CHINATOWN — Heavyweight bus company Greyhound is eyeing curbside space in the popular and packed Chinatown bus market.
The national carrier, which also owns cheaper alternative BoltBus, will be running a proposal by Community Board 3 in the coming weeks to create a curbside bus stop somewhere in Chinatown, which is known for its myriad discount bus companies.
There are dozens of cheap carriers that operate out of the neighborhood, running buses throughout the country, and creating traffic and safety problems that local politicians have sought to address through newly introduced legislation.
Many of the discount companies have faced increased scrutiny following a series of accidents involving carriers with spotty safety records.
Last year 17 people died in two separate accidents involving discount bus services. The U.S Department of Transportation shut down 26 bus lines in May, citing unsafe practices.
"Greyhound does plan to bring a new bus service to town, but we’re still finalizing all of the details, in addition to working with the local community on our operations plan," said Jen Biddinger, a spokeswoman for Greyhound, adding that more details would be released shortly.
CB3 district manager Susan Stetzer confirmed the upcoming meeting with Greyhound and said the proposal will be discussed by the board's transportation committee next month.
The city DOT also confirmed it will be sharing a proposal with CB3 to gather feedback on possible new curbside locations for Greyhound, which ferries 25 million passengers between 2,300 destinations each year. The exact location of the curbside pickup spot is not yet known.
In June, the state Senate and Assembly passed legislation to allow the city to designate drop-off and pick-up locations for bus carriers, as well as establish a permit system to better track the companies. The bill is still waiting to be signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
