Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

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  • Adams Administration Far Behind on Bus Infrastructure Benchmarks, with Promises to Improve This Year

    Bus riders (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    On thecampaign trail and inCity Hall, Mayor Eric Adams

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  • Max Politics Podcast: Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani on a New Plan to 'Fix the MTA' & More

    Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani at Wednesday's press conference (photo: Kara McCurdy)


    December 15, 2022 - Max Politics Podcast: Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani on How to 'Fix the MTA' & More

    Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, a Queens Democrat, joined the show to discuss his new plan to 'Fix the MTA,' upcoming state budget negotiations, the 2022 election results, and more.

    Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show through the embedded audio below or download the

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  • Max Politics Podcast: Janno Lieber on the State of the MTA

    MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber, with Governor Hochul (photo: Darren McGee/Governor's Office)


    June 22, 2022 - Max Politics Podcast: CEO Janno Lieber on the State of the MTA

    MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber joined host Ben Max for a conversation at an event hosted by Citizens Union and Citizens Union Foundation (publisher of Gotham Gazette). First, opening remarks by Lieber about the state of the MTA, particularly its New York City subways and buses, then the interview with Max about a wide variety of issues including subway service improvements, congestion pricing, MTA

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  • Key Considerations as the MTA Restarts Brooklyn Bus Network Redesign

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    Boarding the bus in Brooklyn (photo: MTA/Patrick Cashin)


    The MTA announced this past summer that the borough network redesign studies that were halted by covid will resume this fall. A Brooklyn bus network redesign is long overdue, but it must be performed in the correct manner. We have no indication that such is the case.

    The intent is to design routes “from a blank slate,” which is unrealistic. Existing

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  • Max Politics Podcast: A Bus Agenda for Mayor Adams

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    Eric Adams at an event urging better bus service (photo: BK BP office of Eric Adams)


    December 8, 2021 - Max Politics Podcast: A Bus Agenda for Mayor Adams

    Two leading transit advocates joined the show to discuss a bus agenda for Mayor Eric Adams so that the new mayor who has promised to deliver for working-class bus riders can fulfill those promises and ensure city buses start moving faster. Danny Pearlstein of Riders Alliance and Ben Fried of Transit Center joined host Ben Max to discuss the current state of buses in

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  • Claiming 'The Campaign of Ideas' in Mayoral Race, Shaun Donovan Releases Climate and Transit Plans

  • For Climate and Community Protection, It’s Time to Electrify Transportation in New York

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    An electric bus (photo: Marc A. Hermann/MTA New York City Transit)


    This has been a year of unexpected and devastating loss with the number of deaths from COVID-19 in the United States already surpassing 300,000. In New York City, bus drivers, train operators, and other transit workers have shown up everyday to keep the city moving forward through the spring peak and now into a second wave of infections. 

    But there is a cost to providing transit services during a pandemic. And the cost is more than ...

  • To Tackle Covid and Climate Change, Invest in a Five-Borough MTA

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    Governor Cuomo talks subways (photo: governor's office)


    A city on the precipice of financial collapse. A federal government unwilling to provide help. Thousands of jobs and vital programs on the line. This was the situation in New York City in 1975, but this description is not far off from the picture in 2020.

    Though the causes of these two crises were different, the effect will most likely be the same: massive budget cuts, especially to new projects. During the 1970s, the MTA was implementing plans to expand the subway system, including building the

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  • Without Federal Aid, MTA Bloodbath Will Be Even Worse Than Its ‘Doomsday’ Plan

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    Subway ridership (photo: Marc A. Hermann / MTA New York City Transit)


    We agree with the MTA that its fate hinges on the federal government, which must provide the MTA at least $10 billion in federal emergency funds through the end of 2021 to prevent the end of the New York City region’s mass transit system as we know it. 

