Brooklyn, Y – B44 Bus Route Gets Federal Stimulus Money For New Initiative

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    Select Bus Service at the East Fordham Road and Valetine Avenue in The Bronx, the same SBS will be implemented in parts of Brooklyn. Photo by Theodora Ravago/NYC Department of TransportationAn infusion of federal stimulus dollars could provide the jolt to get the Nostrand Avenue Select Bus Service (SBS) project jump-started.

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    That after the Obama administration’s 2011 budget included $28 million for the proposed SBS along the Nostrand Avenue corridor,

    Currently, the B44 crawls throughout Brooklyn on Nostrand Avenue from north to south including such neighborhoods as Sheepshead Bay, Midwood, Flatbush, Crown Heights, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Williamsburg.

    The city Department of Transportation (DOT) and MTA New York City Transit (NYCT) have been planning the SBS for some time in hopes of rolling it out by 2012.

    Bus Rapid Transit is currently used around the world to provide reliable transit service in an affordable and cost-effective manner, officials say.

    In order for the service to be implemented, several street enhancements would be needed including dedicated lanes for buses, off-board fare collection, signal improvements, and higher capacity buses.

    According to DOT studies, SBS buses currently operating on the Bx12 route in the Bronx now run over 20 percent faster than the Limited stop buses they replaced and are attracting close to 5,000 additional daily riders.

    The $28 million in federal money will pay for more than half of the estimated $40 million project, not including the cost of the new buses NYCT will procure for the SBS route.

    Before rolling out the plan and starting work, the DOT in December established a Community Advisory Committee (CAC), which is intended to allow DOT and MTA reps to discuss the plan with community residents.

    At he December meeting, residents complained that the implementation of a SBS service would take away valuable parking spaces.

    They also protested that the new service would take away a few stops, forcing the elderly to walk several blocks to catch the bus.

    DOT and MTA reps said the locations of the SBS bus stops have yet to be finalized.

    For photos and videos of what the new B44 system could look like, visit www.nyc.gov/brt.


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    8 Comments
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    Charlie Hall
    Charlie Hall
    14 years ago

    The Select Bus Service on the Bx12 helps a little. But just a little. There is just too much traffic for buses to handle without a guaranteed right of way. A subway extension is really required.

    willy
    willy
    14 years ago

    Cab any1 explain what is SBS, I heard of BS,,

    mm
    mm
    14 years ago

    the smartest thing they could do for any bus route is to eliminates stops. there is absolutley no reason why a bus need to stop 2 small street block from e/o
    or even every ave. block like on coney island, nost, ocean…
    the eldery use access a ride

    GilaB
    GilaB
    14 years ago

    SBS is a system by which people pay at machines in the bus stop, before getting on, so that the bus doesn’t have to sit there while a whole line of people deal with the Metrocard machine or rummage around for change. Each passenger gets a receipt when paying, which you can be asked to show by an undercover bus inspector, who can ticket you if you don’t have it. The bus also ‘runs express’ (although it’s not an express bus), skipping some stops.

    I agree with Charlie that while this helps a bit, the only real solution is to give the buses their own lanes, so they don’t have to deal with all of the traffic, double-parked cars, etc.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    did anyone else notice the previous story about the payroll taxes being raised to help the MTA? Why are we using money for this when the city can’t pay for basics? Is anyone else tired of the government pulling more and more out of our pockets and then deciding to waste it on projects like this that are very nice to have but not necessary when there is no money for the things the city really needs?

    MTA Bus Dispacher
    MTA Bus Dispacher
    14 years ago

    ABS has a dedicated lane with zero tolerance during rush hrs, As someone that has dispatched SBS on the Bx 12 I can tell you that it works, as far as farebeaters, we have a special unit of retired NYPD that does nothing except ride this line and they more that pay for themselves, with the fines that they get