AIRPORT VOICE, FEBRUARY 2021 23
George T. McDonald, Founder of The Doe Fund and its President for 35 years, passed away
on January 26th after battling cancer. He was 76 years old.
It can be said that no person has done more to improve the lives of homeless adult men in
New York City than George. His fiery Irish Catholic spirit gave him the gall to fight relentlessly
for those overlooked. His unwavering patriotism motivated him to make the promise
of America accessible to those for whom it was out of reach. His service as Commissioner
for PANYNJ was recognized by the all he served with to better the region.
George Onuorah
files to run
Eyes City Council 21st. Dist.
George Onuorah is a candidate
for City Council 21st district
Queens, encompassing Elmhurst,
East Elmhurst, Jackson Heights,
Corona, LaGuardia and LeFrak
City.
“I’m running as a voice of new
immigrants seeking to build a better
more inclusive community. The
21st district is so ethnically diverse
and arguably the most diverse in
the United States if not the world
and LaGuardia Airport being in the
district, we must leverage to grow
our local economy through collaborative
effort with all stakeholders
representing the airport community
,“ he said. “I will fight hard to
make sure that LaGuardia Airport
plays pivotal role in the economic
viability of not just East Elmhurst
but Queens. I definitely see our airports,
especially LaGuardia airport
playing instrumental role in any
tangible recovery we will have.”
Certainly Vaughn College in
East Elmhurst will be funded to
help inspire local kids to study aeronautic
engineering and other aerospace
sciences if he he elected.
George is a lifelong Democrat
who believes in immigrant rights,
civil rights and LGBTQ rights as he
feels we are part of one humanity.
New Queens Express Shuttle
Service To Cut Commute Time
by 33% for 8,000+ Workers.
Employees To Get 60 Free Rides
February 8, 2021; Jamaica,
Queens NY
Getting to work is about to get
easier for 8,000+ New Yorkers who
work near JFK Airport in Southeast
Queens. GatewayJFK, a Business
Improvement District in
Springfield Gardens is set to launch
a subsidized shuttle service to help
workers finish their commute from
the Jamaica transit hub to their
bustling cargo, hotel, and commercial
job center (11434/11347).
The shuttle will launch in April
2021 running every work day from
5:00 AM to 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM to
9:00 PM and is expected to shave 20
minutes off of an average worker’s
commute.
To help build the service, GatewayJFK
turned to the rideshare
startup Dollaride – which facilitates
an app-based payment portal for New
York’s dollar van industry. Employees
will be able to track their shuttle,
reserve a seat, and digitally pay for
their ride with the Dollaride app.
To promote this new route, GatewayJFK
and Dollaride are giving
away 60 free rides to the first
300 people who sign up. To redeem
rides, users must sign up on dollaride.
com/gateway-jfk-promotion.
Research from urban planning
firm WXY Studio found that workers
in the area who use the subway
spend more than 1 hour in each direction
on their commute; the shuttle
service is expected to reduce
that number down to 40 minutes.
“Most of the transit in the area has
been focused on getting passengers
to and from the JFK terminal area;
but our business community developed
alongside the airport and off
airport property, so unfortunately
they haven’t been able to benefit
from those connections. Up until
now, it’s been one of those ‘you can’t
get there from here’ scenarios,” said
Scott Grimm-Lyon, Executive Director
of GatewayJFK.
The shuttle is designed to supplement
and complement the MTA’s
Q6 Bus line, which transit activist
group Bus Turnaround Coalition
found has chronic overcrowding,
poor on-time performance, and an
average speed of only 6.5 mph.
“We wanted to make sure the
service was reliable for the workers,
and profitable for the drivers so
it would be sustainable in the long
term,” Grimm-Lyon said. “Plus, it’s
going to be a great resource for our
local job creators, especially as we
work to recover from the economic
collapse caused by COVID-19.” According
to GatewayJFK, one of the
frequent issues businesses face in
the area is worker attraction and retention,
as new hires are often discouraged
by the long commute.
App development, and a twomonth
test period has been subsidized
by a contract with the New
York State Energy Research and Development
Authority (NYSERDA)
who hopes the route will encourage
people to shift away from commuting
in cars. “Over time as the route
develops a regular track record and
shows success in reducing commute
times, we foresee that employees
will choose to mode shift away
from single passenger vehicles and
choose transit as their regular commuting
option,” said Su Sanni, CEO
of Dollaride.
GatewayJFK and Dollaride
hope that this model, where a community
development organization
partners with a tech startup like
Dollaride, can be a model for micro
mobility in the future. The service
is intended to kick-start a new dollar
van route and attract more vans
in the long term. “By proving that
there is a demand for this service,
we can attract more drivers and entrepreneurs
to provide an even better
level of service for the employees
that need to travel to and from this
community,” said Grimm-Lyon.
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed
Bastian recent takeaway
comments on CNN
-He is not in favor of federal mandates for Covid
testing on all flights.
-Delta starting Covid vaccines in Atlanta for
those over 65.
-There are no plans for employee furloughs.
-Middle seats on flights will remain unsold
for the next 90 days.