While it falls short of a more ambitious proposal pitched by the MTA recently, a new plan to expand bus priority on the streets of New York City would mark a significant expansion of a trend that started on 14th Street in Manhattan.
"Mayor de Blasio says he’ll create 20 miles of car-free busways and dedicated bus lanes across the city, starting this month — and make the successful 14th Street busway permanent," reports Gersh Kuntzman.
The total mileage falls short of the 60 miles of bus lanes and busways requested recently by the MTA, "but it's a start," according to Kuntzman.
The first new addition will be a busway on Main Street between Sanford and Northern Boulevard in Flushing. Car-free stretches of 1) Jamaica Avenue from Sutphin Boulevard to 168th Street; 2) Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, from 57th to 34th streets; 3) Jay Street in Brooklyn, from Fulton to Tillary streets; and 4) E. 181st St. in Manhattan, from Amsterdam Avenue to Broadway will follow, adding up to 3.5 miles of car-free streets.
Bus lanes will be added on 16.5 miles of streets: 1) 14th Street between First Avenue and Avenue C; 2) 149th Street in the Bronx from Southern Boulevard to River Avenue, 3) Merrick Boulevard in Queens from Hillside Avenue to Springfield Boulevard, and 4) Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island from Lincoln Avenue to Nelson Avenue.
More on the decision-making process and the response of a few advocacy organizations is included in the article.
FULL STORY: Mayor Creates More Busways — And Makes 14th Street Permanently Car-Free
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Journal of the American Planning Association