LGA Term C to JFK Term 1?

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Seaboard92

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Dec 31, 2014
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4,698
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South Carolina
Hey guys.

My mother and grandmother are flying to Europe again in September on Lufthansa.

They booked the nonstop delta flight from CAE to LGA arriving at 9:02 AM. And he Lufthansa A380-800 flight leaving JFK at 4:10 pm.

I had a few question in regards to their travels.

1. Did I leave enough time in their layover (seven hours) for them to comfortably make their transatlantic flight?

2. What is the best way for an 85 year old woman who walks with a walker to make it to JFK with the least amount of walking? She's very mobile and agile but she travels with a walker because her feet tend to swell up when traveling.

3. Public transit Vs shuttle buses and the cost of each(time and money)?

They are happily looking forward to their trip. I will join them a few days into their trip after escorting two PVs to Chicago and on the Joliet Rocket. I'm flying on the Boeing 747-8i.
 
I would recommend taking the Q70 SBS from LaGuardia to the Roosevelt Ave. 74 St Subway Station, then the E from there to Jamaica Center, and then the AirTrain to the terminal. That's $7.75 per person. The whole thing should take around 1h 20m, so so long as their flight comes in roughly on time, they'll have plenty of time to make the connection.

Fortunately, the Q70 stops right in front of the terminals at LGA, so they won't have to walk much at all to the bus. And at Jamaica Center and JFK, they have moving walkways all over the place, so they won't have to do much walking there either. My point is, it will be pretty cheap and easy to get between the two airports, so I'm sure they'll be fine.
 
That's a good way to go, but I offer an alternative...

NYC Airporter is a bit more expensive, $17 per person, but it picks up at Terminal C and drops at all JFK Terminals including one...more money, but no transfer...might be better based on age and walker and hassle of getting metrocard for airtrain and dealing with luggage...

https://www.nycairporter.com/ourservices/laguardiatojfkshuttle/

Time is not a problem either way
 
I would recommend taking the Q70 SBS from LaGuardia to the Roosevelt Ave. 74 St Subway Station, then the E from there to Jamaica Center, and then the AirTrain to the terminal. That's $7.75 per person. The whole thing should take around 1h 20m, so so long as their flight comes in roughly on time, they'll have plenty of time to make the connection.

Fortunately, the Q70 stops right in front of the terminals at LGA, so they won't have to walk much at all to the bus. And at Jamaica Center and JFK, they have moving walkways all over the place, so they won't have to do much walking there either. My point is, it will be pretty cheap and easy to get between the two airports, so I'm sure they'll be fine.
Please do yourself a favor and get off the E at Sutphin Blvd/Archer Ave./JFK Airport station (one station short of Jamaica Center/Parsons Blvd) to go up the elevator or escalator to the above LIRR platform concourse to cross over to the JFK Airtrain Jamaica Station. It really is a very inconvenient long backtracking walk from Jamaica Center/Parsons Blvd to the LIRR/JFK Airtrain Jamaica Station which is adjacent to the Sutphin Blvd E Station..
 
The elevator would be the way to go since it goes from the subway to the level where the airtrain is accessed. I still offer my suggestion, especially if any luggage is involved.
PVD, if I had baggage I would take the course you advise. Getting from the Q70SBS to the E station at Roosevelt Ave./Jackson Heights ain't trivial with bag and baggage either.

I just wanted to correct the patently wrong directions posted regarding the E train before someone actually headed off to Jamaica Center. Clearly that advise was put together by someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory.
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I just wanted to correct the patently wrong directions posted regarding the E train before someone actually headed off to Jamaica Center. Clearly that advise was put together by someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory.
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I have gone from the E to the AirTrain before at Jamaica Center, and it was not bad at all. What is and isn't a hassle or long walk is subjective, so IMO it's a little harsh to say that I gave "patently wrong directions" and that I'm "someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory."
 
I just wanted to correct the patently wrong directions posted regarding the E train before someone actually headed off to Jamaica Center. Clearly that advise was put together by someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory.
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I have gone from the E to the AirTrain before at Jamaica Center, and it was not bad at all. What is and isn't a hassle or long walk is subjective, so IMO it's a little harsh to say that I gave "patently wrong directions" and that I'm "someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory."
Big difference between a 16-year-old and an older woman who uses a walker. Best bet would be to get a cab, Lyft or Uber or use the direct bus service mentioned above. Once again, folks, one of these people is an older woman who uses a walker, plus they'll be carrying luggage. Going up and down steps and transferring between public transit modes seems a big hassle.
 
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Parsons and Archer to Sutphin is a long walk (.4 mi) through a not that nice neighborhood for an 85 yr old. There has been construction on the blocks East of Sutphin on Archer that would make dragging a bag very difficult. What I thought you were suggesting was taking a train towards Jamaica Center, but getting off at Archer/Sutphin. I didn't even consider going further. I worked at Mary Immaculate Hospital in that neighborhood for 11 years and am very familiar with the landscape...
 
