The average speed of a bus in Brooklyn is 6.3 mph

New York has the slowest bus system of any large city in the country, according to City Comptroller Scott Stringer. And he’d like you to redirect your attention from the subway for literally one minute to talk about that.

In a new report from his office, The Other Transit Crisis: How to Improve the NYC Bus System, Stringer delves into what’s wrong with the city’s bus system and how it could become an economic driver in the future.

“New York City subways were largely built to bring workers to Manhattan. But residents throughout the city are now more likely to commute within their home borough than to Manhattan, making an efficient, well-planned bus system essential,” the report notes.

https://twitter.com/NYCComptroller/status/935524656009883653

In a city where getting from one place to another can be a nightmare, bus travel makes a lot of sense, and at $2.75 per trip, is a fraction of the price of even an Uber Pool. Yet, in the years when subway service has faltered, bus ridership hasn’t grown. According to the report, the MTA bus system has lost 100 million rides in the last eight years.

Some other interesting facts:

• The operating costs per passenger for the NYCT Bus ($3.98) and MTA Bus Company ($5.48) ranks them 7^thand 14^th among the 17 largest city bus companies in the United States.
• The typical New York City bus spends only half its time in-motion/in-traffic.
• The average personal income of bus commuters is $28,455 – far lower than subway commuters ($40,000) and employed New Yorkers as a whole ($38,840).