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Transportation & Environment

July 2017, Transportation & Environment Committee

Application by inter-city bus operator M & V Corporate Transport for a bus stop on the west side of Lexington Avenue between East 46th and 47th Streets

WHEREAS, Applicant M & V Corporate Transport seeks approval from the Department of Transportation ("DOT") of an Application to operate an inter-city bus service on the west side of Lexington Avenue between East 46th and 47th Streets; and

WHEREAS, The Applicant proposes five (5) daily pickups on Mondays – Fridays, between the hours of 10:30 AM and 2:30 PM; and

WHEREAS, The Port Authority Bus Terminal currently operates at or above capacity; and

WHEREAS, In response, several companies began offering low cost inter-city bus services from on-street pickup and drop off locations without formal authorization from DOT; and

WHEREAS, Without regulation, a high concentration of inter-city bus services developed in certain areas of midtown Manhattan, quickly resulting in increased sidewalk congestion, traffic gridlock, and increased on-street bus parking and double parking, all of which combined to create safety concerns for drivers, pedestrians, local business owners, and residents; and

WHEREAS, The State Legislature adopted Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1642-a in 2013 to address these concerns, empowering DOT to create a permitting system; and

WHEREAS, This law authorizes the City to:

1. Prohibit inter-city buses from loading or unloading passengers on City streets, except at designated on-street bus stop locations;
2. Require inter-city bus owners and/or operators to submit an application for each proposed on-street bus stop location;
3. Establish criteria for assigning on-street bus stop locations, including traffic considerations and the applicant's preferences;
4. Provide for consultation with the local Community Board and, where appropriate, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey;
5. Authorize DOT to issue inter-city bus permits and to charge a fee;
6. Provide for the relocation of an existing permitted on-street bus stop, upon 90-day notice to the permit holder and the local Community Board;
7. Grandfather existing inter-city bus services that currently have designated on-street bus stop locations, by granting a permit to continue to use those locations for up to three years; and

WHEREAS, The Applicant failed to properly appear before the Transportation and Environment Committee of Community Board Five ("CB5") as required; and

WHEREAS, Without the ability to hold a proper public hearing, neither CB5 nor the public at large can weigh in appropriately on the Application; therefore be it

RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends denial of M & V Corporate Transport's Application to the Department of Transportation to operate an inter-city bus service on the west side of Lexington Avenue between East 46th and 47th Streets.