North Hills seeking to hire new shuttle service

Maggie Badore

The Village of North Hills will soon have a new contractor for its Long Island Railroad shuttle service, village officials said at Wednesday’s Board of Trustees meeting.

The Board has decided not to renew the current vendor, Long Island Limousine, due to complaints about signage problems and equipment failures, trustees said. 

There were also problems with vehicles not having air conditioning, Trustee Gail Cohen said during the meeting at Village Hall. 

Deputy Mayor Dennis Sgambati said he had also received complaints about bad smells in the vehicles.

Village of North Hills Mayor Marvin Natiss said the weekday rush-hour shuttle service, which the village started in 2012, helps attract young professionals to the neighborhood, who use it to commute to New York City. 

After sending out requests for proposals in July, the village has narrowed the field to two potential contractors: New Hyde Park-based U.S. Limousine Service and Hicksville-based Silverstar Limo.

“We would like more users, and maybe with better equipment we’ll get more users,” he said. 

Between 700 and 800 residents use the service currently use the shuttle, the trustees said.

Both vendors could provide the village with Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans, which seat up to 17 passengers or 12 to 14 passengers when equipped to accommodate disabled riders. 

But both their prices are above the village’s current expense of $12,000 a month.

Natiss and Sgambati said they will continue to negotiate the price with both potential contractors. 

Several members of the board said providing the best possible service should be the top priority, rather than selecting a vendor based on the lowest cost.

Last night the board also signed a $6,321.16 contract with Albertson Hook and Ladder to provide fire protection for areas of North Village not located in a fire district. 

The new contract is $225.16 higher than the prior year.

The Board will next meet on Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. in Village Hall.

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