Representatives of NYC transit workers called last week for city and MTA officials to implement sweeping changes to the city bus system. Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 100 and leaders of the Amalgamated Transit Union endorsed widespread application of “bus rapid transit” (BRT) principles to city streets and bus routes.

The unions oppose the MTA’s new plan for a transit fare increase, and are seeking means to make up NYC Transit’s budget deficit for 2003. They argued last week that productivity gains from BRT improvements would greatly reduce bus system costs.

They cited NYC Transit research on bus delay due to traffic congestion — specifically, a 1994 report entitled “Faster Than Walking ?” — which found that NYC Transit bus operating expenses per revenue mile were nearly twice those at other big-city bus systems, and that average bus speeds were significantly less. Since that report’s publication, the Federal Transit Administration has called NYC’s buses the slowest city buses in the country.

The Bloomberg Administration has made several steps to speed up buses, first by increasing the access standard on the Gowanus HOV lane — heavily used by buses from Staten Island — to three per car, and by implementing the Church Street busway in lower Manhattan (see MTR #’s 358, 381).

However, Roger Toussaint, TWU Local 100president, said work to date on better bus performance constituted “half-measures” and “baby steps.” The unions referred to the Straphangers Campaign/Transportation Alternatives “Bus Rapid Transit for NYC” (MTR #370)report released last summer that said BRT measures such as bulb-out stops, better boarding procedures and better designed bus lanes could improve speeds on city bus routes.

BRT systems that function well have seen impressive ridership gains, as well as lower costs than those on congested streets. The unions are hoping that higher bus productivity plus more rider revenue can help plug NYC Transit’s budget hole.

However, it will remain unclear how much Transit could save with these techniques until there is an official commitment to study and pursue the matter. However, transit labor’s strong backing for BRT is an important development for the future of the bus system in NYC, and its push to include consideration of system performance and efficiency is a welcome addition to the debate over transit finances and fares.

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