Squadron Announces Major Transit Restorations in Brooklyn, Manhattan
July 19, 2012
Squadron, Stakeholders, MTA to Design New Brooklyn Tech Triangle Bus Route, New Williamsburg Waterfront Route, Both to Begin in 2013
Squadron: Restorations Also Include B39 Service Over Williamsburg Bridge, Permanent G Train Extension, M9 Extension to Battery Park City
NEW YORK -- Today, State Senator Daniel Squadron announced that the MTA will make major bus and train service expansions and restorations in and between Brooklyn and Manhattan, including a brand new Brooklyn Tech Triangle bus route for which Sen. Squadron and stakeholders will lead the planning effort. The MTA will also establish a new bus route along the Williamsburg waterfront, which will be designed in consultation with community stakeholders and begin in mid-2013. Senator Squadron, his colleagues, and the community have been working with the MTA to advocate for these new routes, and for the restoration of services that were cut in 2010.
Service restorations will include B39 bus service over the Williamsburg Bridge, providing a vital conduit to and from Manhattan. The MTA will also restore M9 bus service to Battery Park City, which Senator Squadron and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver have advocated. Additionally, the MTA will permanently extend the G train to Church Avenue; Senator Squadron, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, and their colleagues have been urging the agency to make the extension permanent.
Other service changes include B24 weekend service, M21 weekend service, B69 weekend service, and B57 service extended into Red Hook.
"New Yorkers depend on the access bus and subway service provides every day of the week. These restorations and new routes will connect more neighborhoods for more New Yorkers more often," said Senator Squadron. "From Williamsburg to Red Hook and from the Lower East Side to Battery Park City, we've been pushing with the community for these restorations because they are, simply, essential. Brooklyn's tech industry is changing the face of New York -- and now, we'll have a bus route that will allow the booming Tech Triangle to continue to grow and innovate. Thank you to the MTA for its responsiveness and willingness to increase and restore service even in the face of significant budget constraints."
Senator Squadron will continue to advocate for additional restorations, including M8 weekend service, restoration of B51 service, and additional service from Columbia Street on the Brooklyn waterfront into Park Slope and beyond to replace the B71.
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