Freeport, NY - July 27, 2018 - Nassau County Executive Laura Curran joined Legislator Debra Mulé, Legislator Steve Rhoads, Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) Chief Executive Officer Michael Setzer, Chief Administrative Officer Jack Khzouz, MTA Long Island Rail Road Government and Community Affairs Officer Vanessa Pino Lockel, Freeport Mayor Robert Kennedy, transit advocates, Nassau County Bus Transit Committee Members and NICE bus riders to announce NICE’s continuing efforts to adopt transit solutions that marry technology with best practices, is this week testing new service innovations designed to create a more flexible, responsive and cost-efficient bus transit system in Nassau County.
The first is an innovative new on-demand, shared ride, door-to-door service using smaller vehicles. The “Uber-like” NICE Link does away with fixed routes, schedules, pre-set bus stops, and big buses and instead offers address-to-address service, smaller vehicles, and a reservation and payment feature on NICE’s existing GoMobile transit app for smartphones. NICE is one of a few public transit systems to offer this type of on-demand service.
NICE is also testing “schedule-less” service on its n/40-41 bus route designed to improve reliability and regularity. With a new “frequency based” approach, buses arrive every 10 minutes during peak time versus on a fixed schedule.
“Transit is an engine for economic development and communities that invest in their transit systems are building a foundation for growth,” said Nassau County Executive Laura Curran. In fact, the American Public Transportation Association has determined that for every dollar spent to provide public transit, the city, county or region served gets back $4 in tangible economic benefits, including increased sales, employment and taxes.
“NICE is essential to the region’s economic vitality, and with further innovation and investment, the benefit to the greater community, as well as riders, can be significantly increased,” she said. Curran added that NICE, the county’s public bus transit system, is integral to the everyday lives of tens of thousands of residents and that increasing connectivity to the broader regional transit network is especially important to build stronger, more vibrant communities.
The county’s investments in NICE technology and focus on system planning have driven innovation that is improving service in response to customer needs, said NICE Chief Executive Officer Michael Setzer. “Communities across the U.S. are increasingly reinventing and expanding their investment in public transportation with further innovation and investment,” said Setzer.
The NICE Link platform is integrated into the current NICE bus transit app, GoMobile, allowing riders to book and pay for Link trips and get ride information. Each ride costs $4.50, more than a bus, but less than a taxi. At the outset, NICE Link will run weekdays during peak service hours in a zone bordered by Hempstead Turnpike, Merrick Road, the Meadowbrook Parkway and the Wantagh Parkway. Link will also serve the Freeport LIRR station.
Setzer added that transformative changes in transit – like the on-demand service Uber, electronic payment, app-based tools and others – demonstrate great potential as customers have become increasingly comfortable with alternatives that are technology and data driven.
The n40/41 route changes rely on GPS technology, which was installed on NICE buses during a recently completed system-wide technology upgrade, to maintain the regularity of bus arrivals. Night service has been also been added on the n40/41.
NICE Link represents a more flexible, less expensive way to introduce or reintroduce service in areas with limited demand. In fact, the area served by NICE Link lost its regular service due to last year’s budget limitations, but NICE believes there is still demand for public transportation.
About NICE Link Service
NICE Link is an experiment with a new type of “Uber-like” transit service that features on-demand, shared ride, door-to-door service using smaller vehicles. NICE Link represents a more flexible, less expensive way to maintain, or in this case reintroduce, service in areas where demand is light and disbursed and therefore may not justify fixed route bus service on a schedule.
NICE Link may in future be introduced in other areas of Nassau County that either have no service or poorly utilized service where we NICE can substitute this more convenient, less expensive form of service that will meet people’s needs and make the county’s dollars go further.
This pilot program, which is funded by Transdev, the operator of the county’s public bus system, is operated with three, 26 foot “cutaway-style” (mini-bus, shuttle type) vehicles. Link builds on the already established GoMobile technology for smartphone or tablet, which makes it possible to book and pay for Link trips, get ride information and make payments.
Service runs weekdays during peak service hours 6:30 - 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 - 7 p.m. Service zone boundaries are Hempstead Turnpike to Merrick Road (north-south) and Meadowbrook Parkway to Wantagh Parkway (east-west). Link will also serve Freeport LIRR station. This is an area which because of the funding shortfall last spring lost some service but where NICE believes there is demand for alternate service.
The three cutaways have 14 seats, three wheelchair stations and wheelchair lift. They are fully accessible, so they provide another option for those who use Able-Ride. Able-Ride requires 24-hour advanced reservation, so this door-to-door service offers more flexibility for Able-Ride users, who pay a fare of $3.75. Some current Able-Ride users may like Link because it does not require 24-hour reservations, so they can be spontaneous and enjoy this convenience.
To use Link, a customer anywhere in the service zone opens the GoMobile app and selects NICE Link. Using GPS, the app already knows the rider’s location. The rider requests a ride and enters the destination, which must be in the service area. The app will then propose a trip, including how long the trip will take and time of pickup and, if passenger choses to accept, the app collects fare of $4.50. The price point is more than a bus and less than a taxi.
Customers may also call the NICE Call Center to book a trip and vehicles will have fareboxes and customers can use exact cash fare (as required by Federal rules). However NICE expects that most customers will book their trip and pay their fare with the GoMobile app. Metrocard will not be accepted for the pilot program.
A tablet on each Link bus will inform the operators of booked trips as reservations are made. The app will propose a pick-up time as close as possible to the requested time, depending on available capacity. There is no human intervention (route planning) the app does it all.