The X17 previously ran 7 days per week, and offered nonstop service between Richmond Avenue & Lamberts Lane, and Lower Manhattan. It has been replaced by the SIM4 during rush hours, and the SIM4C during off-peak hours. The SIM4 is basically the same as the old X17A (Downtown-only variant). However, the SIM4C is not the same as the off-peak X17. The SIM4C turns off Richmond Avenue onto Victory Blvd, and makes additional stops along Victory Blvd and Gannon Avenue before entering the Staten Island Expressway at Slosson Avenue (and the reverse route applies in the outbound direction, where it exits the expressway approximately 2.6 miles earlier at Slosson Avenue, and makes all of the Gannon Avenue stops before continuing down Richmond Avenue).

These additional stops add approximately 10-15 minutes at a minimum compared to the old X17. Gannon Avenue is a 35 mph street with traffic lights, whereas the Staten Island Expressway has a 50 mph speed limit and is completely grade-separated from intersecting streets. Most importantly, there is an entrance to the HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lane at Victory Blvd. So the old X17 worked out perfectly in the sense that it entered the expressway at Richmond Avenue, and by the time it got over to the left lane, it made it to Victory Blvd and entered the HOV lane from the very beginning. This allowed it to bypass the traffic in the regular lanes that often spilled over onto Gannon Avenue (notably around Bradley Avenue, and sometimes by Slosson Avenue).

There is still heavy traffic on the Staten Island Expressway both before and after the typical rush hour period (For example, around 10:30am heading inbound and 2:30pm heading outbound), yet the span of the SIM4 was shortened further during the October 7th schedule changes. Understandably, it was a stopgap measure to close the gap in the peak/off-peak transition period between the SIM4C & SIM32 (which absolutely needed to be filled), but this serves to further elongate the trips of riders along the Richmond Avenue corridor. The MTA advertised that the span of the SIM8 would be extended in the evening, but that serves Midtown, which is a backtrack for riders coming from Lower Manhattan. Additionally, the SIM8 does not run middays, weekends, or evenings past 9:23pm (the last bus leaves 57th Street & Lexington Avenue at 9pm on weekdays).

The utilization of the full length of the HOV lane is important because it allows people to bypass the maximum amount of traffic. Right now, the off-peak plan has the SIM4C exiting the Staten Island Expressway HOV lane at Slosson Avenue, and the SIM2 exiting the HOV lane at Victory Blvd, but continuing past Richmond Avenue and onto the West Shore Expressway (which has its own traffic problems). 

We urge the MTA to do a full analysis of ways to restore the nonstop express bus service between Richmond Avenue & Lamberts Lane during off-peak hours, including but not limited to:

* Replacing the SIM4C with off-peak SIM4 & SIM32 service

* Rerouting the SIM2 off-peak to travel via Victory Blvd & Richmond Avenue to reach the Staten Island Expressway as opposed to traveling up the West Shore Expressway north of Victory Blvd.

Such an analysis should ensure that the services have adequate spans and frequencies to meet riders' needs. Weekend service ending early has always been an issue with the old X17, and continues to be an issue (as a matter of fact, an even bigger issue, since it now affects Gannon Avenue riders) and that should be addressed along with reverse-peak weekday service ending early as well (the last inbound X17 left Richmond Avenue & Lamberts Lane at 4:55pm, while numerous "Not In Service" buses continued to head up Richmond Avenue afterwards, deadheading to perform outbound trips).