Better Buses
NYC DOT is committed to working with the MTA and NYPD to improve buses citywide, ensuring that New Yorkers have service that they can depend on. The Better Buses Action Plan is focused on improving bus speeds citywide by 25% and reversing downward bus ridership trends. This will be accomplished through NYC DOT projects using our bus priority toolkit, increased camera and NYPD enforcement of bus lanes, and service management initiatives and bus network redesigns by MTA.
Better Buses Goals
The Better Buses Action Plan includes the following goals:
Bus Priority
- Improve 5 miles of existing bus lanes each year
- Install 10–15 miles of new bus lanes each year
- Pilot up to 2 miles of physically separated bus lanes
- Implement NYC DOT street design projects that benefit 600,000 daily riders each year
Technology
- Add 300 Transit Signal Priority (TSP) intersections per year
Enforcement
- Expand bus lane camera enforcement
- Increased NYPD bus lane enforcement with seven dedicated tow truck teams
Bus Stops
- Evaluate and improve bus stops
Working with the MTA
- Support MTA Bus Network Redesign efforts with borough bus priority plans
- Press for all-door boarding, restarting the SBS program, and other improvements to bus operations
NYC DOT’s Bus Priority Toolkit:
New Bus Lane
Bus lanes separate buses from general traffic, improving speed and reliability. They are typically located along the curb or “offset” from the curb, allowing the curb lane to be utilized for other purposes. Ensuring that bus lanes are not used by others is a challenge in New York City, so enforcement is crucial.
Upgraded Bus Lane
NYC DOT sometimes considers improving bus lanes to make them more effective. This may include extending hours, painting the lanes red, changing curbside lanes to offset lanes, or other measures.
Potential Protected Bus Lane
Surrounding a bus lane with a physical barrier makes it more difficult for other vehicles to illegally use the lane. This may improve the effectiveness of a bus lane where violations are rampant, but must be accompanied by measures that allow access to the curb for emergency vehicles.
Bus Boarders
Bus bulbs are permanent sidewalk extensions at bus stops that provide more space for waiting passengers and allow buses to save time by pulling up to the curb without leaving the travel lane. Durable recycled plastic “bus boarders” serve the same purpose, but do not require capital construction.
Bus Queue Jump Signal
In addition to corridor-wide Transit Signal Priority (TSP) treatments, dedicated bus signal phases are another way to use traffic signals to give buses priority through an intersection. These bus queue jump signals provide buses with a dedicated signal phase that allows them to bypass congested general traffic and get a head start.
Traffic Flow Improvement
Improving the general flow of traffic with signal timing adjustments or improved lane markings can also benefit buses.
Curb Management
Adequate and appropriate truck loading, passenger drop-off, and parking regulations can benefit bus operations by reducing double parking and the illegal use of bus lanes. Effective enforcement is also critical to curb management success.
Pedestrian Safety
Under Vision Zero, the City uses every tool at its disposal to improve the safety of our streets. Bus priority projects such as bus bulbs shorten pedestrian crossings and improve bus operations, and new crosswalks and median refuge islands can improve safety for all pedestrians, including bus riders accessing stops.
Bus Stop Accessibility
In addition to creating safer crossings, bus stops need to be accessible to everyone. This means that nearby sidewalks and pedestrian ramps should be present and in good condition. NYC DOT reviews and updates sidewalks and pedestrians ramps during bus priority projects.
Turn Restrictions
Limiting certain turns is another way that the City can increase safety for all users. In certain projects doing so also allows buses to avoid conflicts and move faster. Turn restrictions also benefit traffic flow.
Busway
Busways prioritize travel for buses and often trucks, with other motorized vehicles limited to local access. This treatment significantly reduces traffic volumes and congestion, improving bus speeds and reliability, while improving safety for all roadway users.
