Yesterday, city officials rolled out five van services to take over canceled bus routes through Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan. And though New Yorkers are still frothing over the MTA service cuts, those taking the van services say they're generally not bad. One passenger said the $2-a-ride price tag was pretty good, "but I buy a MetroCard, so there’s no point in paying more."

The vans run along the B23, B71, B39, Q74 and Q79 routes from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays, and 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekends. And in an improvement from city buses, passengers can request to be dropped off at any spot along the route. TLC commissioner David Yassky said, "The beauty of this service is that it allows the flexibility of a taxicab married to the reliability of scheduled stops." It also allows for some unprovoked kindness, as "Q47" driver Anthony Henry is offering a 50% of discount to students. He said, "If they have $1, I don’t mind. We’ll take it. They can save their lunch money and pay me back." With a policy like that, who needs student MetroCards?