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Steinway Transit's Jones Beach Route
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Hart Bus



Age: 73
Joined: 24 Apr 2007
Posts: 1150

PostPosted: Fri Jul 04, 2014 11:15 am    Post subject: Steinway Transit's Jones Beach Route Reply with quote

In 1966 a friend and I took this bus from Flushing. I can't remember where the pick-up spot was, only that the bus was empty, indicating that we got on at the first stop..

According to the April-June issue of Motor Coach Today about QSC and its predecessors, this route was run under temporary seasonal permits , until they got the right to run the QN-12 on Sept.29, 1967 to go from Astoria to JB. The article also said that ST had to use A/C buses.

I bought a picture of #261 in the bus yard signed for JB. According to the list in the article buses 259-263 (SDM-5302's) were acquired, presumably for this route.

259-261 were sold to Short Line and were renumbered 6529-6531 in 1970

262-263 were sold to Interstate Bus ad renumbered 521-522 also in 1970.

Does this mean that the QN-12 was discontiued in 1970?

Any other information about this route will be appreciated, such as the fare, schedule of the buses and did they doop at JB all day or were they used on other routes as fill-ins.

I don't remember the fare, but remember taking ST or Schenck that ran a similar route because it was cents cheaper.

Also any information on the Schenck route will be helpful
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Mr. Linsky
BusTalk's Offical Welcoming Committee



Joined: 16 Apr 2007
Posts: 5071
Location: BRENTWOOD, CA. - WOODMERE, N.Y.

PostPosted: Fri Jul 04, 2014 1:55 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

ECA,

Happy Fourth!

What you've stated from Motor Coach Age regarding Queens/Nassau's and Steinway's Jones Beach activities is about as much as I know and, as far as Schenck's ventures in that direction, I have no information at all - I'm hoping that the Society will cover Schenck at sometime or another which should bring those facts to light.

However, I do have adequate information on Bee Line's (L.I.) early Jones Beach operations as follows;

When Robert Moses (New York's one time Master Builder) opened Jones Beach in 1931 Bee Line was given a franchise to carry L.I.R.R. passengers to-and-fro between both the Wantagh and Freeport stations and the park during the summer seasons.

In the particularly interesting ad below, that appeared in Bus Transportation Magazine in the mid thirties, a Bee Line ACF Metropolitan (a virtual copy of Twin's model 40) is spotlighted and singed for Jones Beach.

How long they operated the service and whether 'NICE' continues it today is unclear to me.

Photo courtesy of McGraw-Hill Publishing Archives.

Best regards,

WCA

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Hart Bus



Age: 73
Joined: 24 Apr 2007
Posts: 1150

PostPosted: Fri Jul 04, 2014 3:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mr. Linsky wrote:
ECA,

Happy Fourth!

What you've stated from Motor Coach Age regarding Queens/Nassau's and Steinway's Jones Beach activities is about as much as I know and, as far as Schenck's ventures in that direction, I have no information at all - I'm hoping that the Society will cover Schenck at sometime or another which should bring those facts to light.

However, I do have adequate information on Bee Line's (L.I.) early Jones Beach operations as follows;

When Robert Moses (New York's one time Master Builder) opened Jones Beach in 1931 Bee Line was given a franchise to carry L.I.R.R. passengers to-and-fro between both the Wantagh and Freeport stations and the park during the summer seasons.

In the particularly interesting ad below, that appeared in Bus Transportation Magazine in the mid thirties, a Bee Line ACF Metropolitan (a virtual copy of Twin's model 40) is spotlighted and singed for Jones Beach.

How long they operated the service and whether 'NICE' continues it today is unclear to me.

Photo courtesy of McGraw-Hill Publishing Archives.

Best regards,

WCA



WCA: As can be seen from the link below the service still continues as the N87 with a few more stops


http://nicebus.com/Maps-Schedules/Jones-Beach-Summer-Service.aspx

ECA
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traildriver




Joined: 26 Mar 2011
Posts: 2452
Location: South Florida

PostPosted: Fri Jul 04, 2014 11:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I thought I saw a photo on some recent posting (not sure of which thread), of some bus parked at a stop on Main Street, on the corner near the old Prospect Theater, signed for Jones Beach....IIRC, it might have been a Jamaica Bus in that photo....or a Liberty...not sure.....
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traildriver




Joined: 26 Mar 2011
Posts: 2452
Location: South Florida

PostPosted: Fri Jul 04, 2014 11:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mr. Linsky wrote:
ECA,

Happy Fourth!

