Image Credit: NYC DOT
New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez announced today proposed plans for new bus lanes on a portion of Flatbush Avenue, in Brooklyn, to make commutes faster and more reliable for 69,000 daily commuters while improving air quality and enhancing safety for everyone on one of Brooklyn’s most dangerous corridors. The proposal for bus lanes from Livingston Street to Grand Army Plaza follows a robust traffic analysis that shows the project would significantly reduce cut-through traffic on Flatbush Avenue.
“Right now, Flatbush Avenue above Prospect Park doesn’t work for anyone: almost 70,000 daily bus riders are stuck waiting too long for slow buses, drivers are caught in a mess of traffic, and pedestrians are left crossing intersections clogged with vehicles,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez. “Our proposal would address each of these issues and create a world-class, welcoming corridor for everyone. We look forward to refining this proposal closely with the community before implementation.”
“Creating center-running bus lanes on Flatbush Avenue will increase bus speeds while bringing much-needed safety improvements to one of the city’s most dangerous traffic corridors,” said MTA NYCT President Demetrius Crichlow. “This plan will drastically improve the commute times for the tens of thousands of daily riders who live on Flatbush Avenue – many of whom rely on public transportation to get to work. We look forward to working with the DOT on this ambitious project.”
NYC DOT on Thursday evening presented the proposal to Brooklyn Community Board 2. More community board presentations are to come.
Helping Working-Class New Yorkers
Nearly 60 percent of the households along Flatbush Avenue have no access to a personal vehicle. A Pratt Center Study found buses along Flatbush primarily serve Black, female, and low-income riders. The majority of these riders live in the zip codes around Flatbush and have household incomes of less than $80,000 a year. The majority of riders complained of long waits in extreme weather and one out of three riders reported being fired, reprimanded, or lost pay at work due to bus-related delays.
Bus and Safety Challenges
The full Flatbush Avenue is a Vision Zero Priority Corridor, meaning it is one of the most dangerous streets in Brooklyn, with 55 people killed or severely injured since 2019.
NYC DOT is proposing bus lanes on the northern section of the avenue, from Livingston Street to Grand Army Plaza, where bus service is currently the slowest. Serving nearly 70,000 daily riders across 6 bus routes, bus riders on Flatbush Avenue currently experience bus speeds slower than 4 miles per hour at rush hours—about the same speed as a pedestrian walking the corridor.
Flatbush Bus Lane Proposal
NYC DOT is proposing center-running bus lanes for Flatbush Avenue between Livingston Street and Grand Army Plaza, with new pedestrian spaces to improve traffic safety and reduce pedestrian crossing times. The proposal will also adjust curb regulations to better support local businesses’ delivery needs.
The agency recommends center-running lanes as the best option to dramatically increase bus speeds by creating physically separated spaces for buses and reducing conflicts with personal vehicles traveling the corridor. This design will allow Flatbush Avenue to move more people more efficiently than it does today.
With center-running lanes, NYC DOT would install concrete bus boarding islands in the street to provide safe spaces for pedestrians to board, disembark, and wait to cross the street. The boarding islands would create a train-like service experience for riders while reducing instances of speeding drivers.