit service for ADA-eligible passengers with disabilities. SCAT service is available Monday through Friday, 6:00 AM to 8:30 PM and Saturday, 7:00 AM to 8:30 PM. The fare is $3.00.[6]
[edit] Future
During his tenure as Suffolk County executive, Steve Levy proposed a takeover of Suffolk County Transit by the MTA.[7] In 2010 Suffolk Transit had ordered 81 Orion VII clean Diesel buses.[8] to replace all of their 1996 Gillig 35TB102 and 1997 Gillig 30TB96, as well as most of their 1999 Orion 05.503's.
In 2011 the Suffolk County Legislature authorized a fare hike from $1.50 to $2.00 on the S92 and 10C routes only. In return, service on those two routes was expanded to Sunday during the summer months. The fare hike took place on June 17, 2011, with Sunday service operating from July until September.[9] [10]
[edit] Bus route assignments
Rather than operate its services in-house like most transit agencies, Suffolk County Transit contracts all their routes to private contractors. The table below lists the private contractors hired to provide fixed-route services. It does not include Suffolk County Accessible Transportation paratransit service.
| Company | Routes |
|---|---|
| Suffolk Bus Corporation[11] | 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 5A, 6A, 6B, 7A, 7B, 7D, 7E, S40, S41, S42, S45, S47, S56, S58, S59, S60, S61, S62, S66, S68, S69, S71, S76, and S110 |
| Educational Bus Transportation[12] | 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, S1, S20, S23, S25, S27, S29, S31, S33, S35, S54, S57, and S63 |
| Twin Forks Transit | 8A, 10A, 10B, 10C, 10D, 10E, S90, S92, S94 |
Note: Twin Forks Transit is a joint venture of Hampton Jitney and Sunrise Coach Lines.
[edit] Fleet
Suffolk County Transit Bus Operations employs many makes and models of buses between 30 and 40 feet in length. All are 102 inches in width. This table shows all models currently used in revenue service by any contractor. Suffolk County Accessible Transportation paratransit service is not shown.
| Year | Model | Length | Engine | Number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Orion V 05.503 | 35' 7.5" | Detroit Diesel Series 50 | 13 |
| 2000 | Gillig Phantom 35TB102 Suburban | 35' | 5 | |
| 2005 | Gillig Phantom 35TB102 | Cummins ISM | 58 | |
| 2008 | Gillig Low Floor BRT T-40 Hybrid | 40' | Cummins ISL (GM-Allison EP-40 Hybrid propulsion system) |
4 |
| 2010 | Orion VII NG | 40' 35' 30' |
Cummins ISL | 15 50 16 |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b NTD Program filing for Suffolk Transit, 2009
- ^ http://town.huntington.ny.us/department_details.cfm?ID=37
- ^ transportation
- ^ a b General Information about Suffolk County Transit
- ^ General Information about Suffolk County Transit
- ^ SCAT - Suffolk County Accessible Transportation. SCT Users Guide for the disabled
- ^ http://libn.com/politbureau/2009/05/17/mr-levy-heads-to-albany Mr. Levy Heads to Albany
- ^ http://www.dcbusna.com/dbusna/0-866-621715-1-1266199-1-0-0-0-0-1-10578-575577-0-0-0-0-0-0-0.html Daimler Buses North America Receives Orders for 92 Orion VII Transit Buses from New York State Agencies
- ^ Gannon, Tim (March 18, 2011). "Officials rally Friday to bring Sunday buses to the East End". Riverhead News-Review. http://riverheadnewsreview.timesreview.com/2011/03/10856/sunday-bus-services-could-be-coming-to-the-east-end/. Retrieved March 25, 2011.
- ^ "Resolution No. 1238-2010" (PDF). Suffolk County Legislator. February 1, 2011. http://legis.suffolkcountyny.gov/Resos2010/i2092-10.pdf. Retrieved March 25, 2011.
- ^ Suffolk Bus Corporation
- ^ The Trans Group; History
[edit] External links
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