NICE Bus Adding New Buses, Service To Elmont Felxi Route

Nassau County announced today that the NICE Bus service will introduce new vehicles that can hold more passengers, as well as an expanded schedule, for areas around Elmont this summer.

Starting June 23, the new Elmont Flexi buses will take off, holding up to 30 passengers and driving new morning and afternoon peak schedules.

Flexi, which travels a fixed route beginning in the south at Green Acres Mall and travels north toward Hempstead Turnpike, and makes stops in Valley Stream and Elmont and an on-demand stop at Northwell Hospital. On-demand stops allow the route to serve a larger footprint more efficiently and respond to individual rider needs, the county says.

According to the county, when it was initially launched as a pilot program in early 2017, Elmont Flexi was one of the nation’s first fixed-route/on-demand hybrid routes. Since the pilot launch, ridership has doubled to approximately 400 daily riders – roughly 2,000 riders a week – with weekday service running mornings and evenings.

“We heard the voices of our bus-riders, and today we’re delivering for them by expanding our PEAK Flexi service in Elmont. More and more residents are relying on NICE Bus to get around, and it’s vital that we accommodate their commuting needs and thus encouraging growth in ridership,” said Nassau County Executive Laura Curran. “Nassau County is committed to implementing innovative solutions that provide more transportation options for our residents while also reducing road congestion.”

The new 28-foot buses can accommodate 30 riders at a time - 22 seated passengers plus an additional eight standees. This is an enhancement from the current 24-foot buses, which safely accommodates 20 riders. All NICE vehicles are accessible for passengers utilizing a mobility device.

Elmont Flexi now runs 4:50 to 9:57 a.m. weekday mornings, and from 3 to 8:18 p.m. in the evenings. The three additional PEAK trips are designed to help facilitate connections to the N6, NICE's busiest route, providing early and late-night commuters flexibility getting to and from work.