TSTC’s Bus Lanes Are Essential fact sheets are a comprehensive breakdown of the city’s bus improvement projects, an analysis of bus routes that would improve as a result, and the benefits to essential workers. Buses are essential, and now more than ever we need an improved bus network to help our city’s most vital workers get to and from work reliably every day.

COVID-19 has fundamentally shifted the way we live and forced us to reevaluate our priorities as a society. Throughout the pandemic and for the first time in history, New York City buses have consistently reported higher ridership numbers than the subway. A primary reason is the sheer number of essential workers who commute by bus; these essential workers make up 30 percent of all bus riders. However, as the city reopens and automobile traffic nears pre-pandemic levels, most New Yorkers will still continue to rely on mass transit. 

Building on the success of the 14th Street Busway and growing awareness of the need to provide high-quality service to our city’s essential workers, New York City has proposed new bus lanes and busways in each of the five boroughs. These projects are vital to improving bus speeds and performance, which help connect communities and people to social and economic opportunities and create an equitable and modern transit system serving the entire city. 

This summer, NYC Department of Transportation plans to add 20 miles of bus priority improvements that will benefit an estimated 750,000 riders across the city. This plan is a step in the right direction, but it still falls short of the 60 miles of dedicated bus lanes requested by the MTA in June.

The 14th Street Busway, created less than a year ago, already demonstrates the potential of targeted bus priority interventions on congested city streets; traffic is calmer, the neighborhood is more bike and pedestrian-friendly, and businesses have experienced an increase in foot traffic. Most busways offer transit and freight priority, allowing buses and trucks to travel along the entire corridor. For other vehicles, such as taxis and cars, travel through the busway corridor is restricted, but essential local access is typically maintained in some form. The results of the busway demonstrate its effectiveness: quick and reliable bus service bolsters ridership and produces more economic and social benefits to the city.