Queens News - Local News

As legitimate dollar van operators get priced out by high insurance rates, off-the-books competitors are taking their place.   This article originally appeared in The City. By  Jose Martinez QUEENS - Even as licensed “dollar vans” all but vanish from city streets, unregulated commuter carriers remain obstacles to MTA buses in parts of Brooklyn and Queens. The number of Taxi and Limousine Commission–affiliated commuter vans in service has shrunk by 93% since 2015, TLC data shows, with just 39 such vehicles still licensed to operate as of this week — down from 215 a decade ago. But MTA officials and union representatives for the agency’s bus operators say the official dollar van downturn has given way to a boom in unlicensed commuter vans that clog bus stops and bus lanes, further slowing buses that poke along at an average citywide speed of 8.1 mph. “You have to stop short of the bus stop or in the middle of the street, because the dollar vans are ever...

DOT Announces Completion of Boulevard Redesign   Queens Voice  November 12, 2024 NEW YORK  – New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez announced the completion of the sixth and final phase of the city’s transformative, Vision Zero redesign of Queens Boulevard, once known as the “Boulevard of Death.”  The project, which began in 2015, has already resulted in a dramatic decline in traffic deaths and injuries. The final section, between Skillman and Roosevelt Avenues, includes parking-protected curbside bike lanes to enhance cyclist safety; pedestrian islands to shorten crossing distances while encouraging slower, safer turns; and additional adjustments to traffic signal timing to allow more time for pedestrian crossings before lights turn green.    The redesign has brought safety enhancements along the entire length of Queens Boulevard, transforming this Vision Zero Priority Corridor into a multi-modal boulevard f...