Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled a joint plan in New York City to accelerate bus speeds and improve reliability across the five boroughs. The initiative, developed by the NYC DOT and the MTA targets 50 priority corridors and introduces a new generation of rapid bus service. This is an evolving story; last update: July 9, 2026.
The effort matters because the city operates the nation’s busiest bus network, with an estimated 2.75 million trips taken each day, yet average speeds hover around eight miles per hour. The program aims to make buses 20% faster on key routes, potentially saving riders up to six minutes per trip and reducing delays at stops to under two minutes beyond scheduled wait times. Officials framed the plan as a system-wide upgrade intended to respect riders’ time and deliver more consistent, accessible service.
Funding, governance and scope of the upgrade
The plan, branded Next Stop: Fast Buses, Better Service is backed by $254 million in expense funding and $628 million in capital funding across five fiscal years. The city–state partnership places the MTA in charge of fleet, operations and fare systems, while NYC DOT leads street design, bus priority infrastructure and curb management. Together, the agencies set a coverage goal: by the end of the rollout, 90% of New Yorkers should live within a half-mile of a subway, commuter rail line, Select Bus Service route, or a new rapid bus station.
Officials selected the 50 target corridors using ridership, on-time performance, trip length, and access to other transit options. Five routes were elevated for the next generation of rapid service: Flatbush Avenue; Utica Avenue; Northern Boulevard; Tremont Avenue and the Cross Bronx Expressway; and a connection from Kensington in Brooklyn to JFK Airport. Flatbush Avenue was identified for early delivery, with completion of a rapid corridor expected by 2030, while the additional four routes entered public engagement for design and phasing.
Speed, reliability and operational changes
Street treatments anchor the speed strategy. The city will continue building protected bus lanes and busways, deploy more queue jumps and transit signal priority to reduce red-light time, and redesign routes where geometry or stop spacing limits performance. A coordinated curb strategy is planned to keep bus lanes clear. To reinforce street priority, the Automated Camera Enforcement (ACE) program will expand to more than 50 additional routes by next year, complemented by 200 new stationary bus-lane cameras and increased NYPD enforcement on critical corridors.
On the operations side, the MTA committed to all-door boarding by 2027 to cut dwell times, a step paired with fare-control measures after earlier postponements linked to evasion concerns. The authority plans to purchase 2,500 new buses, replacing more than 40% of the current fleet, to boost reliability and accessibility. Together, signal priority, boarding changes and refreshed vehicles are intended to keep buses moving, improve on-time performance, and reduce late arrivals across the 50 priority corridors.
Rider experience and street-level amenities
To make waiting more comfortable and predictable, the city will install 300 new bus shelters by 2028 and add seating to 875 bus stops this year. Accessibility upgrades will make dozens of stops wheelchair accessible each year. Real-time information will expand with 90 displays at stops this year and an additional 2,900 screens by 2030, providing arrivals and service alerts to reduce uncertainty for riders.
The rider-focused investments complement the speed program by addressing comfort and safety at the curb. Enhanced shelters, seating and real-time displays are expected to shorten perceived wait times and improve wayfinding. Officials also linked the improvements to equity outcomes, noting that bus riders are disproportionately working class, women and people of color, and more likely than subway riders or drivers to live in households earning under $100,000. Faster journeys and more reliable headways aim to deliver tangible gains for these frequent riders.
Rapid bus corridors and neighborhood hubs
The rapid bus corridor component upgrades the city’s existing Select Bus Service toward a model closer to full bus rapid transit. Planned features include additional dedicated and protected bus space, raised or near-level boarding islands, and more robust stations with weather protection. Design concepts also envision neighborhood hubs that integrate public space upgrades, creating safer crossings and better access to local destinations around high-ridership stops.
Flatbush Avenue was named the first corridor to reach rapid standards by 2030, while Utica Avenue, Northern Boulevard, Tremont/Cross Bronx, and the Kensington–JFK link are proceeding through engagement and design this year. As corridors advance, the city and state plan to align signal priority, boarding changes, and enforcement to deliver corridor-wide gains rather than isolated fixes. Officials reiterated that the broader objective is a bus network that is faster, more reliable and more comfortable for the one million daily riders most affected by slow speeds and unreliable service.
