Changes to Local Service in the Bronx Benefit Bus Speeds, Ridership

Another example of how improving bus service design can benefit transit riders and transit systems emerges in New York City. More such local system redesigns are on the way soon in the Big Apple.

1 minute read

March 3, 2023, 6:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


A New York MTA drives down the straight under elevated train tracks in the Bronx in New York City

quiggyt4 / Shutterstock

The MTA launched redesigned local bus service in the Bronx June 2022. Since then, buses are going faster with more riders on board, according to data shared recently by the New York MTA.

Dave Colon provides more detail on the changes and their results in an article for Streetsblog NYC.

Local buses ran 4 percent faster in the months after the redesign went into effect on the 13 routes the agency re-mapped, while overall speeds also increased borough-wide — by 2 percent on weekdays and 3 percent on weekends, according to the presentation.

Ridership, meanwhile, increased 6 percent after the redesign went into effect, Thompson said. The routes that received the most changes saw the biggest increases.

To revamp the system, according to Colon’s account of the changes,  “the MTA made major changes to 13 of 46 routes, while also tweaking almost every line in the borough by streamlining routes and adding more space between stops, a process known as bus stop balancing.”

The Bronx changes are the first of a series of local bus service changes in the works by the MTA since 2019, adds Colon. Queens will be next, followed by Brooklyn.

Bu system redesigns have become popular since the city of Houston led the way with a redesign of the Metropolitan Transit Authority (Metro) bus system in 2015.

Wednesday, February 22, 2023 in StreetsBlog NYC

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 14, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Front of Walmart store with sign.

Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network

The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.

May 7, 2025 - Inc.

Regeneration of contaminated industrial land used for waste dumping, West Midlands, UK, 2006 .

EPA Awards $267 Million to Clean Up and Reuse Contaminated Sites

The EPA is investing the funds to clean up and redevelop contaminated sites nationwide, supporting economic growth, community revitalization, and environmental restoration.

May 18 - Environmental Protection

Archway made of bikes in Knoxville, Tennessee over Tennessee River.

Knoxville Dedicates $1M to New Greenway

The proposed greenway would run along North Broadway and connect to 125 miles of existing trails.

May 18 - WATE

25mph speed limit sign with digital "Your Speed" sign below it.

Philadelphia Launches ‘Speed Slots’ Traffic Calming Pilot

The project focuses on a 1.4-mile stretch of Lincoln Drive where cars frequently drive above the posted speed limit.

May 18 - WHYY