Happy Anniversary, Nassau Inter-County Express Bus Service

January 2023 marks the eleventh anniversary for Nassau Inter County Express Bus . Thousands of Nassau County residents ride NICE Bus to jobs, schools and other destinations in Queens. Many transfer to the NYC Transit subway at Flushing, Jamaica or Far Rockaway stations. Thousands of Queens residents travel via NICE bus to jobs, schools, medical appointments and other destinations in Nassau County. The viability of NICE benefits everyone. To understand the origins of how we got here, you must go back in time to the early 1970’s. Prior to NICE, bus service in Nassau County was operated under Long Island Bus and Metropolitan Suburban Bus Authority. In 1973, Nassau County purchased equipment, routes and some facilities from numerous private bus operators most of whom were experiencing serious financial difficulties. These private bus operators included Bee Line, Rockville Center Bus Corporation, Utility Lines, Stage Coach Lines, Schenck Transportation, Inc., Nassau Bus Line, Hempstead Bus Corporation, Jerusalem Avenue Bus Lines, Universal Auto Bus, Roosevelt Bus Lines, Stage Coach Lines, Hendrickson Bus Corporation and others. Their respective fare box income was insufficient to cover current day to day operating expenses. They lacked the funding to purchase new replacement buses, along with upgrading out of date maintenance and operating bus garages. Nassau County followed up that same

Penner Station

Larry Penner year by entering into a lease and operating agreement with the MTA to continue providing local bus service. This resulted in creation of the Metropolitan Suburban Bus Authority. Years later, MSBA was followed by Long Island Bus and on January 1, 2012 Nassau Inter County Express. Most of the same routes operated by MSBA, LI Bus and NICE Bus today can be traced back to the various private bus operators.

It is a four-way dance between fares paid by riders along with funding provided by Nassau County, the State and the Federal government in financing public bus transportation operated by NICE. They operate a fleet of 280 buses out of the Mitchel Field bus garage. NICE also operates a fleet of 122 Able Ride paratransit vehicles out of the Stewart Avenue facility. Both facilities were constructed by federal capital grants with local matching funds provided by Nassau

County and the State Department of Transportation. It was the same funding sources for both construction of the Hempstead Multi-Modal Bus Terminal, Mineola Intermodal Bus Terminal/Commuter Parking Garage and Rockville Centre Bus Garage which was removed from active transit service in 2017. All five of these investments combined cost over $100 million. In today’s dollars, it would be far higher.

Over time, there have been other capital investments, including replacement buses, compressed natural gas fueling stations, facility modifications to accommodate CNG buses inside garages, new fare collection equipment, automatic vehicle locator equipment, real time communications systems to notify riders for anticipated arrival of the next bus, shelters, bus stop signs and other support equipment necessary to run the system. Just like a homeowner, what is new today requires constant maintenance, periodic upgrades and eventual replacement years later. Capital physical assets of any bus system (including revenue vehicles along with bus facility components such as HVAC, bus washers, paint booths, engine shops, bays, pits, lifts, doors, fueling stations, lighting, security systems and many others) eventually reach the end of their useful life. Significant changes in technology also require replacement of outdated equipment.

It has been 50 years, since Nassau County took control of all bus routes from private operators.

Over that time period, Nassau County, Albany and Washington have combined invested over $800 million in capital improvements. Operating subsidy dollars easily top over $1.5 billion.

NICE services continue to be one of the best bargains around. Since the 1950s, the average cost of riding a bus in Nassau County has gone up at a lower rate than either the consumer price index or inflation. The Metro Card introduced in 1996 affords a free transfer between NICE bus and the NYC Transit bus or subway. Prior to this, riders had to pay two full fares. Purchasing either a weekly or monthly pass further reduces the cost per ride. Many employers offer transit checks, which pay even more of the costs.

TANSTAFL - There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch, or in this case, bus ride. NICE services continue to be one of the best bargains around.

(Larry Penner is a transportation advocate, historian and writer who previously served as a former Director for the Federal Transit Administration Region 2 New York Office of Operations and Program Management. This included the development, review, approval and oversight for billions in capital projects and programs for NJ Transit, New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority, NYC Transit bus, subway and Staten Island Railway, Long Island and Metro North Rail Roads, MTA Bus, Nassau County NICE Bus along with 30 other transit agencies in NY & NJ.).

The Reframe: Shifting the Way in Which You View a Behavior Can Enhance Your Relationship

According to Dr. John Gottman, famed relationship researcher, approximately 69 percent of the problems that couples face are perpetual problems. This means that couples will have unsolvable problems that will recur throughout their relationship. For each couple, this issue is different, such as the influence of in-laws on the decisions the couple makes, different levels of cleanliness in the home, difficulties with work/life balance, etc.

Take for example, hypothetical couple Jessica and Steve, who have been married for four years and living together for three. They have very different views when it comes to cleanliness in the home and household chores. Steve wants the house to be pristine before

Love Lessons

Marisa T. Cohen, PhD

inviting any company over, while Jessica is not bothered by piles of clothing on the floor or towers of dishes in the sink. They have attempted to reach a compromise in the past and have also come up with solutions such as maintaining separate to do lists. Their solutions have helped them avoid huge blow outs, but they still have different thresholds for tidiness, which can get on one another’s nerves. Rather than wracking their brains trying to come up with new solutions, they should acknowledge that they have different views when it comes to household chores such as cleaning. Additionally, they should recognize that this is something that is likely to come up throughout their relationship. By accepting that this is a perpetual problem, they are letting go of the tendency to blame one another, and instead acknowledge that they just don’t see eye to eye. One person is not right, one person is not wrong, they each have their own views.

Karl V. Anton, Jr., Publisher, Anton Community Newspapers, 1984-2000

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Cue the Reframe

Reframing is a technique that can shift your mindset so that you can view a person or situation from a different perspective. For example, if a person at work is shouting their opinions during a meeting, instead of thinking of them as an aggressive coworker, you can reframe and view the coworker as a passionate person.

By reframing how we think about our partners, specifically when it comes to dealing with perpetual problems, we alter our cognitions, which can change our feelings and lead to a softer exchange. This prevents partners from approaching conflict with hostility and ensures that they discuss issues with kindness. This makes it more likely that

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