<< Back
Transportation & Environment
Request by Go New York Tours, Inc., dba Top View, for a bus stop at 766 8th Avenue at West 47th Street, as part of a city-wide touring attraction.
At the regularly scheduled monthly Community Board Five meeting on Thursday, February 10, 2022, the following resolution passed with a vote of 37 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining:
WHEREAS, Go New York Tours, Inc., dba Top View (“Applicant”), seeks approval from the Department of Transportation (“DOT”) of an Application to add pick-ups and drop-offs to its Top View touring bus; and
WHEREAS, The Applicant proposes this bus stop for pick-ups and drop-offs in front of 766 8th Avenue at West 47th St, for service Monday through Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. with a pick up every 30 minutes; and
WHEREAS, The current parking regulation is No Standing; and
WHEREAS, This is a pre-existing bus stop for Gray Line New York Tours, Inc., however, this stop has been suspended due to the pandemic; and
WHEREAS, MTA Service is subject to change due to traffic conditions; and
WHEREAS, Go New York Tours, Inc. dba Top View pick-ups and drop-offs will be made expeditiously; and
WHEREAS, Without regulation, a high concentration of intercity 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 2014 to address these concerns, empowering DOT to create a permitting system; and
WHEREAS, This law authorizes the City to:
- prohibit inter-city buses from loading or unloading passengers on City streets, except at designated on-street bus stop locations; and
- require inter-city bus owners and/or operators to submit an application for each proposed on-street bus stop location;
- establish criteria for assigning on-street bus stop locations, including traffic considerations and the applicant's preferences; and
- provide for consultation with the local Community Board and, where appropriate, the MTA and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; and
- authorize DOT to issue inter-city bus permits and to charge a fee; 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; and
- 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, DOT inspected this location and considers it appropriate; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five’s Transportation and Environment Committee assessed this application and viewed the location at 766 8th Avenue at West 47th Street; and
WHEREAS, Neighbors and community organizations including Community Board Five generally had no objection to additional use at this location; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends approval of the Go New York Tours, Inc., dba Top View, application for a bus stop at 766 8th Avenue at West 47th Street, so long as the stops do not interfere with other buses, the flow of traffic, or pedestrian and there is no conflict in any way with MTA buses.