MTA to offer additional beach service starting Memorial Day weekend

To better accommodate riders headed to area beaches on weekends this summer, the MTA will be offering additional service on several subway and bus lines as the city’s coastal recreation areas open for the season.

Starting this Saturday, Bx12 bus service in the Bronx will be extended to Orchard Beach between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m., with additional buses running on weekends during the summer, the MTA reported.

From Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day, the city’s beaches will be open and have lifeguards on duty from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., according to the NYC Parks and Recreation Department. Swimming will be prohibited when lifeguards are not on duty.

To handle travelers heading to and from Rockaway Beach, the MTA has announced that service on the Rockaway Park S train will be extended from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends from Broad Channel to the Rockaway Boulevard A train station starting on Sunday, June 12.

Starting on Sunday, July 3, service will be increased on the Q35 bus route, which operates between Brooklyn College and Rockaway Park, with more than 35 additional trips on weekends.

In 2015, New York City’s beaches were open on weekends in September after Labor Day, and this has been proposed for 2016 as well, the MTA stated. If that is the case at the end of the summer season this year, extended MTA service will also operate on those weekends.