MTA Adds Service To Area Beaches

Posted by Transit Blogger

May 26, 2016

The temperatures outside are a preview of what to expect this upcoming summer season which is just around the corner. In preparation of it, the MTA has announced it is adding service to area beaches. Here are more details:

Summer weekend ridership on the Rockaway Park shuttle, which normally operates between Rockaway Park-Beach 116 St and Broad Channel, has grown dramatically over the last few years and is now well in excess of pre-Super Storm Sandy levels.

In response to this growing ridership, and to better accommodate travelers heading to and from Rockaway Beach on weekends this summer, MTA New York City Transit will be extending the from Broad Channel to the Rockaway Blvd station on the line from approximately 9am to 9pm.

The extension of the to Rockaway Blvd will allow southbound (beach-bound) customers to transfer to the from both the Lefferts Blvd train and the Far Rockaway train, effectively doubling southbound access to the . Likewise, the extension will allow northbound Shuttle riders to transfer to trains originating at either Lefferts Blvd or Far Rockaway.

The extended service will begin on Sunday, June 12 and will operate until at least Labor Day. If New York City public beaches are open on September weekends after Labor Day, as was the case in 2015 and as has been proposed going forward, the extended shuttle service will also operate on those weekends.

In addition, service on the Q35 bus route, which operates between the Brooklyn College-Flatbush Av & station and Rockaway Park, via Flatbush Avenue and Jacob Riis Park, will be increased starting July 3. More than 35 trips on both Saturday and Sunday will be added and frequencies will go from every 10-11 minutes to 7 1/2 minutes.

In the Bronx starting this Saturday, Bx12 local service, which normally operates between Sedgwick Avenue and Pelham Bay will be extended to Orchard Beach from approximately 7am to 8pm. On weekends additional Bx12 service to Orchard Beach has been added because the Bx5 now serves Bay Plaza.