What you've stated from Motor Coach Age regarding Queens/Nassau's and Steinway's Jones Beach activities is about as much as I know and, as far as Schenck's ventures in that direction, I have no information at all - I'm hoping that the Society will cover Schenck at sometime or another which should bring those facts to light.

However, I do have adequate information on Bee Line's (L.I.) early Jones Beach operations as follows;

When Robert Moses (New York's one time Master Builder) opened Jones Beach in 1931 Bee Line was given a franchise to carry L.I.R.R. passengers to-and-fro between both the Wantagh and Freeport stations and the park during the summer seasons.

In the particularly interesting ad below, that appeared in Bus Transportation Magazine in the mid thirties, a Bee Line ACF Metropolitan (a virtual copy of Twin's model 40) is spotlighted and singed for Jones Beach.

How long they operated the service and whether 'NICE' continues it today is unclear to me.

Photo courtesy of McGraw-Hill Publishing Archives.

Best regards,

WCA



Another great photo! Thanks, Mr. 'L'....
It brings back memories for me of those drives to Jones Beach when I was a child about twenty years later than that....only thing missing, was the cars that succumbed to the heat, on the side of the road....something that you don't see much of anymore, thankfully.
Also loved those art-deco styled toll booth's....
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Hart Bus



Age: 73
Joined: 24 Apr 2007
Posts: 1150

PostPosted: Sat Jul 05, 2014 9:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

traildriver wrote:
I thought I saw a photo on some recent posting (not sure of which thread), of some bus parked at a stop on Main Street, on the corner near the old Prospect Theater, signed for Jones Beach....IIRC, it might have been a Jamaica Bus in that photo....or a Liberty...not sure.....


That was probably Liberty Lines on a route to Orchard Beach. I remember passing one of them on my way to Jones Beach. I remember it because it was being driven by a woman, unusual for the sixties. She had blond hair and was a very large woman. I think they were called "Amazons" in those days and could probably knock you on your backside if she wanted to.


Last edited by Hart Bus on Sat Jul 05, 2014 4:11 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Mr. Linsky
BusTalk's Offical Welcoming Committee



Joined: 16 Apr 2007
Posts: 5071
Location: BRENTWOOD, CA. - WOODMERE, N.Y.

PostPosted: Sat Jul 05, 2014 2:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hart Bus wrote:
traildriver wrote:
I thought I saw a photo on some recent posting (not sure of which thread), of some bus parked at a stop on Main Street, on the corner near the old Prospect Theater, signed for Jones Beach....IIRC, it might have been a Jamaica Bus in that photo....or a Liberty...not sure.....


That was probably Liberty Lines on a route to Orchard Beach. I remember passing one of them on my way to Jones Beach. I remember it because it was being driven by a woman, unusual for the sixties. She had bond hair and was a very large woman. I think they were called "Amazons" in those days and could probably knock you on your backside if she wanted to.



ECA,

What you describe sounds exactly like the 'hefty' dirty-blond haired middle aged ladies that drove the city's 4507's and 5101's in Queens in the 40's and 50's.

They were mostly what was left over of the war years when there was a shortage men for the wheel and women of the 'Rosie the Riveter' type filled in.

These were rough and tumble gals that, believe me when I tell you, could take the Q-44 Queens Boulevard turn around back to Union Turnpike at full throttle in a 5101 on three wheels with a 'swinging' load! (piece of cake!).


On another subject; in reference to the recent Jamaica Buses issue of Motor Coach Age;

If I had written the first paragraph of the story that dealt with the 'DPS', I would have, just as I always do here, spelled out the complete name of the entity followed only by its initials in further reference in the study.

DPS stood for the City's Department of Plant and Structures that in the early years had responsibility for the building and maintaining of infrastructure such as bridges and other major city projects.

Some time in the late teens the department was also given the task of providing emergency bus service where there was either abandonment or loss of franchise by an operator or where completely new service was needed until a private operator could be found.

