Routes

79th Street Select Bus Service

M79 Select Bus Service began on May 21, 2017

Overview | Community Outreach and Reports

Overview

79th  Street Select Bus Service

The M79 runs crosstown from Riverside Drive to East End Avenue along 79th Street and carries over 14,500 passengers per day. The M79 connects to 16 different bus routes including the M15 SBS and serves as a crucial connection to the 1, 6, B, C subway trains.

Select Bus Service (SBS) projects across the city have helped reduce time spent waiting for the bus, boarding the bus, and traveling. With 18,000 daily passengers, over only approximately three miles, the M79 is an important crosstown route that connects riders to multiple subway and bus routes, neighborhoods, schools, and job centers.

SBS routes operate in every borough, with a total of eleven routes citywide. SBS improvements are customized for each SBS corridor, depending on the needs of the route. The benefits of SBS can include the following:

  • Faster boarding with off-board fare payment and the ability to board the bus through any door
  • Faster, more reliable bus service with dedicated bus lanes to avoid congestion
  • A more comfortable wait with improved bus shelters and benches
  • Less time waiting at traffic lights with signal priority for buses (Transit Signal Priority)
  • Know when the next bus is coming with real-time information displays
  • Get directions at bus stops with neighborhood map displays
  • Safer streets and crossings with high-visibility crosswalks, improved medians, and reconfigured intersections

Together, these improvements have made for faster, more reliable, and more comfortable bus service throughout the city.

Community Outreach and Reports

The M79 SBS Progress Report is an evaluation of the M79 SBS project a year after implementation. The report shows up to a 9% increase in ridership, 8% improvement in bus travel times, 4-8% improvement in general traffic travel times, and a 19% reduction in total crashes along the corridor. Download the M79 SBS Progress Report 2020 (pdf)

November 13, 2018: Presentation to Manhattan Community Board 7 Download the presentation (pdf)

November 7, 2018: Presentation to Manhattan Community Board 8 Download the presentation (pdf)

March 22, 2017: Presentation to Manhattan Community Board 7 Download the presentation (pdf)

March 1, 2017: Presentation to Manhattan Community Board 8 Download the presentation (pdf)

October 5, 2016: Presentation to Manhattan Community Board 8 Download the presentation (pdf)

October 6, 2016: Presentation to Manhattan Community Board 7 Download the presentation (pdf)