Does Flushing need a bus depot? Lawmaker says, ‘yes’

Idling buses backed up on Flushing’s streets. Photo from Councilmember Sanda Ung

By Ryan Schwach

A Queens lawmaker says she has a solution for the congestion caused by city buses in Downtown Flushing.

City Councilmember Sandra Ung introduced legislation last week that would push city agencies to find locations for a bus depot in Flushing, which she says would free up space in the transportation hub.

The bill, which Ung introduced on April 27, would “require the Department of Transportation and the Department of City Planning to form a task force to identify potential locations for the construction of a bus depot in Flushing, Queens,” the legislation reads.

“The task force would also estimate the projected costs associated with the construction of such bus depot and submit a report to the Council and the Mayor with its findings,” the legislation continues.

Ung says that the Flushing community she represents is the busiest bus-to-train transfer hub in the entirety of the city’s transit system, with around 20 bus routes passing through the already incredibly congested Downtown Flushing area per day.

With that, she says, comes a heavy amount of layovers where bus drivers stop and take their breaks, which in turn causes streets in the area to clog up with traffic.

“We are lucky to have a transit-rich area in downtown Flushing, but that also brings with it a number of challenges,” said Ung. “Not only would a bus depot take out-of-service buses off our streets, but it would also provide a comfortable place for drivers to take breaks instead of sitting in a parked bus.”

Dian Yu, the executive director of the Flushing Business Improvement District, supports the plan.

“I think it is a good project,” he told the Eagle. “Downtown Flushing is a transit hub, and we like it, and we want to keep it that way.”

“The problem is that at the transit hub there are a lot of bus layovers, and drop-off-only, and that is a problem,” he added.

Yu says that buses use those drop-off-only spaces, specifically on 38th and 39th Avenues, and create congestion issues.

“So when the bus is parked on the street for an extensive period of time, it causes traffic congestion,” he said.

Ung said that a bus depot in the area is a logical solution. She believes it would eliminate buses on the streets, and would give drivers a place to take breaks and use the bathroom. Also, riders could use the area to enter and exit buses – several bus routes in Downtown Flushing see long lines of people waiting throughout the day on Flushing’s already crowded streets.

The study conducted under the proposed legislation would determine the best possible location for the depot, and would also figure out the cost of the construction, including purchasing the necessary lots, hiring contractors, workers, inspectors and other staff, as well as the purchasing of construction materials.

“Building a new bus depot in Flushing will not be cheap or quick, and it will likely require funding from city, state, and federal government,” said Ung. “But we can’t begin to advocate for or allocate those funds without a pragmatic proposal, which is where the task force comes in.”

The legislation says that the DOT commissioner or a designee would chair the task force, which would also include the commissioner of city planning and five mayoral appointments.

This project is just a piece of a solution for the councilmember and community leaders, who have said for years that congestion in Flushing is a safety issue.

“It's a good start,” said Yu. “We're hoping that the next step will be the city doing a comprehensive traffic study for Downtown Flushing, which is long overdue.”

Yu says an overall traffic study would address many of those other problems with congestion, like parking hours which limit customer access to businesses during morning and late night hours.

“For years, I think the city has been putting Band-Aid solutions,” he said.

A Flushing bus depot would not be new. Up until the 1940s, there was a bus depot at the intersection of Main Street and Roosevelt Avenue, where a department store currently stands.

Other officials, like former State Senator Leonard Stavisky – the late husband of Senator Toby Ann Stavisky – brought up the idea in the 1970s but was unable to get the project underway.

“I am not the first person to envision a bus depot in Flushing, but the fact is the need for one still exists,” Ung said. “This task force is the first step to making it a reality.”

In response to the legislation, the MTA directed reporters to DOT and DCP, who directed inquiries to City Hall.

A City Hall spokesperson said that the mayor’s office is “reviewing the legislation.”

Currently, the bill sits in the transportation committee.