Comments on: On airport-bound buses, new luggage racks

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 01:53:58 +0000

Are those express buses advertised anywhere at the airport, or near the relevant stations? No. So it’s a service for people who check express bus service online, not for either visitors or most residents.

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 01:00:30 +0000

You don’t need high-speed rail to get to an airport, unless it’s really far away. You just need decent local rail. LaGuardia has nothing; when the city wanted to extend the N/W there, the local neighborhood groups screamed at it. Newark has a multi-transfer connection, which dumps you at Penn Station, away from your hotel. The closest thing to a decent airport-transit connection is the AirTrain to the E at JFK, which offers decent access for people who don’t mind lugging suitcases up multiple flights of stairs.

By: Chemster

Chemster — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:51:42 +0000

I think that the racks will help… but things will probably still be crowded on the M60 during prime air travel seasons. I actually rode on one of the new M60s for a few blocks on Monday (put my groceries on the rack, woo hoo), but it wasn’t a real test because I was at the start of the route.

By: Streetsblog New York City » Today’s Headlines

Streetsblog New York City » Today’s Headlines — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 19:11:52 +0000

[...] Program Seeks to Make a Bus Ride to La Guardia More Appealing (City Room, SAS, [...]

By: herenthere

herenthere — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:49:24 +0000

I’ve never taken a ride on an airport bus, but I think they might actually need more of those racks b/c in other cities, they really do come in handy.

By: Benjamin Kabak

Benjamin Kabak — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 01:14:28 +0000

I’m not saying those airports are not accessible. I’m not sure what your point is here, Alon. Great. London has an Underground stop. But it takes longer and costs more to go from Heathrow to Liverpool than it does to go from JFK to Penn Station.

New York’s airports could use more transit, and we should have high-speed rail to the airport. But it’s not terrible. That’s all.

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:15:32 +0000

If you think New York's airports are "generally transit-accessible," then which airports do you think are not accessible? I mean, O'Hare has an L station on airport grounds. Heathrow has Underground stations at the terminals. Charles de Gaulle has a station for both the RER and the TGV. Narita is served by multiple commuter lines, including a premium express service straight to Tokyo. Frankfurt has a station for both the S-Bahn and the ICE; its rail access modal share is 28%, JFK's is only 11%.

By: Veritas

Veritas — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:27:11 +0000

There are privately-run express buses that run directly between LaGuardia and midtown (the stops are near Grand Central and Penn Station). The last time I took it was about $12 and 25 minutes each way. It’s not a bad ride, I think.

By: Benjamin Kabak

Benjamin Kabak — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:19:38 +0000

I said “generally,” not “good.” You can take the bus and/or subway to the airports. That’s a step up from many other cities’ airport offerings even if New York’s leave much to be desired.

By: AlexB

AlexB — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:15:02 +0000

Are you kidding? JFK has good access and Newark has decent access (good if they extended the PATH the airport station), but the M60 to LaGuardia is truly the least they could do. There should be an express bus from midtown to LaGuardia. Almost every other city in the country has some sort of fast bus connection to the city center, or at least to a nearby rail station, or even just a local bus to the city center. We have a half hour, local bus to neighborhoods (Flushing, Jackson Hts, Harlem), where you are still many stops from midtown.