Current Better Buses Projects
Second Avenue, East 59th Street to Houston Street, Manhattan
NYC DOT, in collaboration with MTA, is proposing bus lane and bike lane improvements on Second Avenue from East 59th Street to Houston Street. The proposal aims to improve bus speeds and reliability for the route’s 57,000 daily bus riders and increase capacity for the corridor’s 6,000 daily cyclists. Improvements include shifting the bus lane from its part time curbside location to a 24/7 offset bus lane, widening the existing bike lane, and adding additional pedestrian islands and curb extensions for enhanced pedestrian safety. Second Avenue, East 59th Street to Houston Street - presented to Manhattan Community Board 3 in April 2024 Second Avenue, East 59th Street to Houston Street - presented to Manhattan Community Board 6 in March 2024
Tremont Avenue Bus Priority, Bronx
NYC DOT, in cooperation with MTA, is proposing bus priority improvements on Tremont Avenue in the Bronx to improve travel speed and reliability for nearly 34,000 daily bus riders on the Bronx’s 5th busiest bus route. Tremont Avenue Bus Priority, Bronx - presented to Bronx Community Board 5 in March 2024 Tremont Avenue Bus Priority, Bronx - presented to Bronx Community Board 6 in February 2024 Tremont Avenue Bus Priority, Bronx - Community Advisory Board Meeting 1 in December 2022
Livingston Street Transit Priority Study, Brooklyn
NYC DOT, in cooperation with MTA, has initiated a Transit Priority Study for Livingston Street in Downtown Brooklyn, between Boerum Place and Flatbush Avenue. Livingston Street has been identified as a bus priority corridor in the NYC Streets Plan and MTA's Brooklyn Bus Network Redesign Draft Plan. The study will explore ways to improve bus speeds and safety for pedestrians and other users as they travel along Livingston Street. Livingston Street Protected Bus Lane Regulations - November 2023 Livingston Street Transit Priority Study - presented to Brooklyn Community Board 2 in May 2023 Livingston Street Transit Priority Study, Brooklyn - Community Advisory Board Meeting 2 in May 2023 Livingston Street Transit Priority Study, Brooklyn - Community Advisory Board Meeting 1 in December 2022
Flatbush Avenue Bus Priority, Brooklyn
NYC DOT, in cooperation with MTA, is investigating bus priority and pedestrian safety improvements on Flatbush Avenue between Tillary Street and Avenue V. Flatbush Avenue is one of the future bus priority corridors identified at the NYC/MTA Transit Improvement Summit and is a priority corridor in the NYC Streets Plan, as well as a Vision Zero priority corridor for safety improvements. Informed by a robust community outreach process, the project will explore and implement solutions to improve bus speeds and pedestrian safety. Flatbush Avenue Bus Priority - presented to Brooklyn Community Board 14 Transportation Committee in January 2023 Flatbush Avenue Bus Priority - Community Advisory Board Meeting in November 2022 Flatbush Avenue Bus Priority - presented to Brooklyn Community Board 9 Transportation Committee in September 2022 (pdf) Flatbush Avenue Bus Priority - June 2022 Kickoff Meeting
Fordham Road, Major Deegan Expressway to Boston Road, Bronx
NYC DOT is investigating transit improvements along Fordham Road between the Major Deegan Expressway and Boston Road. Fordham Road is a vital crosstown Bronx corridor. Nine bus routes (Bx9, Bx12 SBS/Local, Bx17, Bx22, Bx34, Bee-Line 60-62 buses) carry 93,700 daily riders, with connections to the A, B/D, 1, 2/5, 4, and 6 subways, and Metro North Harlem, Hudson, & New Haven Lines. In 2008, NYC DOT and MTA launched the first Select Bus Service (SBS) route on the Bx12, which included curbside bus lanes and off board fare payment. Between 2008 and 2014, Bx12 bus speeds and ridership increased. In recent years, bus speeds have declined, which has led to long, unreliable commutes and declining ridership. NYC DOT will evaluate a range of potential design improvements to improve bus speeds and reliability, while also improving curb management and traffic safety.
Fordham Road, Inwood Bus Priority - presented to Bronx Community Board 6 in June 2023 Fordham Road, Inwood Bus Priority - presented to Bronx Community Board 5 in June 2023 Fordham Road, Inwood Bus Priority - presented to Bronx Community Board 11 in June 2023 Fordham Road, Inwood Bus Priority - presented to Bronx Community Board 7 in June 2023 Fordham Road, Inwood Bus Priority - presented to Fordham Road Community Advisory Board in May 2023 Fordham Road, Inwood Bus Priority - presented to Fordham Road Community Advisory Board in March 2022