Buses

Watch this instructional video from the Transit Authority of River City (that's Louisville, Kentucky), and trust me, you won't be able to dislodge the chorus from your head for days. I never thought of bus-mounted bike racks as the stuff of infectious music videos, but I was wrong -- egregiously wrong.

From today's Times, published after bus driver Edwin Thomas was stabbed to death by a passenger who refused to pay the fare:

Plans to bring "big box" retail to a remodeled George Washington Bridge Bus Station have been scuttled due to fears that it would attract more car-commuting shoppers to Washington Heights.

These DOT photos [PDF] show off the revamped Bronx Hub -- the shopping district and transit nexus in Melrose that just received a slew of livable streets improvements. Planters, surfacing, and a few strategically placed concrete islands demarcate pretty substantial new swaths of pedestrian space, including a block-long plaza (shown above and in bird's eye view below). There's also a short stretch of exclusive bus territory and some interesting bike lane treatments. Follow the jump for more pics.

In today's Times, Richard Brodsky weighs in on the pitfalls of shortchanging capital needs in the face of the immediate MTA budget crisis.

Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign (l) and TA's Paul Steely White unveil this year's honorees

A tipster sends in these shots of police -- again -- and trucks -- again -- parked in the 34th Street Select Bus Service lane. Looks like the city's Botts' Dots are more soft than barrier.