Assembly members Elizabeth Connelly and Eric Vitaliano, and City Councilman Jerome O'Donovan (all Democrats), have asked Mayor Giuliani and Gov. Pataki to support the plan. Many Island Republicans, including Congresswoman Susan Molinari and Council member John Fusco, expressed initial support and have the issue under consideration. The S.I. Advance reported in July that early response from City Hall was also positive. The Advance has said the ATU proposals "make a lot of sense, [and] are reasonably simple to implement." On the other hand, S.I. Borough President Guy Molinari lashed the ATU proposals, implausibly labeling them as partisan plans to make Governor Pataki and Mayor Giuliani look bad. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign, Regional Plan Association, Straphangers Campaign and other groups have endorsed ATU's call for bus lanes. ATU will hold a cable TV "town meeting" on the bus issue Thursday, Sept. 29 at 8pm, S.I. Cable Channel 35.

Meanwhile, the state and city Depts. of Transportation, MTA Bridges and Tunnels, the NYPD, and S.I. City Council member Vito Fossella announced plans in late July for bus-only lanes on two Verrazano Bridge entrance ramps and on portions of Lily Pond Ave. and Narrows Road. The measures aim to provide bus commuters with immediate relief, while state and city agencies develop permanent solutions -- possibly including a reverse-flow bus lane on the S.I. Expressway. The state DOT says it will consider extending the Gowanus bus lane earlier than planned (the Gowanus lane now runs from 65th St. to the Brooklyn/Battery Tunnel, and would be extended in the Gowanus reconstruction plan). The NYPD and NYC DOT have also recently changed traffic flows at the Gowanus/Shore Parkway merge to favor bus-laden traffic from Staten Island.