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It should be enough time to make the transfer between LGA and JFK barring the apocalypse on the Van Wyck. For an 85-year-old woman with a walker, the best bet is the shuttle option as was mentioned or rideshare/taxi. In this instance, I'd avoid public transit between LGA and JFK.

I just wanted to correct the patently wrong directions posted regarding the E train before someone actually headed off to Jamaica Center. Clearly that advise was put together by someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory.
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I have gone from the E to the AirTrain before at Jamaica Center, and it was not bad at all. What is and isn't a hassle or long walk is subjective, so IMO it's a little harsh to say that I gave "patently wrong directions" and that I'm "someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory."
However, the directions weren't exactly right either. Jamaica Center is one stop too far east as the LIRR/Airtrain station is at Sutphin Boulevard. Right direction, wrong stop. I used to use the bus to Jamaica Center to the subway into Manhattan when I was too cheap to take the LIRR.
 
Best thing done out here in ages was when they moved the terminal of the 25/34 and the 65 from 160th to Sutphin/Archer. LIRR, Airtrain and jury duty without a transfer.
Agreed. Now I'd like them to connect the 17 and 48 into one thru route,( or at least every other 17 due to more trips), for an easier ride to LGA...
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I just wanted to correct the patently wrong directions posted regarding the E train before someone actually headed off to Jamaica Center. Clearly that advise was put together by someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory.
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I have gone from the E to the AirTrain before at Jamaica Center, and it was not bad at all. What is and isn't a hassle or long walk is subjective, so IMO it's a little harsh to say that I gave "patently wrong directions" and that I'm "someone who has either never actually done it, or has a really bad memory."
I was merely giving you benefit of the doubt since I had difficulty believing that anyone would knowingly give those directions to an 85 year old lady with a walker that requires her to walk significantly longer distances than is absolutely necessary. Thanks for clarifying the matter.

Look, before the Archer Ave. Station existed, I had connected from E/F to LIRR Jamaica numerous times from the then E/F now F Sutphin Blvd station. So sure, that can be done too, just involves a longish walk along Sutphin Blvd. But does that make it a reasonable direction today? In my books no. I guess others may have other opinions on the matter.
 
Sorry everyone. I had been looking at Google Maps and mentally merged the Jamaica Station on the AirTrain with Sutphin Blvd into Jamaica Center-Parsons Blvd. Going through Jamaica indeed makes no sense.
 
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The Q17 to Q48 merger would result in an incredibly long run with the horribly congested Main St/Flushing area not as a terminal, but a key transfer point. The bus would never be on time, and would be wildly unreliable for making en-route transfers, also. Right now they are assigned out of 2 different depots, but that can be worked out. I'm not sure the positives outweigh the negatives.
 
As much as I don't want to admit I'm getting older, I remember seeing the tail end of the tearing down of the Jamaica El and the progress on the construction of the Jamaica Center station. Realizing Parsons/Archer opened back in 1988 is suddenly making me feel old.
 
The main branch of the library in Queens was on Parsons between Hillside and Jamaica, it was a huge deal when it moved to Merrick across from the bus terminal. That meant taking the 17 instead of the 25/34. Old main library later became Family Court, that building was expanded, now it(the court) is in a new building on Jamaica Ave. right near the Jamaica Center subway stop. Mary Immaculate Hospital - gone Macy's at bus Terminal - gone Gertz/Sterns -gone Mays - gone York College and Social Security are also big new additions since then. I'm going to end my posts with this, we have pretty much killed the actual topic.....
 
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As much as I don't want to admit I'm getting older, I remember seeing the tail end of the tearing down of the Jamaica El and the progress on the construction of the Jamaica Center station. Realizing Parsons/Archer opened back in 1988 is suddenly making me feel old.
Yeah I was barely six years out of Grad School then. I saw its construction begin about the time I was moving from Stony Brook to New Jersey to my brand spanking new job at Bell Labs. That was right in the middle of the early 80s recession when jobs were hard to come by. I was lucky.
 
Thank you guys so much. I think I will make their Airporter reservation tomorrow. I personally would do the transit option if it was me by myself. I'll be leaving out of ORD. My friends tell me take the CTA but I'll take Metra.
 
I've done the transfer countless times via transit. The Sutphin/Archer/JFK Airport station is literally connected to the Jamaica LIRR and Airtrain stations. You just go up and elevator to the LIRR concourse and walk across it to the Airtrain Station. No neighborhoods to walk through. One single ride on the E train. The Q70 SBS is now an express bus from LGA to the Subway. I remember when you had to take the Q33 through all the neighborhoods and it took forever. It's a bit of walk with luggage and a walker, but I see that the OP has already decided on the NYC Airporter option. This is the next best thing for a simple one seat ride between the two airports with luggage.
 
The neighborhood issue came up because a poster accidentally said Jamaica Center instead of Sutphin and Archer/Jamaica Station. That's when it was mentioned that such a routing would entail a long walk through a so-so neighborhood. On the other hand, from the elevator to the airtrain is not a terribly long walk by itself, but for an older person with a walker, a bus to subway to airtrain, and then the walk to the terminal with luggage is probably a bad idea. direct bus terminal to terminal, where they move your luggage makes much more sense.
 
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