Paul Corfield wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jul 2007 22:33:15 -0400, David of Broadway
wrote:

Paul Corfield wrote:

Not exactly. (But impressively close for someone who doesn't ride the
buses in question!)

MTA New York City Transit has operated a large number of express routes
between Staten Island and Manhattan and several express routes between
Queens and Manhattan and between Brooklyn and Manhattan for decades.
(There's also an express route between Queens and the Bronx, but that's
an anomaly.)

OK - I was going from memory and failed to load up a MTA Bus Map ;-)

You are excused.

The various city-subsidized private bus operators operated many local
routes in Queens and Brooklyn, along with express routes between Queens
and Manhattan, Brooklyn and Manhattan, and the Bronx and Manhattan.
Those routes were recently taken over by the newly formed MTA Bus.

I knew I'd got a bit of it correct.

You got a lot of it correct!

- What are New York's night buses like?
Not dissimilar to the concept used in London - i.e. 24 hour service on
key corridors. There is not the same need as in London for longer
distance routes as the Subway is 24 hours in NYC.
Generally, New York doesn't have any specific night buses. Some bus
routes run all night - that's all.

But many of London's routes are now on exactly this basis - the daytime
route but running all night.

In that way the two systems are similar.

London is now catching up with NYC with its never ending variants of
what line or station is open or closed at any point in time! I think
I'd struggle to cope with a Subway system that is subject to such
frequent change to its operating pattern.
Catching up? With three exceptions, every single subway station in New
York is open around the clock. (The three exceptions are the two
northernmost stations on the 3, which are replaced by bus service at
night, and Broad Street on the J/M/Z, which is closed on weekends, when
the J is cut back to Chambers Street.)

What I meant was that with the scale of work going on in London we have
almost as long lists of what is open, what is half open, closed and what
is replaced by a bus as NYC used to have for its subway system. I
wasn't alluding for a moment to our system being open 24 hours which it
demonstrably is not (for LU). There are a few exceptions on rail routes.

But London also has a good number of stations that have strange hours.
Closed weekends. Rush hours only. Rush hours and Sunday mornings only.
Open for exit and interchange only at certain times. Etc.

But our route patterns can certainly get confusing.

Err yes. While I know you've had to close large sections of the network
for rehabilitation works I do find it quite odd that the route and
service pattern changes as much as it does.

Rather than address this directly, allow me to present you with a challenge:

Study the current service pattern (the guide on the lower left-hand
corner of the subway map is a good place to start; ask me if you have
any questions) and, for as much of the network as you choose to tackle,
come up with something simpler that still provides good service.

I'd be interested in seeing what you come up with.

The statements about your lack of express services were probably
referring to the Underground, where they're largely accurate, except on
the western Piccadilly and Metropolitan.

I don't think they were. The website author mentioned rail rather than
Tube or Subway.

No, I think he's referring to subway/Underground:

"New York subway cars are air conditioned. Not so in London where global
warming is making it quite unbearable at times. New York has express
trains which is nice if you live at the far end of Brooklyn, Queens or
the Bronx. London has no express trains. Every train stops at every
station. New York is more of a 24 hour city. The subway runs through the
niight and does not shut down after midnight as does the London system.
The subway serves the large numbers of graveyard shift workers, party
people and night time weirdos. Even muggers and rapists have to get home
in the wee hours.and the New York transit system respects the needs of all."

Don't forget Gants Hill and Barkingside. Not as obviously orthodox as GG
or SH but plenty of Jewish businesses and synagogues.
Also Hendon and Edgware.

True but really just a continuation of the Golders Green area.

Geographically, yes, but the neighbo(u)rhoods seem to be distinct. I've
met several people here from the Hendon and Edgware Jewish communities,
and they've identified themselves as being from Hendon and Edgware, not
Golders Green, even before ascertaining whether I'm at all familiar with
London geography.

(I didn't realize Gants Hill and Barkingside were Jewish. The various
lists of kosher restaurants that I consulted didn't include any in those
neighbo(u)rhoods.)

Well there's certainly a synagogue and a range of kosher businesses that
follow Sabbath opening and closing rules. Can't think of a kosher
restaurant in the area but I'm just commenting from what I've seen from
the bus.

I'll keep them in mind for my next visit!
--
David of Broadway
New York, NY, USA