CDTA Bus Stop 📍

And the news was… No service changes! 🚍

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And the news was… No service changes! 🚍

With remote work ending for most state employees, myself included, and schools going fully back to inperson, I was sure that they would restore full bus service during rush hours, bringing back the 15 or 20 minutes service to CDTA Route 18 and restoring the express Route 719.

But it didn’t happen.

Maybe the authority is taking a wait and see approach come next week and see how truly much passengers return come September. Some customers after all might be uncomfortable riding the bus at this point with Delta, and are driving to work. Other riders might have tragically secumb to the virus. A few might still have the remote option although that seems few and far apart for students and state workers.

Its hard to say. They did bring back the school and college shuttles but no other changes to service levels. So I guess there were some changes but no big ones for sure.

CDTA Adds Real-Time Bus Maps to Website

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Screenshot of CDTA Website

I am very thrilled to see that CDTA has added maps that show the estimated real-time position of buses on all routes on their website. It might not be all that much more useful then the time estimates, but psychologically, to be able to pull up your phone, and watch the icon creep towards you makes you feel better.

The data isn’t perfect, it all depends on the access to GPS signals — which ain’t always possible downtown with the big buildings — and how many of the minute-by-minute beacons are not always successfully returned to CDTA World Headquarters in Albany and processed by the computer, but it’s certainly better then nothing, and makes you feel more like a bus actually coming.

Here is an example on CDTA Route 18 Schedule page.

May 24, 2016 Evening

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Good evening. Tonight was Bronx Night at the Egg, so I got a few good eats before catching the bus home. Today was kind of a damp and gray day, much more than expected. It never really cleared out, although I think the most recent shower is over and some more sun. Today’s high was only 67, it’s dropped back to 63.

Tonight is going to be mild with a low around 51. Sunset is at 8:20 with dusk around 8:56. Tomorrow the heat kicks in with a high around 85 to 90 under partly sunny skies. With a breeze and dew points in the 50s, it won’t nearly feel so warm. The weather forecasters are predicting a toasty summer.

Today the unemployment rate figures for April were released. I’ll try to get an unemployment map together tonight showing the local area unemployment rates across the state tonight to feature tomorrow.

I also got to make up some new maps tonight. Maybe after the evening walk as I watch the PBS Newshour. Tomorrow is going to be hot in the evening, so I doubt I’ll want to spend much time inside playing on the computer.