WNYC's We The Commuters project is all about buses this week, and Kathy from New Paltz kicked things off on Monday with this summary of her commute into the city: "It's almost like a family. You get to see the same people quite frequently, and it's a very comforting environment." Does anyone say that about MTA buses? We went to find out, and came away with a strong "no." At the B4 stop on the corner of New Utrecht Avenue and Bay Ridge Parkway on Tuesday morning, a hospital worker named Stefanie has been waiting since 8:15 a.m. "Usually I'm waiting for like 20 minutes," she told WNYC. Sometimes she takes a cab, since "it costs me more to wait than to actually get to work on time." The bus arrived at 8:40 a.m. Outside City Hall later that morning, advocates and members of the State Assembly were rallying behind a letter, written by Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz of the Bronx, calling for improved bus service. "Buses in New York City have average speeds of seven miles an hour," the letter says, "and in more congested areas like Midtown Manhattan, Downtown Brooklyn and Jamiaca, Queens, they average a mere four miles per hour." Assemblywoman Nily Rozic, whose district around Flushing, Queens, has no subway stations, told WNYC that there is a way to speed up the buses. "A bus pulls up to the intersection," and with a Transit Signal Priority system in place, she says, the traffic light "will give them a ten-second or five-second start, before traffic. We've seen that be successful in the Jamaica-to-Flushing line in getting people moving." Do you have ideas for speeding up the buses? Let us know on Twitter using #WeTheCommuters, or join our Facebook group and leave a comment.
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