Robert Stolarik for The New York Times The Bx34 bus in the Bronx will resume weekend service starting Sunday.Though the Metropolitan Transportation Authority recently lost its chairman, it is poised this week to add several new or restored bus services drafted under his watch.
On Sunday, the authority said, the first round of service increases would begin, including a new extension on the Bx13 from East 161st Street to Bronx Terminal Marke t, the restoration of B39 service over the Williamsburg Bridge, and B57 service into Red Hook, Brooklyn.
The additions (click here or see below) are part of $17.8 million in service investments for New York City Transit, conceived in part to restore routes that were reduced or eliminated during budget cuts in 2010. (The additions may ease the pain slightly of the fare increase set to take effect in March.)
“We are here to provide mass transit service, and that we are able to restore some earlier service cuts while at the same time extending service along several routes is great news for us to share,†Thomas F. Prendergast, the president of New York City Transit, said in a statement. “These enhancements were all a result of listening to our customers and keeping close watch on changing travel trends.â€
Other service enhancements will take effect Jan. 20, the authority said, including the restoration of weekend service on the S76 and overnight express bus service from the Eltingville Transit Center on Staten Island to Manhattan.
Later in the year, the authority expects to begin a new route along Manhattan's Far West Side, connecting the West Village, Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen.
MTA NYCT Press Release Bus Service Enhancements 2013[2] (PDF)
MTA NYCT Press Release Bus Service Enhancements 2013[2] (Text)
