David Bros Car Service

TAKE THE TRAIN! Do yourself a big favor unless you want to feel your gut ripped out from within like you just rode a 1000-​ft rollercoaster — for a day. They haven’t changed the shocks on their vehicles since last century.

I’ve never in my whole entire life encountered such rude, aggressive and unprofessional customer service. Absolutely shocking.

Soooo, I’ve been using them for years as one of the only local cab companies… They suck nuts.
They ignore reservations and pile the cars with as many people as possible.
If you order a private car they will arrive with 3 people already in the car and tell you they are busy.
If you tell them you have a baby and need a private car they still blow you off and treat you like crap.
So expect the worst and then even worse.
Über wins.

The RUDEST driver I have ever encountered. I had no choice but to use David’s to shuttle from Touro College in Bay Shore to the Fire Island Ferries one weekend when the other lots were full. I had the same driver both ways unfortunately. He was rude and started blatantly YELLING at customers/​riders on the way over to the Ferry about them loading onto the bus before receiving their change for payment (it’s $ 5 for the shuttle each way in addition to the $ 20 daily parking fee.) On the way back from the ferry at the end of my weekend, he asked if he could drop me at the gate of Touro and not in the parking lot because it would be easier for him! I had already paid my fare and he knew I had 3 bags, plus a beach chair and I’m 4 months pregnant! Then when I asked him to please drop me at the point where I was loaded on in the first place (inside the college gates) he said «Jesus you don’t have to be so rude about it.» I wasn’t rude. I simply said that it wasn’t ok to be dropped at the gate. Unreal. I will also be calling to lodge a complaint. He has a very red face and drives bus # 800.

Total scum taxi service. God forbid you go at a peak time– $ 27 to be sandwiched into a sweat box of a van with 13 other passengers from Bay shore to NYC. Secondly, if they don’t have enough people they will cancel your van, leaving you out to dry less than an hour before you need to be picked up from the ferry. Total cash grab — plan your travels around them and avoid at all costs. Would rate ⁰⁄₅ if possible.

I was very worried that the simple process of getting from the ferry Station in Bay Shore to the train station would not be a nightmare, but luckily David Brothers drives a shuttle that burns widows’ tears on a road paved with broken promises. The shuttle was populated by some choice personalities. The driver seemed to think road signs were friendly suggestions, and his main job was to count his money, for which actually driving the shuttle was a frustrating distraction. He had an assistant, some gruff bro whose job was to bully passengers into paying more money for a trip that should have taken five minutes, but instead took the same amount of time it takes a hiker to saw off his arm while trapped under a boulder. Only this ride was less pleasant than that. Thankfully, we did eventually pull up to the train station, the friendly assistant indignantly told us would make our train a final, condescending time, and we watched our train pull out of the station without us.

Wow what a horrible experience. Could Joan be ruder? She confirmed a car and when it was late and we followed up hung up on us twice. She promised a car in 10 mins. Never called to say it would be late. Despite numerous calls the car didn’t arrive for over 50 min and we nearly missed a ferry. Thanks for trying to share your unhappiness with us.

