Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Buses

Summer Launch Planned for Bx6 Select Bus Service

4:36 PM EDT on April 26, 2017

Center-running bus lanes and islands for boarding are planned for 161st Street near the Bronx courthouse, where illegally parked drivers clog the street and block bus stops. Images: DOT

Select Bus Service is coming to the Bx6, a major crosstown route in the South Bronx.

The Bx6 runs between Riverside Drive in Washington Heights and Hunts Point, crossing the Harlem River over the Macombs Dam Bridge. It connects to eight subway lines, 20 bus routes, and Metro-North, serving around 25,000 passengers a day. Three-quarters of households within a quarter-mile of the route don’t own a car.

Right now, it takes an average of 56 minutes to travel the westbound 4.8-mile route end to end. More than half the time, the Bx6 is either stopped for boarding, stopped at red lights, or crawling in traffic at less than 2.5 miles per hour.

In November 2015, the MTA and DOT introduced a plan to split the Bx6 into local and Select Bus routes. The agencies have made a number of community board presentations over the spring, and plan to launch Bx6 SBS this summer.

Eastbound traffic under the Grand Concourse would be limited to buses.
Eastbound traffic in the tunnel under the Grand Concourse would be limited to buses.
Eastbound traffic under the Grand Concourse would be limited to buses.

The most significant improvements are planned for the Bronx portion of the route, where Bx6 SBS will make 17 stops.

On 161st Street, DOT would widen sidewalks and limit eastbound traffic in the tunnel under the Grand Concourse to buses. (An exclusive busway was originally on the table for the westbound tunnel lane too, but a March 2017 presentation shows that option was discarded [PDF].)

On 161st at Sheridan and Sherman avenues, where illegally parked drivers outside the courthouse clog the street and block bus stops, buses will get center-running dedicated lanes, with stops on median islands. DOT also plans to add sidewalk space at the southwest corner of Sheridan and 161st Street, shortening the crossing distance across Sheridan. (Two Bronx streets along the Bx6 route -- 161st Street and Hunts Point Avenue -- have been singled out for Vision Zero safety upgrades, as have two intersections in the Bronx and one in Manhattan.)

The bus lanes will not be continuous along the whole route but two other sections in the Bronx will get them.

Most of the route's mileage in Manhattan is on 155th Street. An eastbound travel lane on the 155th Street viaduct will be converted to a westbound queue jump lane for buses approaching Harlem River Driveway. DOT may also make signal timing adjustments to speed up traffic across the Macombs Dam Bridge.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Council Votes to Repeal Decade-Old Law, Expedite Bike Lane Installation

The City Council repealed a notorious. out-dated law that imposed lengthy delays on the city before it could break ground on new bike lanes.

December 7, 2023

Dynamic! MTA Could Hike Congestion Pricing Toll 25% on Gridlock Alert Days

The MTA said it had that power, and modeled it in its environmental assessment (see footnote 2 below), but no one ever reported it, until Wednesday.

December 6, 2023

Judge Orders Trial for Hit-and-Run Driver Who Turned Down ‘Reasonable’ Sentencing Offer

Judge Brendan Lantry turns down driver's request for mere probation for killing a delivery worker in 2022. The trial will start in January.

December 6, 2023

Wednesday’s Headlines: Another Big Day at City Hall Edition

Today is going to be another busy day for the livable streets crowd. So get ready with today's headlines.

December 6, 2023

Reporter’s Notebook: Will Eric Adams Ever Publicly Embrace Congestion Pricing?

The governor, the head of the MTA and the city's leading transit thinkers all celebrated congestion pricing on Tuesday as an historic moment while Mayor Adams spent Tuesday failing to live up to it.

December 6, 2023
See all posts