Outgoing transit chief Andy Byford with the agency’s acting head of buses Craig Cipriano (right). Photo by MTA NYC Transit / Marc Hermann
Bus plan imperiled
Train daddy’s departure endangers Brooklyn bus redesign: advocates
COURIER LIFE, JAN. 31-FEB. 6, 2020 5
BY KEVIN DUGGAN
Andy Byford — the city’s
top transit honcho — announced
his impending resignation
on Jan. 23, leaving
local public-transportation
advocates fearful about the
fate of an upcoming boroughwide
redesign of Brooklyn’s
bus network, which is now expected
to move forward without
its chief proponent.
“We’re extremely concerned
about every borough
bus redesign,” said Jaqi Cohen,
the campaign director
of Straphangers Campaign.
“For the last 50 years, buses
hadn’t been made a priority.
Andy was the fi rst to champion
such change and the
plans really took root under
him.”
Byford will offi cially leave
his post as President of the
Metropolitan Transportation
Authority’s New York City division
on Feb. 21, but the redesign
of Kings County’s busses
only just got rolling — and its
success now hinges on his yetunannounced
successor, according
to Cohen.
“It’s very contingent on
who is at the helm and leading
this endeavor,” she said. “The
improvements could be up for
renegotiation.”
The ball is now in Governor
Andrew Cuomo’s court to
ensure the successful completion
of the various improvements
that the transportation
guru set in motion — including
the bus redesign, according
to another advocate.
“The bus redesign is incredibly
important for Brooklyn,
which has some of the oldest
routes dating back to 19th-century
trolley lines,” said Danny
Pearlstein, a spokesman for
the group Riders Alliance.
“The Governor has to be held
accountable that the plan unfolds.
He’s on the hook for the
plans.”
Offi cials launched the
sweeping bus overhaul in
October to redesign the borough’s
63 local and nine express
bus lines over the coming
year — which came as part
of Byford’s Fast Forward plan
to modernize the city’s ailing
public transportation.
The agency hosted several
public input sessions around
the borough, and plans to release
a report on the Brooklyn
bus system’s existing conditions
by the end of March —
before developing their redesign
scheme by the end of the
year.
Among other priorities expected
to be addressed, planners
want to expand bus priority
lanes, modify routes to
meet today’s needs by cutting
redundant routes and simplifying
circuitous lines, and improve
off-peak service.
The push comes as ridership
has dropped 10-percent
and 14-percent since 2016 for
express and local buses, respectively.
The average vehicle speeds
also ailes at a sluggish 7.7
miles-per-hour, according to
the agency.
Other borough bus redesigns
have drawn heated
criticism from residents and
politicians — such as the neighboring
Queens revamp, where
local lawmakers slammed the
agency’s plans for cutting service
in transit-poor sections of
the borough.
In Brooklyn, cuts made to
the B38, B54, and the B46 —
the borough’s busiest route
— have already led to demonstrations
from angry straphangers
ahead of the revamp.
Lisa Daglian, the executive
director of the Permanent
Citizens Advisory Committee
to the MTA, said she was confi
dent that the Authority’s acting
head of buses, Craig Cipriano,
will continue with the
bus revamp — but said that offi
cials have to keep the public
involved along the way.
“As far as we know, everything
points at all systems go,”
said Daglian. “We’re looking
to keep our eye on that the redesigns
go forward with as
much public involvement as
possible.”
Daglian and the other advocates
said they will keep a
close eye on who the agency
appoints to replace Byford —
noting that his successor will
have big shoes to fi ll.
BY JESSICA PARKS
Brooklynites looking to
live on a budget should head
south to Canarsie, which
boasts the cheapest rents of
any neighborhood in Kings
County, according to one recent
study.
With the average one-bedroom
going for $1,500 permonth,
and two-bedrooms
for $1,900, Canarsie ranks
as the most affordable area
in the borough, according
to the real estate fi rm Propertynest
— which compared
2019 rental averages using
data compiled from their own
listings and other apartment
search platforms.
Canarise’s sweet deals
fell well below the 2019 average
rent across all of Brooklyn
— where renters cough
up $2,208 and $2,805 monthly
for a one- and two-bedroom,
respectively, according to the
report.
East New York, which
borders Canarsie, fi nished in
a close second for the affordability
title, while Brownsville,
Bensonhurst, and Mill
Basin fi lled out the remaining
top spots on Propertynest’s
cheap list.
Predictably, a quintet of
bourgie northern Brooklyn
neighborhoods topped
the rankings as the most expensive
places to rent, but
Dumbo took the crown — demanding
a monthly average
of $4,450 for a one-bedroom
and $6,180 for a two-bedroom
from would-be residents.
Canarsie boasts boro’s lowest rents
A two-family residential building
in Canarsie. Photo by Kevin Duggan