Bus Service Exacerbates Social Inequality, Says City Comptroller

Job growth is booming in the outer boroughs. Ten times as many jobs were created in Brooklyn than Manhattan over the last decade, and seven times as many in the Bronx and Queens, according to a report released on Monday by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer. 

"Clearly, people have been pushed farther out to the outskirts of the city," he said. "These are working New Yorkers that are now living in transportation deserts, so the bus becomes your lifeline."

Stringer noted that most bus riders are low-income people of color, and half of them are foreign-born. He called for a complete overhaul of bus routes to connect people to new job hubs across the five boroughs. Stringer also wants to see an increase in the number of dedicated bus lanes and new technology at intersections to cut back on the time buses spend waiting at red lights. 

The New York City Department of Transportation says it has reworked traffic signals for buses at 260 intersections and added an average of eight miles of new bus lanes a year since 2012.