Marred by double parking, unprotected bike lanes, frequent bus service, high ridership and long crossing distances, the Edward L. Grant Highway is in need of upgrades.
On Tuesday, June 23, the Department of Transportation gave Community Board 4 an update on Bx35 Bus Priority and Safety Improvements for the road.
Currently, 33 percent to 71 percent of people traveling on the corridor are on buses. However, despite high ridership, there is minimal space dedicated to buses, resulting in slow bus speeds of 6.7 miles per hour in morning peak hours and 5.7 miles per hour in afternoon peak hours.
The highway is also known for being quite dangerous. From 2013 to 2017, 44 motorists, pedestrians and cyclists were injured per year.
Beginning June 29, the DOT will create five new bus boarding islands at bus stop locations with amenities such as benches and leaning bars. There will be dedicated bus only lanes to the center lanes along Edward L. Grant Highway, protected bike lanes in both directions and two new signalized pedestrian crossings at the north leg of 169th street and University Avenue concrete construction will start on July 6.
The DOT will also install median tip extensions at Nelson Avenue and Shakespeare Avenue, pedestrian refuge islands at Jerome Avenue, 170th Street, Shakespeare Avenue, Nelson Avenue and Plimpton Avenue.
There were will be left turn restrictions southbound at Plimpton Avenue and 169th Street and northbound at Nelson Avenue. Additionally, the city will implement pedestrian ramp upgrades to ADA standards, new daytime metered parking adjacent to commercial uses. Lastly, existing meters will be changed from one hour to two hour time limits and be in effect from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. all days except Sunday.
