BY ALIYA SCHNEIDER
The summer 2022 Bronx
MTA bus redesign plan has
picked up speed, although
some routes and express buses
won’t be touched until later on.
As part of the proposal, 14
Bronx routes will change, two
will be added, and others will
have scheduling changes or
stops removed.
The Bronx bus network
hasn’t changed substantially
in decades, with some lines
still based on trolley lanes
and speeds among the slowest
in the United States at less
than 7 mph at peak times, according
to Dorian Statom, Bus
Network Redesign director.
A draft plan for Bronx buses
was released in May 2019, and
a would-be fi nal plan was published
that October. After a
February 2020 public hearing,
the initiative came to a halt
when the COVID-19 pandemic
hit the following month.
The initiative, which
sprung back into action in
August, now focuses on local
buses, even though the 2019
proposal included express
ones. The express plans were
put on hold because of community
input, according to the
MTA.
“The Bronx express bus
network will remain the same
and we will be taking up our
redesign efforts after the local
bus network redesigns happen
across the fi ve boroughs,” said
Craig Cipriano, interim president
of New York City Transit,
at a presentation Tuesday.
Karina Hammer, a Fordham
Hill Oval resident, told
the agency it should focus on
express buses, as she feels
safer on them than subways
and thinks local buses take
too long. “Please stop messing
with our service and let
us keep what we need and deserve,”
she said.
Cipriano said in a Sept. 13
meeting that citywide bus improvements
— like bus lane
additions, which have been
underway, and other mechanisms
that speed up service
— and redesigns must be complete
by 2026. The projection is
fi ve years later than an earlier
MTA plan to begin the Bronx
redesign in 2018 and fi nish all
borough networks by 2021.
A draft plan for Queens was
released in December 2019, and
the existing conditions report,
which was the fi rst step for the
Bronx plan in February 2019,
was released in February 2020
for Brooklyn. The Staten Island
We’ve got plans
to get and keep
you healthy.
We go beyond to keep New York healthy with coverage that
includes one-on-one support, no cost check-ups and top doctors.
Find a plan that’s right for you at
emblemhealth.com/bronxtimes.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, N 10 OV. 12-18, 2021 BTR
express bus redesign was
completed in 2018.
As for what has changed
since the Bronx project paused,
the MTA withdrew proposed
Bx28 and Bx34 routes that received
pushback, so the routes
will not change, project representatives
said Tuesday.
The other key difference is
a delay.
The Bx6 Select Bus Service
(SBS), Bx5 and Bx6 changes
will not be implemented with
the other local buses in 2022,
but instead in 2023, when MetroCards
are gone and the new
OMNY contactless fare system
is fully developed, to avoid installing
fare machines that
would only be used for one
year.
Three other bus routes will
be extended under the proposal,
with the Bx11 going to
Parkchester, the Bx18 to High
Bridge and the Bx35 to West
Farms.
Two new routes are also
part of the plan. The Bx25 will
connect Northern Co-op City
to Bedford Park, and the M125
will replace the southern portion
of the Bx15 that runs along
125 Street in Manhattan and to
the Hub via Willis Avenue.
To balance space between
stops, 400 stops will be removed
from the Bronx and upper
Manhattan, saving 20 seconds
each. The average space
between bus stops is 805 feet in
New York City, while it is 1,030
feet in other major American
cities, according to the MTA.
In the Bronx, the average is 882
feet.
Farrah Rubin, who attended
Tuesday’s presentation
on behalf of Councilman Mark
Gjonaj, a Bronx Democrat,
spoke against removing three
Bx29 stops in City Island, saying
seniors have limited transportation
options.
Several Bronxites expressed
their opinions on the
proposed changes, and the authority
is still accepting feedback
online.
The MTA’s 21-member
board will vote on the plan in
its fi nal form in December, determining
the fate of the summer
launch.
“We will continue to monitor
the project through and
after implementation, and accept
feedback continuously,”
an MTA spokesman told the
Bronx Times.
The proposed changes can
be seen for each bus at new.
mta.info/bronxbusredesign/
routes.
The MTA board will vote on a local Bronx bus network redesign in December.
Photo Pablo D. Castillo Jr.
Bronx bus redesign back
on track, with some delays
/bronxtimes
