Op-ed | Queens Bus Network redesign a home run for the whole borough

It’s the bottom of the ninth inning and the bases are loaded. Our team is ready to hit a grand slam in Queens.

I’m not talking about the Mets – I’m talking about the once-in-a-generation opportunity we have this summer to fundamentally improve transportation in the City’s most bus-reliant borough for decades to come.

On June 29, New York City Transit will launch phase one of the Queens Bus Network Redesign. We’ve invested $35 million to create a better, faster bus system made up of 124 total routes, a double-digit percentage increase over today’s system. The network has been simplified, connections improved, stops spaced to improve reliability, and frequencies on some routes increased.

Together with our partners at the New York City Department of Transportation, who will enhance bus priority in targeted high ridership corridors, we’ve been notifying the public of the upcoming changes. Riders are already seeing yellow informational signs at their usual stops.

This outreach will be supplemented by a world-class Customer Ambassador program. The Redesign team has an ambitious plan to fill thousands of shifts with staff who will be out on the streets of Queens guiding customers to their destinations. I’ll be out there with them myself to watch six years’ worth of work come to life.

We started this process in 2019, and since then, the MTA has hosted over 250 events with residents and elected officials in the borough, receiving nearly 20,000 comments from riders looking to improve the bus network. The final product reflects their needs while also offering new services. I’m most excited about Rush Routes, which were specifically designed to more quickly connect riders with a two-step commute to the rail system.

We know the stakes are high to get it right. Queens buses carry 800,000 customers daily – more than the entire bus network in Philadelphia and enough people to fill Citi Field 19 times over. And as someone who used to ride the Q5 every day, this is personal to me.

I know what it’s like to sit in endless traffic on Jamaica Avenue after a long day at work, and I want a better customer experience for all of us. That promised future convenience of speed and direct routes from start to finish has arrived as the Queens Bus Network Redesign steps up to the plate.

Demetrius Crichlow is MTA New York City Transit president.