Southern Brooklynites blasted the MTA’s proposed bus network redesign again on Thursday, saying they’d be nothing more than stranded straphangers under the agency’s plan.
The MTA hosted a public workshop on the plan Thursday in concert with Community Board 10 (which covers Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and Fort Hamilton), and presented more details on the Brooklyn Bus Network Redesign that was first released in December 2022.
The new plan would bring changes to B36, B74, B16, B37, B63, and B64 and cut some lines altogether.
Many locals took issue with the changes that could come to the express line calling it “disastrous” for the neighborhood, specifically the older population who rely on buses to get around.
“The cuts to the express bus routes above Thomas Street are disastrous to our commuters and seniors, cutting out access to a major part of Manhattan,” said resident Ivana Rizzo at the workshop. “How is that considered ‘improvement’ to your customers?”
Some residents are concerned on how the redesign would affect their daily commute to work.Photo by Marc A. Hermann / MTA
Lauren Canterino, a Bay Ridge resident, has been using the buses for over a decade — and according to her, some of the MTA’s cuts leave extended gaps between stops, making it harder for commuters trying to make it home from Manhattan.
“The proposed plan changes for the X27 and X37 are detrimental to daily commuters into Manhattan . Cutting service between 23rd Street and Thomas Street leaves several riders stranded that are trying to get home to Bay Ridge,” she said. “The subway is not safe. As a daily rider for over 15 years the stops do not bother riders.”
Other attendees felt that MTA needed to implement more routes and stops instead of focusing on cuts.
“I’d like to see local service along all of Shore Road North to Bay Ridge Avenue. There are already stops there for the express bus but no local route,” said Staley Dietrich. “Since 2017, we’ve had ferry service at Bay Ridge Avenue which would be a great alternative to the express bus but there is no connection to it from Shore Road.”
Council Member Justin Brannan, a representative for Bay Ridge, has been vocal in his opposition of the redesign.
Brannan created a petition that strongly disagreed with some of the proposed changes. At last night’s meeting, he encouraged MTA representatives to value resident’s ideas as they are the ones who use public transportation daily.
“It’s just important that my constituents speak directly to you and you promise that you’ll hear us out. No one knows the neighborhood like the folks in these chats,” Brannan said.
Andrew Inglesby, assistant director for government and community relations for MTA NYC Transit, reiterated that all of the agency’s plans were simply drafts and they would “take a hard look” at local’s input.
“You guys are our customers. You take the busses all the time so we’re very interested in what you have to say,” Inglesby said in the workshop.
Workshops will continue throughout March 9, after which the department would re-evaluate the design before executing upgrades.
