By Jon Schuppe
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — City transportation officials have begun a tour of East Side neighborhoods to outline their plans to redesign bus and bicycle lanes on First and Second avenues.
They’ve visited Community Board 6 in Midtown East and Community Board 11 in East Harlem this week, and will visit other boards in February, culminating with an open-house discussion of the plans.
Representatives of the Department of Transportation and Metropolitan Transportation Authority are looking for input on the redesign, which will start in October with a new express bus route, called Select Bus Service, featuring pre-board payment, and clearer bicycle lanes.
When the 8.5-mile project is completed, it will be a patchwork of three different layouts. One will feature a bus lane offset from the curb, with concrete “bulbs” for boarding and a protected bike lane on the opposite side of the street. The second will set the bus lane next to the curb, and keep the protected bike lane. The third will be similar to current conditions, with a curbside bus lane and a bike lane that merges with automobile traffic.
The idea is to relieve traffic congestion and get buses moving faster on one of the city’s busiest routes, the M15.
Some elected officials have complained that many of the bus lanes won’t be protected from people parking in them illegally. And some drivers and business owners say parking and deliveries will be limited. Bicyclists have argued for more protected lanes.
