EAST ELMHURST —Rebranding the Q70 bus will cost an extra $817,000 this year, according to MTA officials.
The "LaGuardia Link" bus will have a new design and will also be part of the Select Bus Service system to make it easier for travelers to hop on at stops before the airport — which officials have said are necessary to distinguish it from other buses as part of a rebranding to boost ridership on the bus, which lagged behind other LaGuardia routes.
The new branding and conversion to SBS will cost an extra $117,000 in yearly operating costs — $870,000 annually instead of the current $753,000 — as well as a one-time $700,000 expenditure to install the SBS machines, which allow riders to pay at the curb, along with other changes, officials said.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo first announced the change last week along with a "groundbreaking" on a major overhaul of LaGuardia Airport.
The cost of the bus fixes, which should begin in September, was announced at this week's MTA board meeting.