    The MTA’s options without federal aid from its August “doomsday” plan are all terrible. Worse, they are far from exaggerations and are a glimpse into a

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  • As City Reopens, De Blasio’s ‘Better Buses’ Plan Stuck in Traffic

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    Mayor de Blasio on the bus (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)


    Early in June, when New York City was just entering phase one of its economic “reopening” and the city still had daily triple-digit coronavirus death counts, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an ambitious plan, the Better Bus Restart Initiative, to add 20 more miles of bus lanes and five new busways by October, in addition to making the 14th Street busway permanent. While this plan, offered during a unique opportunity to rethink city street use, did not go as far as many public officials and advocates would

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  • De Blasio Makes Big Bus Move, But Continues to Disappoint Electeds and Advocates Seeking More

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    De Blasio rides the bus (photo: Edwin J. Torres/Mayor's Office)


    As the coronavirus public health crisis waned and New York City headed toward entering the first phase of “reopening” its economy after the government-ordered near-shutdown, Mayor Bill de Blasio was under increasing pressure to develop transit plans to help New Yorkers returning to work get around by various and safe means. This was especially true regarding buses.

    While the city’s subways and buses are run by the state-controlled MTA, de Blasio does have significant sway over the bus system

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  • Is the MTA’s Plan to Redesign the Queens Bus System an Improvement?

    mta cuomo arrival

    (photo: Patrick Cashin/Metropolitan Transportation Authority)


    Is the MTA’s plan to redesign the Queens bus network an improvement, or will it further destroy the bus system? 

    The MTA released its Draft Queens Bus Network Redesign on December 30. Queens voices have protested the plan from Woodside to ...

  • Is the MTA Correctly Performing its Bus Network Redesigns?

    mta priority bus

    (photo: Marc A. Hermann/MTA New York City Transit)


    In the year since I wrote “Designing Bus Routes to Attract Passengers and Reverse Declining Ridership,” the MTA announced the results for the Staten Island Express Bus Redesign, completed a Bronx study, and began studies of the bus networks in Queens and Brooklyn.  

    These studies make incorrect generalizations resulting in formulas attempting to correct problems. It is not

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  • Johnson Says City Council to Pass Streets Master Plan Bill This Month

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    Speaker Johnson (photo: John McCarten/City Council)


    New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson is advancing his legislation to create a master plan for city streets, promising Thursday that the Council will vote on the bill this month.

    Johnson, a Democrat from Manhattan, first proposed the idea of creating a five-year plan for the city’s

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  • Congestion Pricing Board Must Be Bus Friendly

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    Mass transit watchers are eagerly anticipating who will be appointed to the six-person Traffic Mobility Review Board, which was embedded in last April’s state budget deal outlining the framework for instituting a congestion pricing tolling system around Manhattan’s Central Business District (CBD).

    All but one member (which is selected by the Mayor) will be appointed by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA). While two appointees will represent Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North interests, we strongly believe one of the other appointees must

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  • ‘Breaking Car Culture’ in New York City Likely Dependent on Expanded Mass Transit

    subway construction

    (photo: City Council)


    If City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, like-minded lawmakers, and a chorus of transit advocates get their way, New York City will become far less dominated by cars over the next few years.

    Talk of “breaking car culture” by increasing options and protections for bikes, buses, and pedestrians

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  • Slowing Down 14th Street Bus Plan is Anything But Progress, or Progressive

    mta bus electric

    (photo: Marc A. Hermann/MTA New York City Transit)


    One of the most frustrating things about local New York City politics is that many people who believe in progressive ideas on the national stage do an about-face when it comes to progressive change on the local level, often when that change might actually touch their day-to-day lives in some way.

    This phenomenon has been captured perfectly by the current debate around the 14th Street busway -- a pilot program approved by the mayor, which would prioritize public transit and trucks over private cars on one of the

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  • Everyone Agrees City Buses are in Crisis. What's Being Done?

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    Mayor de Blasio rides the bus (photo: Edwin J. Torres/Mayor's Office)


    Elected officials, advocates, and especially riders agree: the city’s bus system is broken.

