By Joseph Morales

  The Pelham Bay Park station area in the Northeast Bronx is a major transit hub for people traveling throughout the borough. It provides connections to the 6 train at the Pelham Bay Park station as well as 5 other bus routes including the Q50-LTD to Downtown Flushing, Queens and the Bx12-LCL/SBS which was the second busiest bus route in the city as of 2021. Many Bronxites take buses here in order to get to the subway station as many of the buses traverse areas that lack subway service. Many also use the buses to get throughout the borough and to major destinations such as the Bay Plaza Shopping Center, City Island, the Fordham Rd Business District and more. According to a presentation from the NYCDOT, 55,000 bus riders passed through the area on an average weekday pre-pandemic. The area also tends to be busy with automobiles too, as the area is near several major highways and streets including Interstate 95 and the Hutchinson River Pkwy. 

                     Therefore, it is no surprise that congestion slows down both motorists and bus riders alike. The street layout of the area has been known to exasperate the issue, with slow downs being very common along Amendola Pl and Bruckner Blvd respectively, especially at the three-way intersection of Amendola Pl, Wilkinson Av and Bruckner Blvd where the bus routes all make their stops and attempt to reenter what is already busy traffic.  The layout also forces the eastbound Bx12-SBS toward Bay Plaza to have an unnecessary long circuitous route segment, which increases travel time for riders. The westbound and eastbound Bx12-SBS stops which are both heavily used were also on the same side of the street, causing confusion for those trying to board a bus in a particular direction.

                      The NYCDOT has recently implemented several solutions to the issue. The improvements include a protected bus lane for the eastbound Bx12-SBS on Westchester Avenue so that it can make a stop on Westchester Ave and take a more direct route to Interstate 95 North rather than use its previous routing via Wilkinson Ave. This not only saves riders time, but since many Bx12-SBS riders board at Pelham Bay, this will provide riders of both buses more space to comfortably wait for the bus. It will also be easier to differentiate the eastbound and westbound stops. The NYCDOT has also implemented a protected bus lane on Wilkinson Ave for the westbound Bx12-SBS as well as all other buses headed for Bruckner Blvd North and I-95 so that they can move faster. The bus lanes also help to organize traffic and ensure that motorists do not get stuck behind buses that are making stops or that just take up more space in general, which may help to reduce congestion as a whole. 

                 In addition to the bus improvements themselves, the NYCDOT has installed new crosswalks throughout the surrounding area and expanded sidewalk space to improve pedestrian safety.

                 While this was a small project in nature, the project may help to alleviate a major bottleneck for one of the Bronx’s most crucial transportation arteries. Though it may only reduce save Bx12-SBS riders 2.5 minutes through Pelham Bay alone the project will still improve bus reliability and allow it to get to areas with more extreme bottlenecks along the route such as Fordham Rd faster to avoid more extensive delays there during peak hours, as traffic tends to increase by the minute during these times. It can also help passengers who need to transfer to infrequent transit routes such as the Bx24, Bx29 and the Metro-North Railroad to be on time for their buses and trains respectively. 

                  Even though this was not the type of project the NYCDOT would cut a ribbon on, it may be an impactful one that creates precedent for a new type of bus improvement project in New York City as this is the first project of its type in the city where bus lanes have been used to alter traffic patterns to the benefit of both bus riders and motorists alike ; two groups whose interests often clash on bus lane projects.

Works Cited

New York City Department of Transportation, and Metropolitan Transportation Authority. “Pelham Bay Park Station Area-Presentation to Community Board 10.” NYC.gov, 12 May 2021, https://www1.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/pelham-bay-park-station-area-cb10-may2021.pdf. Accessed 15 January 2023.