The buses used by the DPS were contracted from individual owner/drivers and usually 'jitneys' from Connecticut or New Jersey - they were all painted dark red and carried the flag of CNYDPS as well as the legend 'Emergency Bus Service'.

Best regards,

WCA
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Hart Bus



Age: 73
Joined: 24 Apr 2007
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 05, 2014 3:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That Blondie wasn't one to be messed with. Dan Ingram, a retired disc jockey, would also do a bit when introducing any song by the Mamas and Papas. He would always lapse into a Spanish accented voice and say " I love the chunky momma. I want to hug and squeeze her but my arms, they are not long enough".

That driver would certainly fit that description.
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NorthShore



Age: 76
Joined: 18 Mar 2012
Posts: 113

PostPosted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 10:23 am    Post subject: Jones Beach Service Reply with quote

Let me start by saying the beach bus spotted on Main St Flushing near the Prospect Theater (actually it stopped by the present LIRR Flushing Station Ticket Office) was Resort Bus Lines to Rockaway Beach. The route started in Yonkers, and made stops in the Bronx and Flushing. The route began in 1950, after the LIRR Rockaway Branch suspension in service. The route ran through the 1960's.
Schenck Transportation began Flushing-Jones Beach service in the mid-1950's. It left from Roosevelt Av & Prince St (same stop as the Glen Cove route).It ran along Northern Blvd, making limited.stops along the way.
This is basically the same route that it acquired from North Shore Bus, which started the service in 1933. Schenck also acquired the Flusing-Glen Cove and other Nassau County routes from North Shore. By the 1960's. the service was so popular, that Schenck created separate routes from various towns in Queens and Nassau. That's why Queens Transit's route number was so high (QN-12).
The Queens Transit/Steinway Transit service started at Steinway St & Broadway Astoria, ran along Northern Blvd (like the Q-66 and stopped at Main St & Northern Blvd. in Flushing, then the Jones Beach Center Mall Parking Lot. It utilized the new 101-105 new Air-conditioned transit buses with beautiful cream & orange leather upholstered seats with gold walls.
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traildriver




Joined: 26 Mar 2011
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 12:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for clearing that up....
What got my attention was your mentioning of Queens Transit (was it still Queens-Nassau at the time?) operating a route 'QN-12'....what was that?
I am familiar with the NYC Bus route Q-12, which runs from Flushing to the city line at Little Neck...did QT run that route for a while?
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NorthShore



Age: 76
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 8:07 am    Post subject: Jones Beach service Reply with quote

The QN-12 (this route number was issued by the NYC Bureau of Franchises, but never used on the bus route signs) was stated in 1963. Queens-Nassau Transit Lines was changed to Queens Transit Corp. in 1957.
The Q-12 Flushing-Little Neck was originally operated by the North Shore Bus Co. The route was actually a short-turn of the Flushing-Glen Cove route. When the NYC Board of Transportation took over the North Shore routes, the Q-12 became part of the NYC BOT Queens Bus Division, and the Flushing-Glen Cove route was acquired by Schenck Transportation, later MSBA/LI Bus, and now NICE.
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traildriver




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PostPosted: Fri Jul 11, 2014 12:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Okay...that's what I thought...NYC Bus predecessor took over the Q-12 from North Shore, as far as the city line. But what was your previous reference to Queens Transit having a route QN-12 about? Not clear from your history....
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X-Astorian




Joined: 19 Feb 2009
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 11, 2014 7:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

From what I've read, Steinway Transit's Jones Beach run (QN-12) was approved on October 5, 1962, and was still shown in the December 13, 1973, franchise renewal. It started at Vernon Blvd and Broadway - I don't believe that it made all local stops (21st, 31st and Steinway Streets in Astoria come to mind). The one time that I rode it I recall having walked back to 21st Street to avoid the crowds (that didn't appear until Flushing).
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NorthShore



Age: 76
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 11, 2014 8:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The QN-12 was the Astoria-Jones Beach route.
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GojiMet86



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PostPosted: Tue Jul 15, 2014 4:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

When I was a small kid I used to draw a lot of fantasy routes, one of them going to Jones Beach from Astoria...
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