NEW YORK (PIX11) – A slew of express and local bus routes will run more frequently by summer, according to the MTA.
First, trips will be added to eight express bus routes during peak morning and evening periods. These new trips will start in the spring. By the summer, 16 local routes will see frequency improvements and running time adjustments.
The improvements are meant to offer more options for commuters traveling into Manhattan after congestion pricing rolls out on Jan. 5, NYCT President Demetrius Crichlow said in a committee meeting Monday.
“This provides more … rides to and from the Central Business District for residents outside of Manhattan,” said NYCT President Demetrius Crichlow.
In November, Hochul announced some of the bus routes slated for improvements, and the MTA identified the remaining routes based on factors like ridership and crowding.
Six of the eight express routes identified were already upgraded last summer but rolled back when Hochul’s original congestion pricing plan was initially paused, according to an MTA staff report.
The local route upgrades will require the MTA to refurbish 29 buses previously scheduled for retirement to return to rotation, necessitating a longer timeline.
Here are the local and express bus routes that will see improvements by summer 2025, according to the MTA:
Express buses:
- BM2 in Brooklyn: 1 Manhattan-bound trip added during AM peak
- BM5 in Brooklyn and Queens: 1 Queens/Brooklyn-bound added during PM peak
- SIM1C on Staten Island: 1 Manhattan-bound trip added during weekday afternoon
- SIM4C on Staten Island: 1 Staten Island-bound added during weekday afternoon
- SIM23 on Staten Island: 1 peak direction trip added during AM and PM peak period
- SIM 24 on Staten Island: 1 peak direction trip added during AM and PM peak period
- X27 Brooklyn: 1 peak direction trip added during AM and PM peak period
- QM15 Queens: 1 peak direction trip added during AM and PM peak period
Local buses:
- B17 in Brooklyn: Run time adjustments
- B26 in Brooklyn-Queens: Frequency increases
- B74 in Brooklyn: Frequency increases
- B103 in Brooklyn: Run time adjustments
- Bx10 in the Bronx: Run time adjustments
- Bx17 in the Bronx: Frequency increases and run time adjustments
- Bx23 in the Bronx: Run time adjustments
- Bx28/Bx38 in the Bronx: Run time adjustments
- Q13 in Queens: Run time adjustments
- Q28 in Queens Run time adjustments
- Q35 in Queens: Run time adjustments
- Q43 in Queens: Frequency increases and run time adjustments
- Q66 in Queens: Frequency increases and run time adjustments
- Q69 in Queens: Run time adjustments
- S46/S96 on Staten Island: Frequency increases and run time adjustments
- S79 SBS on Staten Island, Brooklyn: Frequency increases and run time adjustments
Emily Rahhal is a digital reporter who has covered New York City since 2023 after reporting in Los Angeles for years. She joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of her work here and follow her on Twitter here.
