Bus service on 16 local routes is set to increase next week, part of a package of improvements meant to augment increased bus speeds due to congestion pricing, Gov. Hochul’s office told the Daily News.
“Nearly six months [into congestion pricing], traffic is down, buses are moving faster, and business is booming across New York City,” Hochul said. “It’s also brought more riders back to transit — with subway and bus ridership on the rise this year.”
The MTA has already increased service on eight key express routes heading into Midtown. Next week’s improvements are meant to speed up travel within the boroughs on lines with particularly high ridership.
“With bus ridership steadily increasing due to the start of congestion relief, enhancing service on 16 local routes makes it easier for New Yorkers to have fast, frequent and reliable bus service whenever they need it,” NYC Transit President Demetrius Crichlow said in a statement. “These routes are a vital lifeline for many people who don’t live close to subway stations.”
According to an internal MTA summary of the plan reviewed by The News, the transit agency is supplementing its bus fleet with 29 refurbished vehicles in order to meet the increased schedule frequency.
“For local bus routes, 16 local bus routes … were identified for frequency and/or running time adjustments where utilization is high and/or on routes that have reliability issues,” the summary reads.
In Brooklyn, the service increases will be seen on the B17, B26, B74 and B103.
In the Bronx, frequency will go up on the Bx10, Bx17, Bx23 and the Bx28/38.
Queens, the most bus-reliant borough, will see improvements on six routes — the Q13, Q28, Q35, Q43, Q66 and Q69.
Two Staten Island lines, the S46/96 and the S79 SBS, will also get additional service.
The MTA estimates the uptick in service will cost $6.6 million per year, on top of $5 million already spent refurbishing the 29 previously mothballed buses.
