Report Highlights New Design Concepts for Flatbush Ave. and Northern Blvd.; Arrives Amid Renewed Interest in BRT Citywide Driven by Mayoral Candidates
New York– As the 2025 New York City Mayoral Race brings unprecedented focus on bus service, the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC) released a new report calling for City Hall to implement a Bus Rapid Transit system (BRT) that is up-to-par with international standards. New Yorkers deserve a system that is fast, frequent, reliable, accessible, and easy to use.
The new report, titled BRT for the Boroughs: How the MTA & City Hall can transform your bus ride, comes as debate continues to ensnare bus improvement projects on 34th St and 5th Ave in Manhattan and shortly following the implementation of the first phase of the Queens Bus Network Redesign. It details international BRT standards, the current conditions on NYC streets, key recommendations for implementing BRT, and clear design concepts showing how BRT could work on two specific major thoroughfares: Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn; and Northern Boulevard, Queens. The report was first detailed by Barbara Russo-Lennon in AMNY.
“Our city’s buses are notoriously slow, between traffic, double-parked vehicles, and other delays. Bluntly, riders deserve to move faster than a chicken,” said Lisa Daglian, Executive Director, Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC). “While the MTA and DOT have made some progress to speed the ride in recent years by building dedicated bus lanes, implementing Automated Camera Enforcement, and with the much-needed bus network redesigns, a true bus rapid transit system would be transformational for New York City’s two million daily bus riders. We look forward to working with the MTA and NYC DOT to continue to improve buses around the city and move BRT from concept to reality in New York City.”
Report Recommendations:
- Install protected bus lanes aligned to the center of streets, avoiding the chronic issues that block New York’s existing curbside and offset bus lanes.
- Continue implementing technology innovations to speed up buses, such as transit signal priority, and other intersection safety tools, such as left turn bans and queue jumps when necessary.
- Build accessible BRT stations with level boarding, full shelters, clear signage, lighting, seating and countdown clocks. Strengthen coordination between the MTA and NYC DOT to deliver higher-quality and more effective bus priority projects to meet the legal mandates of the NYC Streets Plan.
- Overhaul signage and wayfinding by adopting a recognizable and unified design language for wayfinding at BRT stations, such as the one used for subway signage. Integrate BRT into the subway map to improve wayfinding for riders.
- Pilot a new bus fleet with doors on both sides to enable the construction of bi-directional island platforms, currently in place on the HealthLine in Cleveland, and a standard design on most international BRT systems.
- Reform boarding and fare payment by enabling all-door boarding and piloting fare gates at BRT stations to speed up service and reduce fare evasion.
- Launch the next generation Select Bus Service as BRT by upgrading existing infrastructure, extending existing SBS to better connect Manhattan’s Congestion Relief Zone with the boroughs outside of Manhattan, and launching new interborough SBS by using this report’s suite of recommendations in tandem with one another.
“Millions of New York riders stuck on the bus are more than ready for subway-like service on city streets,” said Riders Alliance Senior Organizer Jolyse Race. “This year on Flatbush, next year on Northern, Fordham and beyond, bus rapid transit can transform the slowest commutes into fast, reliable trips to meet basic needs and access opportunities. Bus riders’ time is important. After generations of disregard and disinvestment, bus rapid transit would finally honor riders’ essential contributions to life in this city.”
“New Yorkers have places to go, people to see, and deserve a bus system that moves faster and lives up to international standards—and this report shows exactly how we get there,” said Natasha Elder, Regional Director of the Straphangers Campaign. “BRT for the Boroughs presents a bold, practical roadmap to transform our streets with true Bus Rapid Transit: center-running lanes, level boarding, real stations, and smart signal technology. These are the kinds of investments that will finally deliver fast, frequent, reliable service to the two million riders who rely on buses every day. We’re proud to support this call for leadership and coordination between the MTA and City Hall to bring world-class BRT to Northern Boulevard, Flatbush Avenue, and beyond.”
“The 34 Ave Open Streets Coalition fully endorses PCAC’s recommendations to convert our SBS routes & other important bus corridors throughout NYC to true BRT service,” said Jim Burke, Co-founder, 34 Ave Open Streets Coalition, which operates the 1.3-mile public space located one block south of Northern Boulevard. “Many of our outer boroughs have no or limited subway access and this would be transformative for the millions who rely on our buses. Right now, they are relegated to slow, unreliable service that gets stuck in single-car occupancy traffic. Upgrading to BRT would speed up routes, boarding and cut dwell time. It’s beyond time NYC upgrades to BRT; it’s efficient, equitable, and pays dividends far beyond its costs.”
With the necessary political capital, BRT in New York City is more than just possible — it’s a necessary goal for NYC’s bus mayor. For a more sustainable and transit-driven future, there must be more commitment to better coordinated efforts between the MTA and NYC DOT, whose most recent update to the Streets Plan states the agency’s desire to “work with the MTA to plan — and fund — the next generation of major transit capital investments, including subway, rail, and bus rapid transit.” PCAC believes that the next generation of Select Bus Service can achieve the bus rapid transit standards that New Yorkers from all five boroughs deserve.
About PCAC:
Created by the New York State Legislature in 1981, the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC) represents transit and commuter rail riders in the 12-county MTA region. PCAC regularly researches issues, recommends viable solutions, and advocates on behalf of the region’s subway, bus and Staten Island Railway riders, and Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad commuters through its three rider councils – the Long Island Rail Road Commuter Council (LIRRCC), the Metro-North Railroad Commuter Council (MNRCC), and the New York City Transit Riders Council (NYCTRC). These councils and their non-voting MTA Board members were created to serve as a voice for users of the MTA system in the development and implementation of policy, and to hold the MTA Board and management accountable to riders.
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