For the past six weeks, the at the corner of Northern Boulevard and Douglaston Parkway has been a real who dunnit.
"It was the bus stop that served the neighborhood. So, it kind of makes you wonder what they were thinking when they took it down," said Bruce Stuart, a Douglaston resident.
Indeed, many share Stuart's puzzlement as to why this particular bus stop was eliminated.
Some have suggested that it was removed at the request of a few local shop owners who used the bus stop along Northern Boulevard to park their delivery vehicles in between runs.
Other MTA travelers were simply left scratching their heads wondering why the city would have removed a stop at such a busy intersection.
"I've been using that stop for over 26 years and then, all of the sudden, I come here and it's gone, like it never existed," said Douglaston's Anne Crowley as she waited for the Q12 Wednesday at an alternate stop located just east of the missing stop.
But Community Board 11's district manager, Susan Seinfeld, set the record straight.
"From what I've been told, there was basically a miscommunication and DOT removed the wrong stop," she said.
Although Seinfeld wasn't entirely sure at which point in the process that "miscommunication" took place.
Even so, she was able to fill in some much needed background information surrounding the mystery behind the Q12 stop's removal.
"Originally, the Street Furniture Division of the DOT was looking into putting a bus shelter at the Q12 stop located at Douglaston Parkway and Northern. They also planned to remove the bus stop located down the block from Douglaston Parkway at Alameda Avenue," she said.
Unfortunately, something was lost in translation.
"There was a misinterpretation of the original request," said Deirdre Parker, a spokeswoman for the MTA.
However, Parker pointed out that the city is taking the necessary steps to remedy the situation.
"All parties met. Things were clarified and the stop [at Douglaston Parkway and Northern Boulevard] will go back with a bus shelter," Parker said.
Still, she wasn't sure exactly when the stop would be replaced.
"We have begun the paperwork and when it's completed, it will be forwarded to NYC DOT for the next step in the process," she said.
In the meantime, Q12 commuters will just have to wait for the new shelter.
"I have a feeling what's going to happen is that one day soon I'll get a call saying 'the bus stop is back.' But we don't have a definite date yet," Seinfeld said.
Nonetheless, New York City Transit and the Department of Transportation said they are making every effort to expedite the matter.
"We expect it will be handed off to DOT by the end of this week," Parker said.
