By Joseph Morales
The Jamaica and Archer Avenue Busway is a busway in the Downtown Jamaica section of Queens. In addition to being one of the largest bus/subway transfer hubs in Queens, Downtown Jamaica is also among the borough’s cultural, business and economic centers, making it one of the most popular transit destinations in the borough. Downtown Jamaica boasts an abundance of culturally-diverse retail, two colleges and much more. Thus as you might expect, the area gets congested on a regular basis, slowing down the over 250,000 bus riders and 48 bus routes(11 NICE(Nassau County) bus routes who pass through to get to their destinations daily. As many Queens and Nassau County residents live far from a subway station, for many this is the fastest way to get to a subway station. For those making trips within Queens, a large portion of bus routes terminate in Downtown Jamaica, forcing riders to transfer here in order to get to their destinations. Therefore, faster bus service is critical to ensuring that those entering and passing through Downtown Jamaica can travel on fast and reliable buses.
Signage indicating Jamaica Ave Busway Regulations
Signage indicating Jamaica Ave Busway Regulations at intersection of Jamaica Ave/Merrick Blvd
The Jamaica and Archer Avenue Busway is on Jamaica Ave between Sutphin Blvd and 168th St in both directions and Archer Av in the eastbound direction between 150th St and 160th St. Under busway regulations, only buses, trucks and emergency vehicles can pass directly through the busway. On Jamaica Avenue other vehicles can make local trips to destinations in the busway, but must exit at the next available right turn. There are no left turns allowed except for at 153rd St. There is no local access allowed on Archer Ave.
The busway has drawn mixed reviews from bus riders, motorists and business owners. As one might expect, the busway has improved bus speeds as the NYCDOT has reported that the busways have increased bus speeds by 34%. This not only improves commutes for those going through Downtown Jamaica, but for riders who use bus routes that pass through Downtown Jamaica as bus delays can affect service for an entire route. This will become even more important if the Queens Bus Network Redesign Draft Plan is finalized and more bus routes go straight through Downtown Jamaica rather than terminate there as many bus routes do today. This can become a great thing for bus riders as long as bus speeds continue to improve, as they would not have to transfer but could instead ride buses straight through Downtown Jamaica to get to different parts of Queens. Drivers might not be happy due to losses in street parking and the ability to drive straight through the major corridors as area politicians have voiced concerns on the issue. The Jamaica Center Business Improvement District conducted a survey in March 2022 and claimed that 85% of responding businesses had lost an average of 39% of foot traffic when the busway was launched. The NYCDOT however, took data that said 42% of shoppers took the bus, 25% walk, 19% take the subway and just 7% drove to the area. City Councilwoman Nantasha Williams(D-27) has stated how she believes the busway rules do not take the needs of motorists into account. She said in a NYCDOT Transportation Committee hearing that “When the DOT [does] surveys… they’re really only asking targeted questions to bus riders, which I get is the priority, but there is no assessment on the impact of the bus lanes to the businesses that are along the corridors and the other people that drive into the area.”
The NYCDOT has not posted any data on the project listing for the Jamaica/Archer Av busway on its website regarding the impacts of the busway. The Jamaica Center Business Improvement District also does not have any information on its website regarding how their survey was conducted. Thus, the reason behind the data differences between their survey and the NYCDOT survey is not clear. City Councilwoman Selvena Brooks-Powers(D-31) also has criticized the busway for making it harder for people to access local businesses.
Considering the high number of people who own cars and take public transportation to work in the areas surrounding the busway, it is possible that someone takes a bus to Downtown Jamaica for the purpose of taking the subway to work in Manhattan, but drives to Downtown Jamaica to go shopping on weekends. Also, people might choose to take a bus versus drive to Downtown Jamaica simply because they are not in the mood to find parking or for other reasons related to convenience, thus they may benefit from the busway during some trips but not others. What else is important to note is that people might want to travel to specific stores or facilities in Downtown Jamaica via different modes.
For example, someone going to a clothing store might take a bus and bring their merchandise with them on board quite easily but someone going furniture shopping might need a car for the purpose of transporting their purchases to their destinations. Thus, clothing store owners might benefit from the busway as people are more likely to take the bus, see their store while walking and come inside. On the other hand, the furniture store owner might not benefit because people generally make specific plans for what furniture store they will go, what they will purchase and how they will get their purchase to their destination. If it is not convenient to drive to that store, the customer might be compelled to shop somewhere else, which may hurt business for Downtown Jamaica furniture stores. In addition, people spend more time in certain businesses than others. It’s possible that if someone only needs to make a quick stop at a business, that they will drive rather than take the bus. Whereas, they may take the bus if they are planning on spending more time in Downtown Jamaica. It’s possible that while the NYCDOT surveyed shoppers and the Jamaica Center Business Improvement District Surveyed merchants, the DOT surveyed more shoppers going to the stores that are easier to take public transit too, while the merchants the Jamaica Center Business Improvement District surveyed own businesses that are more car-friendly.
While this busway project has been controversial it has the opportunity to be a positive thing for Downtown Jamaica business owners, bus riders and all road users in the area. New York City Mayor Eric Adams had reduced hours on the nearby Flushing busway from 24/7 to 6AM-7PM,7 days a week 181st St Busway in Washington Heights, Manhattan to 6AM-8PM from 10PM based on similar community concerns to those presented in Downtown Jamaica. Exactly one year since the busway has been implemented, it remains to see whether the Archer/Jamaica Av busway will be made permanent.
