Suffolk County has unveiled a revamped system of bus routes aimed at strengthening people’s ability to take the bus to work, with longer operating hours, service seven days a week, and more stops at train stations and employment hubs across the county.
Included in that plan, however, is the replacement of two fixed-route buses that run through East Hampton Town — the 10B and 10C lines — with an on-demand “microtransit” service mirroring the one piloted in Southampton Town in the first half of 2021 as a replacement for the 10A bus line. That service will now be permanent, the county said.
A county press release issued on Dec. 6 contained little information about the on-demand service and did not specifically state that the 10B and 10C buses are slated to be discontinued. It was Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming who brought that issue to light during a phone interview last Thursday.
Ms. Fleming, for whom public transportation has been a key issue since she was first elected in 2015, said the county “has more work to do” before the new on-demand system is implemented in East Hampton in October next year.
“It’s my hope that we are going to have a good conversation to ensure that this is going to fully serve the community before these changes are put into place,” she said. “I have concerns over whether this will be adequate, especially in the summer season.”
A county spokeswoman provided more details by email: “Riders who request a ride will be directed to walk to a nearby intersection with an estimated wait time and will be taken to a location within walking distance of their destination. The bus may pick up and drop off other riders along the way.”
Trips on the on-demand buses will cost $2.25, the same fare that travelers now pay on the fixed-route lines. Service can be requested via telephone or mobile app. The coverage area is from the East Hampton train station east to Montauk Point, including Springs east of Three Mile Harbor Road.
“As we strive to expand economic opportunities for residents of Suffolk, it is critical to provide a transit system that values people’s time and gets them to more places throughout the county faster,” County Executive Steve Bellone said in the release. “With longer operating hours, timed connections, and more high-frequency service, the new Suffolk Transit system will be far more useful for residents, workers, and visitors.”
The county said that through the newly revamped system residents will have access to 51 percent more “jobs and opportunities” within 60 minutes of their homes, as compared to the current transit network. “In addition, low-income residents will have access to 60 percent more jobs, residents without cars will have access to 53 percent more jobs, and communities of color will have access to 68 percent more jobs,” the county said.
The S92 bus, which goes the distance from Orient to East Hampton, will remain, Ms. Fleming said. The South Fork is the only region in Suffolk where the on-demand routes are being introduced. Ms. Fleming said the on-demand service between Southampton and Sag Harbor has been “very successful.”
“If we can get a full understanding of the capacity of this on-demand system, maybe it will be an improvement,” she said. “It certainly was for Southampton and Sag Harbor, where we didn’t have any public bus service, but I am concerned that it will be adequate to the task. My team is going to make sure that we have sit-downs with the administration, with the data in terms of ridership and how this new solution is proposed to substitute for what’s already in place.”
“The jury’s still out on that,” she continued. “We have work to do . . . to make sure people can get to their jobs and medical appointments. It’s my hope that in the end, we’re going to have a system that works much better, and you’ll see people taking more public transportation — and taking it more frequently.”
