Bus Rapid Transit
Streetsblog Basics
Brooklyn CB 15 Asks Whether Safer Streets Are Worth 100,000 Sneezes
If you ever need a laugh but don't feel like shelling out for the two-drink minimum, you could do worse than head over to a Brooklyn CB 15 meeting. At an info session last night about plans for Brooklyn's inaugural rapid bus line, the first question out of the audience was, "How many parking spots are we going to lose in Community Board 15?" The evening spiraled into absurdity from there.
May 18, 2010
CB 6 Votes Conditionally for East Side SBS, Endorses Better Bike Lanes
Prospects for safer cycling on the east side of Midtown got a boost last night, as Manhattan Community Board 6 strengthened its support for uninterrupted bike lanes as part of NYCDOT and the MTA's redesign of First and Second Avenues.
May 13, 2010
Dysfunction Rules at CB 6 Discussion of Select Bus Service
Last night's meeting of Manhattan Community Board 6's transportation committee was a reminder of how opaque and undemocratic New York City's public review process can be, at its worst. Between a mismanaged meeting that descended into chaos and a parade of NIMBYs who ensured that neither plans for First and Second Avenues nor for 34th Street could be discussed on the merits, it's hard to see how last night's proceedings contributed to an informed discourse about New York City's transportation needs.
May 4, 2010
A More Democratic Use of Space on 34th Street
This graphic tells you all you need to know about the rationale behind DOT's plans for 34th Street, which are getting some play today in the Times and on Gothamist. DOT displayed it prominently at Wednesday's info session about the project.
April 23, 2010
MTA Committed to October Launch Date for East Side Select Bus Service
Two months after the MTA and NYCDOT first presented East Side Select Bus Service to Manhattan Community Board 6, officials were back with a modified plan last night, hoping to get a vote from the transportation committee. After a combative couple of hours, they didn't get one. The committee chose to put off a vote until its next meeting rather than come to a decision. The big news to emerge was the announcement of a specific launch date for the first phase of Select Bus Service on the corridor.
April 6, 2010
Do Bus Cams Cost Too Much? Actually, They Pay for Themselves
We have yet to get an official reply from the state Assembly about why bus lane cameras were not included in their budget proposal last week, but the excuse that's floating around is that camera enforcement just costs too darn much. That's what Assembly member Jim Brennan said in a constituent letter, and one reader reports getting a similar message from Assembly member Denny Farrell's office. (The powerful Farrell chairs the ways and means committee, which held the only vote on the Assembly's bus cam-free budget resolution before it reached the full floor.)
March 30, 2010
Jim Brennan on Bus Cam Rejection: NYC “Irrationally Expanding” Bus Lanes
Thanks to reader Geck for sending along this email from Brooklyn Assembly member Jim Brennan, who was replying to a question about the rejection of bus lane cameras in the Assembly's draft budget. The district that Brennan represents doesn't include any bus lanes, existing or proposed. That didn't stop him from offering this excuse:
March 26, 2010
Better Bus Service in Jeopardy Thanks to Shelly Silver and Assembly Dems
Chances to improve service on New York City's dedicated bus lanes appeared to narrow yesterday, when Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and his Democratic conference rejected bus lane enforcement cameras in the chamber's draft budget. Camera enforcement is one of the linchpins in the city's strategy to put the "rapid" in Bus Rapid Transit. Without it, bus riders will remain stymied by traffic, even on Select Bus Service routes.
March 25, 2010
Silver, Assembly Dems Reject Better NYC Bus Service
Sheldon Silver's office just announced the outlines of the Assembly's budget resolution. On a day when transit riders saw subway and bus cuts start to loom a whole lot closer, the speaker and his conference have piled on. Here's the final line item under "Metropolitan Transportation Authority" in the summary of the Assembly's budget [PDF]:
March 24, 2010
State Senate Undermines Better Enforcement for New Bus Lanes
The New York State Senate has proposed diluting the bus lane enforcement provisions in the governor's draft budget, a maneuver that threatens the effectiveness of new corridors in the city's fledgling rapid bus network.
March 24, 2010