Buses
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DOT Trims Harlem Bus Plan; Bill Perkins’ Office: “We Are Definitely Pleased”
Congratulations are in order for State Senator Bill Perkins, who has successfully condemned more than 32,000 crosstown bus riders to travel on 125th Street at speeds that are often slower than walking. His pressure to revise a plan for dedicated bus lanes and other measures to prioritize surface transit -- culminating in an "emergency" town hall meeting last Thursday -- resulted in DOT watering down its proposal.
May 29, 2013
Tonight: Speak Up for Better 125th St. Bus Service at Bill Perkins Town Hall
Spurred by transit activists demanding improvements to 125th Street buses that often crawl slower than walking speed, DOT and MTA have been moving forward with a project to improve bus service along the major crosstown corridor. But last month, State Senator Bill Perkins sent DOT a letter [PDF] in which he said Select Bus Service improvements were a "failure" and demanded that "the agency slow down" the process of bringing better service to bus riders on 125th Street.
May 23, 2013
Manhattan CB 6 Urges MTA to Restore Blue Lights to Select Bus Service
Manhattan Community Board 6 has adopted a resolution in support of a state law to bring back flashing blue lights on Select Bus Service buses. The reso also urges the MTA to explore options to restore the lights in lieu of legislative action.
April 17, 2013
125th Street Buses Are Slow, But Fixes Are Moving Too Fast for Bill Perkins
For years, crosstown bus riders on 125th Street -- more than 32,000 per day -- have had to put up with a ride that's slower than walking. After months of planning, fixes are in sight, but State Senator Bill Perkins is objecting to the city's effort to bring faster bus service to Harlem.
April 11, 2013
Let’s Hear More About Transit Policy That NYC’s Next Mayor Can Control
Four of the Democratic mayoral candidates appeared on MSNBC with Chris Hayes Sunday morning, and for a short while the subject turned to transit. About two minutes into this segment, Hayes prompted former City Council member Sal Albanese to discuss his proposal to band together with other mayors to lobby Washington for more transit funding. John Liu, Bill Thompson, and Bill de Blasio then took turns discussing their various ideas for getting the feds and/or Albany to direct more funding to the city's transit system.
March 25, 2013
Ed Koch, 1973: The Bicycle “Must Be Included” in NYC Transpo System
Thanks to reader Peter Frishauf for passing on this 1973 constituent letter he received from Ed Koch, who represented New York's 18th Congressional District at the time. Forty years ago, Koch was putting out a more progressive message on bike policy than what we heard in 2011 from another U.S. Representative who had his eye on Gracie Mansion.
February 1, 2013
This Awards Season, Manhattan Buses Rank as the City’s Worst
Since 2006, Streetsblog has provided red carpet coverage of the annual Pokey and Schleppie awards, given out by the Straphangers Campaign and Transportation Alternatives to the city buses with the slowest average speed and the least reliable service, respectively. This year, Manhattan buses took the crown in both categories.
December 11, 2012
Council Members Call for Countdown Clocks at Bus Shelters
With BusTime set to expand citywide by the end of 2013, after launches in Staten Island, the Bronx and with pilot routes in Brooklyn and Manhattan, City Council members want to bring that technology to the streets -- or more specifically, the bus stop -- and are asking MTA, DOT and bus shelter operator Cemusa to help make it happen.
December 10, 2012
To Speed Up Buses on 125th Street, Double-Parking Problem Must Be Solved
Every day, 32,000 bus riders traverse Manhattan on 125th Street, crossing Harlem at a glacial pace. Improvements are on the way as part of the next round of Select Bus Service improvements, with DOT and the MTA recently holding a second public workshop (PDF) for the project, though the precise changes that bus riders can expect remain to be determined.
December 5, 2012
Why NYC Needs Busways and Traffic Reduction, in Two Pictures
Here's a look at Roosevelt Avenue and 82nd Street in Jackson Heights earlier this afternoon. Streetfilms' Clarence Eckerson says the line to get onto these buses snaked twice as long as what you can see in the frame. Buses were already rolling up full and proceeded to crawl along Roosevelt, in traffic, at walking speed.
October 31, 2012