Bklyn Biz Group Asks Mamdani to Extend Flatbush Ave. Bus Lane South - Streetsblog New York City

"“When you have long, slow rides, it discourages folks from popping into a store, that's lost money for our businesses,” Casey Martinez, a representative of the Church-Flatbush Community Alliance, a central Brooklyn business improvement district, said at a rally with transit advocates and union members on Wednesday. “We are here, as the Church-Flatbush BID, with our fellow riders to say to Mayor Mamdani, 'Please extend the bus lane now, make Flatbush Avenue "fast and free." ' ”"

"Martinez pointed to a 2024 Pratt Center survey that found 70 percent of bus riders use the bus on Flatbush to get to shopping, eating or entertainment destinations on the corridor. “That makes a bus lane all the way down Flatbush Avenue a no-brainer,” Martinez said. “We want more shoppers. We want more people to spend money, not drive through,” Martinez said."

"The local BID's support contrasts with circumstances that have sunk other bus projects, most recently on Fordham Road in the Bronx, which local business interests associated with the Belmont BID successfully held off for years during the Eric Adams administration. (Mamdani, who ran on a platform of “fast and free” buses, pledged this year to advance the project.)"

"The Department of Transportation broke ground last month on an bus lane redesign of Flatbush Avenue north of Grand Army Plaza to Livingston Street. Rider advocates hope Mamdani won't wait"

Central Brooklyn businesses and transit advocates are urging Mayor Mamdani to extend Flatbush Avenue bus lanes south of Prospect Park. Long, slow bus rides discourage people from stopping at nearby stores, reducing revenue for local businesses. A business improvement district representative says the goal is to make Flatbush Avenue “fast and free” by extending bus lanes to improve travel times and encourage riders to shop, eat, and spend along the corridor. Support is framed against stalled bus lane efforts elsewhere, including Fordham Road in the Bronx. A 2024 Pratt Center survey is cited, showing most Flatbush bus riders use the bus to reach destinations on the corridor. The Department of Transportation has begun redesign work north of Grand Army Plaza, and advocates want further extension.

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