Buses will soon get a bit faster in Brooklyn, as work is underway on Flatbush Avenue to speed up the dreadfully slow service for riders there.
“It’s busy. It’s terrible,” said one rider aboard the B41 Limited.
The B41 Limited is supposed to be a reliable way to get to work with fewer stops. But the average speed of the bus? A snail’s pace of just 4 mph.
That’s why officials are looking to make massive changes along the busy thoroughfare. The Flatbush Bus plan extends the first segment of a project that actually began in 2022, which would create bus-only center lanes from Livingston Street to Grand Army Plaza.
The city promised that it will speed up travel for 130,000 daily riders on the six bus routes that use Flatbush Avenue: The B41, B67, B69, B63, B45 and B103. The opening of the bus-only lanes is scheduled for Fall 2026; renderings show the double lanes for buses in the center, with a red-tinted lane going in each direction.
Riders advocates say passengers have complained about slow buses for years.
“We hear the same thing over and over again: Riders are waiting too long to board crowded buses that are stuck in traffic,” said Jolyse Race, of the Riders Alliance.
No matter what, the plans will have to deal with the many complicated intersections of Flatbush Avenue. The city’s transportation commissioner said a goal is to keep disruptions to a minimum on a street that is already jammed much of the time.
“One side of the street at a time, so we can keep it open to general traffic,” said NYC Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn. “There’s a little bit of short term pain for that long term gain.”
Part of the plan involves building islands for bus passengers that would allow them to enter the center zone and board. The city said the design has been used elsewhere in the city, like on 161st Street in the Bronx, where bus speeds have since increased about 20%.
