WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JUNE 13, 2019 5
Fresh Pond bus lane
to increase mobility TWO GOOD
From left to right: Jason Banrey, DOT Queens deputy commissioner; RPOCA
President Geoff rey Elkind; Kyle Gebhart, DOT project manager of transit
development; Ryan Cuff e, DOT community associate; and Matt Kroll,
transportation planner for the MTA. Photo by Jessica Militello
BY JESSICA MILITELLO
EDITORIAL@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
Plans for the creation of a bus
lane along Fresh Pond Road in
Ridgewood topped the agenda at
the Ridgewood Property Owners and
Civic Association (RPOCA) meeting on
June 6 at the Ridgewood Older Adult
Center.
Representatives from the city’s
Department of Transportation (DOT)
— including Jason Banrey, DOT Queens
deputy borough commissioner, Kyle
Gebhart, DOT project manager of
transit development and Ryan Cuff e,
DOT community associate — along with
Matt Kroll of the MTA detailed plans for
the bus lane between Metropolitan and
Putnam avenues. Mayor Bill de Blasio
fi rst announced the proposal as part of
the Better Buses Action Plan unveiled
in April.
Gebhart explained that Fresh Pond
Road was specifically chosen after
studies discovered signifi cantly slower
bus speeds in the area.
“The mayor has been talking a lot
about ways to speed up buses,” said
Gebhart. “And the DOT along with
the MTA have been looking at slow bus
feed segments. We see buses operate at
about 3 mph in the Fresh Pond Road
segment, which is slower than walking.
There’s a goal set out to speed up buses
by 25 percent by the end of 2020.”
Fresh Pond Road is one of the 24
priority projects throughout the
fi ve boroughs that the city and MTA
identifi ed in the Better Buses Action
Plan to increase bus speed. Studies
from the DOT showed that buses are
oft en the slowest between 1 and 7 p.m.,
which coincides with the same time
frame when ridership is the highest,
between 2 and 8 p.m. This is an issue
that aff ects residents whether they are
riding the bus, driving in the area or
parking nearby.
The DOT has been in talks to
implement metered spaces in lieu of
alternate side parking to continue to
clear up the area. RPOCA members
expressed some concerns at losing
parking spaces in the neighborhood
because of this change, but Banrey
assured they are working toward a
solution that will be best for residents.
The DOT and the MTA claim that they
have been working diligently with the
community to zero in on solutions to
clear up congestion in the area, starting
with an express bus lane, as well as
getting feedback from residents and
businesses along the busy road.
“This project aims at increasing your
mobility, addressing the congestion
and making sure that you can traverse
the commercial corridor safely,” said
Banrey. “There are other components
of the project that we’re also going to be
talking about in tradeoff s when it comes
to increasing mobility.”
Since the Better Buses Action Plan
has been implemented, the DOT and the
MTA have performed several studies
and surveys pertaining to parking in
the area, double parking, businesses
and how well they are able to receive
their deliveries. The groups have been
reaching out to local community groups
like the RPOCA to continue to improve
their eff orts in order to make the result
one that works for everyone.
“We want to make sure we’re
proposing something that will work,”
said Gebhart. “We’ve seen good results
when we’ve done this elsewhere. On
Fulton Street last year we put in
curbside bus lanes and we’ve been
monitoring the bus speeds. We’ve seen
22 to 31 percent increase in bus speed, so
it’s a treatment that we’ve seen work.”
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Payments received for goods sold do not qualify.
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of Rewards Points under the uChoose Reward® program are administered by Fiserv, Inc., an
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trademark of Fiserv, Inc.
Premier Checking Account: The minimum balance to open is $250. This is a tiered rate account,
the APY for balances $0.01 – $9,999.99 is .10%; $10,000.00 – $24,999.99 is .20%; $25,000.00 –
$49,999.99 is .25%; $50,000.00 or more is .50%. Checking with Interest Account: The minimum
balance to open is $100. This is a tiered rate account, the APY for balances $0.01 – $9,999.99 is
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Each Annual Percentage Yield (APY) set forth above is effective as of 3/15/19 and is subject to
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Ridgewood Savings Bank employees and immediate family members are not eligible to
participate in this offer.
Subject to Terms and Conditions. Program subject to change or discontinuance
without notice.
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