L Train Shutdown

As the L train shutdown approaches and the deadline for a detailed plan of action from DOT and the MTA draws closer, the de Blasio administration is hesitating to take the necessary steps to prioritize buses and high-occupancy vehicles.

More than a year has passed since CB 1 and Council Member Reynoso asked DOT to study a protected bike lane for the street.

The DOT commissioner told an audience at New York Law School that buses would get priority of some sort but didn't commit to a high-capacity transitway that can operate without interference from private motor vehicle traffic.

Brooklyn City Council Member Antonio Reynoso is ready to fight for a Grand Street dedicated to transit, biking, and walking.

Many candidates endorsed the general concept of reducing car traffic and improving bus service and bicycling, but few would commit to the specific idea of a 14th Street dedicated solely to car-free transportation.

An internal study estimates Stuy-Town/Peter Cooper Village residents account for at least 7,000 daily L train riders.

During the L shutdown, the MTA plans to run shuttle buses at rush hour connecting Williamsburg to Manhattan. Some sort of transit priority treatment is on the table for Brooklyn streets where buses connect to the bridge, but what DOT has in mind isn't clear.

DOT and the MTA may go beyond typical bus lanes in their plan to keep people moving on 14th Street during the L train shutdown, which will suspend service west of Bedford Avenue for 15 months starting in April 2019.

Starting in January 2019, service on the L train west of Bedford Avenue will be suspended for 15 months to allow for Sandy-related repairs. The only way to keep hundreds of thousands of people moving is to dedicate significant street space to buses on both sides of the East River. But at a presentation to elected officials on Friday, the MTA and DOT did not indicate that bus lanes are part of their plan, except on the Williamsburg Bridge itself.