I am a Manhattan resident who lives on the UES between 1^st and 2^nd Aves. David Brothers is the most convenient way for me to get home from Fire Island, and most of the time it’s the most convenient way for me to get from they city to the ferry, too. That’s why it’s very disappointing that dealing with this company is so incredibly painful.
It should be noted that David Brothers has a monopoly on taxi service into the FI Ferry terminals. Patrons don’t have any other choice for van service to/​from NYC/​Bay Shore. That said, it doesn’t mean we need to tolerate their disrespectful behavior.
For starters, David Brothers dispatch team has zero sense of what it means to provide a good customer service experience. This summer alone, they have canceled 3 vans on me with minimal notice.
The first time it happened luckily didn’t have too much of an impact on me.
The second time it happened was the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. I called in the morning to book a van at a certain time because I needed to make a specific ferry in order to attend festivities island side. I flat out asked at the time of making the reservation «is there any chance this van is going to get canceled? i’m going to be working for the next 3 hours and need to head straight to Fire Island after that.» I was told no, it would not be canceled. Lo and behold, upon finishing working, I discovered a voicemail from David Brothers telling me my van had been canceled. I called them to complain and the husky woman on the phone said, «can’t you just take the next ferry?». UM NO. I booked that van for a reason thank you very much.
The third time my van was canceled was the Mon of Memorial Day weekend, to go from Bay Shore back into the city with 2 friends of mine. Again, we inquired about cancelation possibilities when making the reservation. Again, we were told the van would not be canceled. As I was sitting on the dock in Ocean Beach enjoying the lovely sunset, I got the call that my van was canceled and that there was room for me on the next immediate van but I’d have to get on the ferry RIGHT NOW. As in, the ferry was literally at the dock waiting to depart. I had to run like a maniac to get on the boat.
Fast forward to this past Sun. I had a 1pm reservation on David Brothers from NYC to Bay Shore. Note that when the vans are actually operating on time (infrequent), they are in their designated pick up spots way before the reservation time. At 12:50, while waiting on the correct corner, I called to inquire where the van was. I got the husky woman on the phone who first tries to tell me I was on the wrong corner [I wasn’t] and then says «it’s only 12:50, it’ll be there.» No offer to contact the driver, nothing. At 1pm, still no van, so I called again. I got a sweeter girl on the phone who put me on hold, assumedly contacted the driver, and then got back on and told me the driver was almost there. I spotted the bus, said thank you, hung up, and picked up my bags. The bus went right past me. 5 minutes later, another bus passed me. I called back AGAIN and got the same girl on the phone, told her the situation, and asked could she please contact the driver to figure out what’s going on? She put me on hold for 5 minutes, then told me the driver is coming back for me, she just had to finish dropping her people off [people who had come from Fire Island].
I was finally picked up at 1:25 with 6 people on the van who still need to be dropped off in manhattan. The driver turned them around to come back and pick me up 20 minutes after she passed me. They might have been more disgruntled than me. I called dispatch to tell her what happened, and she was no longer sweet. Her response was «I don’t know what you want me to do, there isn’t anyone else in the city to pick you up.» I told her I didn’t need someone else to pick me up, as I was already in the bus, but that I would like for them to DO SOMETHING TO SHOW THAT THEY CARED THAT THEY SCREWED UP MY PLANS FOR THE DAY since I was clearly not going to make the 2:30 ferry I was supposed to be on, again for a specific reason. I asked them to comp my fare. She said when I got to Bay Shore, to ask for JoJo (the owner’s son) and that if he saw fit, he would refund my money. and asked for a comped fare as I now will be missing the 230 boat.
Of course when I pulled into Bay Shore, JoJo was no where to be found. The driver, Patty, told me not to pay her and drove off for her next run. While I appreciate the fact that she did right by me, I’m pretty sure that money probably came out of her pocket and not David Brother’s bottom line, which is disgraceful.
David Brothers needs to step up their game and show customers that they are a priority. If they cancel a van, give a voucher for a free ride next time or at least $$$ off the next trip. SOMETHING. ANYTHING. Thanks for listening.

This is the only choice (unless you want to walk a mile on unknown industrial roads in the 100+F summer heat) for getting from the Bay Shore LIRR stop to the ferries departing for points on Fire Island.
Yes, it is the only choice, and thus this service completely and totally maximizes its License to Suck. For four bucks (cash only) one way, you get to be packed Tokyo rush hour style into a van that leaves only when it is past capacity. The whole time, get ready to listen to trashy long island girls throwing endless F bombs and shouting that they want to go skinny dipping while their fathers joke that they only want to go skinny dipping with «strange women.»
Next time, I swear to god I’m walking or hitchhiking. Oh wait — there won’t be a next time.

Review of NYC-​Fire Island Ferry service:
In their defense, the vans generally leave on time and stick to the schedule, and they leave with pretty good frequency. Any crowded, packed-​in-​with strangers (and wow, they really do pack you in) van is going to be no barrel of laughs, but they get you where you need to be, the drivers know the route, and they’re pretty efficient.
That said, a couple of things that they could work on that are under their control:
— make sure all seats have functioning seatbelts. They shouldn’t be able to charge full fare (or any fare at all, really) if the passenger is unable to buckle in.
— don’t allow people to «reserve» passenger or front row seats — it really should be first come, first serve

Same place as Tommy’s Taxi… prepare to be gouged $ 50 for a 15 minute car or cab ride.