NY1
Updated 11/12/2008 10:19 PM
M96 Bus Named City's Slowest Service On Wheels
The Straphangers Campaign and Transportation Alternatives released their annual "Pokey" and "Schleppie" Awards Wednesday to point out the city’s slowest and least-reliable bus routes.
The Straphangers Campaign and Transportation Alternatives, two riders' advocacy groups, awarded the Pokey Award, which is shaped like a golden snail, to the crosstown M96 bus for being the slowest line.
The M96 bus was clocked in at just 3.7 mph.
"An excruciating speed. That's just barely faster than a human being walking, which is 3 mph," said Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign.
The slowest buses in every other borough also garnered an honorable mention.
The B63 bus between Bay Ridge and Cobble Hill in Brooklyn travels at 4.9 mph.
The Bx19 line between the New York Botanic Garden in the Bronx and Upper Manhattan goes at 5.3 mph.
The Q56 bus between Jamaica, Queens and East New York runs at 6.1 mph.
Lastly, the S42 line between New Brighton and the St. George Ferry Terminal goes at 11.4 mph.
The group also handed out the Schleppie Award, for least-reliable bus service, to the M101, 102 and 103 buses, which run on Lexington, Amsterdam and Lenox Avenues.
According to MTA statistics, more than a quarter of buses on those routes were either bunched together or had big gaps in service.
But Paul Steely White, the executive director of Transportation Alternatives, said recent adjustments to bus routes are proving useful and there is hope for improvement.
"Luckily, the MTA and the New York City [Department Of Transportation] are moving on Bus Rapid Transit in New York City. They need to do much more but the early returns are very positive," said White.
The Bx12 line along Fordham Road has riders pay before getting on the bus at curbside machines, which speeds up the boarding process.
"Bus speeds have improved by about 14 to 24 percent on Fordham Road, as ridership has increased, so that's a very positive sign that even as ridership is increasing, buses can go faster," said White.
Transit officials hope to expand the program, called Select Bus Service, to Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn, First and Second Avenues in Manhattan and Hylan Boulevard on Staten Island.
However, the changes will take years, meaning that the next few Pokey Awards will still have a lot of competition.
MTA-New York City Transit issued a statement regarding the awards, saying the buses must compete with other city users, parked and double-parked vehicles, moving vehicles, pedestrians and bicycles.
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