Mangano Promises “There Will Be Bus Service”

Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano is promising that no Long Island Bus riders will have to walk or use their own personal vehicles if the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) follows through and cuts half its routes in July.

“There will be bus service in Nassau County,” Mangano vowed Monday during a press conference at the in Mineola.

Tuesday MTA Chairman Jay Walder released a proposal to cut 25 of Long Island Bus’ 48 routes around Nassau in a bid to save an estimated $12 million in costs. The agency has cited as reason to drop the routes from the current come July, which will leave several communities including Bethpage, Lindenhurst and Elmont without bus service.

“(Walder) proffered that it would only affect 13 percent of the ridership so in my mind that’s a pretty big number if you consider 100,000 riders, it’s 13,000 people,” the county executive said, adding that he was “highly concerned” with the move’s effect on the economy.

Mangano confirmed about his plan, the first time the agency has gone public with any proposal on the bus system. “I asked him to please send me the detailed proposal,” Mangano said, “so that I may evaluate it.”

The MTA has asked the county to , which county leaders have balked at. Nassau currently provides a $9.1 million subsidy to the MTA to operate Long Island Bus with additional subsidies from the state and Federal levels.

“For our subsidy to go from $9.1 million to $35 million in one year in this fiscal environment was just not sustainable to the taxpayers here in Nassau County,” Mangano said.

During the negotiations, Nassau has to operate the bus system. The county owns both the buses and the terminal in Hempstead. Mangano intends to approach the MTA proposal similarly to the solicited bids from the public-private partnership.

“We were happy with the MTA operating the bus service,” Mangano said. “It is the MTA that a few weeks into my administration decided that they needed an additional $26 million to operate bus service.”

The county has received three bids from outside companies, all of which include continuing Able Ride service for disabled and handicapped riders.

Mangano intends to hold public hearings on any proposal from a private company and give residents the opportunity to weigh in on “at least” two plans, one being the MTA and the other the private option.

“Jay’s proposal will be measured against the responses that we have received,” he said. “We have no other choice but to measure the public-private responses to operate our bus system against the MTA proposal. We intend to continue bus service.”

The county executive was “not certain” about any timetable for the county’s hearings, but hoped the committee in charge of evaluating the bids would have a decision within the next few weeks.

A public hearing has been scheduled by the MTA on the proposed route eliminations and cuts on March 23 at 3 p.m. at Hofstra University.