CHINATOWN — Three bus companies that want to set up stops on Canal Street will present their plans to the community this week.
The proposed stops — which would serve Happy Go Travel, Inc., Diaspora Investment Association and Cash World Tours, running buses to destinations as far away as Ohio and Florida — have already sparked opposition among some residents who say there are too many buses in Chinatown.
The Seward Park Around Canal East Block Association sent out an email encouraging locals to show up at a Community Board 3 meeting Thursday night where the new bus stop applications will be discussed.
“Without the consent of our community, the private bus system in Chinatown has created a de facto bus depot,” the block association wrote in an email blast on Tuesday.
“It’s time to stop complaining about it and start doing something about it."
Happy Go Travel, Inc. is eyeing a spot on 59 Canal St., between Orchard and Allen streets, which it would share with two existing companies, Virginia Seagull and Z&D.
The bus would travel between the city and Columbus, Ohio, and New Stanton, Pennsylvania, and would offer one drop-off and one pickup seven days a week.
The company would extend the stop by 90 feet if approved, according to a letter sent to the community board by the Department of Transportation.
Diaspora Investment Association has applied for a stop in front of 139 Canal St. between Chrystie Street and the Bowery. The bus will travel between the city and Boston, with four pickups and four drop-offs seven days a week, according to DOT documents.
And Cash World Tours, Inc. has applied for a stop in front of 50 Canal St., between Ludlow and Orchard streets, according to documents. It would operate between the city, Buffalo, Philadelphia and Florida with six pickups and six drop-offs between 10 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. seven days a week.
Representatives of the three Chinatown bus companies were not available for comment.
Community Board 3 will weigh in on the applications at a 6:30 p.m. meeting May 8 at University Settlement's Houston Street Center, 273 Bowery. The Department of Transportation will make the final decision on the new bus stops.