    That consensus was reached in recent years as bus speeds slowed to a crawl and the system hemorrhaged ridership. Various advocacy groups and elected officials have put forth studies and plans, and the entities with actual control -- the state-run Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) and the New York City Mayor’s Office -- have taken steps toward improving the situation, though

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  • Corey Johnson Wants to ‘Break the Car Culture’ in New York City. What Does That Mean?

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    Speaker Johnson on the train (photo: City Council's office)


    Imagine a New York where cars no longer rule the road, and pedestrians and cyclists reclaim dominance of the city’s public space. While a New York where cars don’t dominate the streets may seem like a fantasy, to City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, it is the future.

    In recent months, Johnson -- a Manhattan Democrat in his second year leading the 51-member City Council -- has gone full bore touting the idea of “breaking car culture,” or prioritizing pedestrians, cyclists,

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  • For the Earth's Sake, Enforce Bus Lanes with Cameras

    mta usb wifi

    (photo: MTA/Patrick Cashin)


    Transit policy is climate policy. In New York, transportation emits 30% of the city’s carbon pollution and 34% of the state’s. Since it’s easier to drive less in a city than in suburban and rural areas, much of that is carbon we can easily spare. When shrinking New York’s carbon footprint, transportation emissions are low-hanging fruit.

    Granted, the challenge is stiff. Car registrations in the city are rising, up 9% in the past four years. The city’s own government vehicle fleet has grown 19% in size and 25% in miles traveled in the past five

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  • City Council Hears Speaker’s Bill Requiring ‘Master Plan for City Streets’

    corey jo public

    (photo: Emil Cohen/City Council)


    [Note: this hearing was indeed held on Wednesday June 12; this article is a preview of the hearing]

    On Wednesday, the New York City Council transportation committee will hold a hearing on a bill sponsored by Council Speaker Corey Johnson that would mandate the creation of a five-year “master plan” for city streets with a variety of specifications aimed at making the city more friendly to bikers and pedestrians, and less deferential to cars. If passed and implemented, the legislation would have a major impact on

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  • The Route to Cleaner Air for Communities of Color and Low Income: Electric Buses and Congestion Pricing

    gov cuomo sign upgrade mta

    (photo: governor's office)


    Your zip code and how much money you make can determine your health and quality of life in New York City – including the quality of the air you breathe.

    Recent data from The New York City Community Air Survey shows that certain neighborhoods have more particulate matter and black carbon than others. It should come as no surprise that many of these areas – like East Harlem, Washington Heights, or the South Bronx – are largely inhabited by people of color or people with lower incomes, who

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  • Johnson Calls for Municipal Control of Subways and Buses, Pledges Congestion Pricing and 'Master Plan for City Streets'

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    Speaker Johnson (photo: William Alatriste/City Council)


    New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson unveiled an ambitious proposal for municipal control of the city’s mass transit system on Tuesday at his first State of the City speech at LaGuardia Community College in Queens.

    “I am not here to be typical,” Johnson, who is considering a run for mayor in 2021, promised early on as he delivered a speech focused on nothing but transit, including a forceful push for replacing the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the state entity that controls the

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  • Designing Bus Routes to Attract Passengers and Reverse Declining Ridership (Part 3)

    bus line

    (photo: Marc A. Hermann/MTA)


    The first two parts of this series discussed the causes for bus ridership decline, the Fast Forward plan as it relates to buses and why its focus needs to be changed to reverse this decline, a plan that worked: the southwest Brooklyn changes, and MTA studies that did not achieve their desired results. Read part 1 and

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  • Designing Bus Routes to Attract Passengers and Reverse Declining Ridership (Part 2)

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    (photo via NYC Department of Transportation)


    This is the second part of a 3-part series. Part 1 discussed the causes for bus ridership decline, the Fast Forward Plan as it relates to buses and why its focus needs to be changed to reverse this decline. In this part: measures that have worked in the past.

    The Southwest Brooklyn Changes of 1978
    No other group of bus route improvements were that

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