Westchester County is proposing to streamline service on the Bee-Line bus system, adding additional trips, improving connections to other transit systems and introducing shuttle service to underserved parts of the county.
The proposals are part of the Westchester County Mobility & Transit Plan, a years-long study of regional transit patterns aimed at aligning future service with the evolving needs of county residents. The county released a draft of its plan recently; a final report is expected later this year after additional comments are collected.
While the plan would increase the number of residents who live near a frequent-service stop during morning rush hour, it would also reduce and alter service in northern Westchester, in response to ridership trends.
The system's most-used lines would see increased service and modified routes. For example, Route 20, which connects the Bronx to White Plains largely along Central Park Avenue, would add six additional trips to the schedule each day. That line had an average daily ridership of 10,930 pre-pandemic, the most in the system.
Under the draft changes, Route 20 would terminate at a different subway stop in the Bronx, serving the 5 and 2 lines, which would allow better access to the west side of Manhattan.
Other high-traffic routes would would see substantially increased service.
Route 40, connecting Mount Vernon to White Plains along White Plains Road/Post Road, had the seventh-highest ridership pre-pandemic with a daily average of 4,905. It would add 27 daily trips to its weekday schedule and 29 trips to the weekend schedule.
The draft plan also proposes to boost service along the county's east-west corridors:
- Route 7, connecting Yonkers, Mount Vernon and New Rochelle, would add 19 daily trips to its weekday schedule.
- Route 13, connecting Tarrytown, White Plains and Port Chester, would add 32 daily trips to the weekday schedule. Service from Tarrytown to Ossining, which is currently available on some trips, would be transferred to a standalone line.
Under the proposed improvements, 59% of Westchester residents would live within a half-mile of a frequent-service stop during morning rush hour, up by 10 percentage points compared to the current map.
“It is a best practice for transit agencies, particularly transit agencies that run buses, to review in depth routes and ridership every few years," Catherine Cioffi, the communications director for County Executive George Latimer, said in a statement. "We at the county have partaken in this review process to ensure that the Bee-Line Bus System is running efficiently — essentially that we are getting people where they need to go in the shortest amount of time possible."
In 2019, nearly 100,000 trips were held on the Bee-Line system each weekday. The network also operated 263 buses during maximum ridership. Despite shifting demographics and new economic development, some routes have remained the same for over five decades.
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Northern Westchester changes proposed
Under the draft changes, transit infrastructure in northern Westchester could change substantially. The plan proposes to pare back bus coverage in much of that area, supplementing service with new on-demand shuttles. For example, Route 15, which crosses Peekskill to Yorktown Heights and then snakes down the center of the county to White Plains, would see the entire southern portion of the route slashed.
Two low-ridership commuter routes serving Yorktown Heights, Croton-on-Hudson and southern Putnam County would be eliminated entirely.
Riders seeking to traverse the county may be left in a coverage gap or have to find alternate routes nearby, if that is even possible.
To offset potential service cuts in northern Westchester, the draft plan recommends offering shuttles to commuters living near Ossining and Peekskill, among other areas. Shuttle service would allow individuals affected by proposed cuts to travel freely within a designated microtransit zone, such as to a nearby bus stop or Metro-North train station.
Talia Crawford, the campaign organizer for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, a transit advocacy group, said the replacement of fixed-route bus service with an untested shuttle program is one of her organization's main concerns.
"There needs to be an increased explanation as to how microtransit will work," she said. "It should not replace fixed-route service. It should complement the existing transit that's in place."
MTA partnership sought
As part of the redesign, officials are attempting to facilitate transfers between Bee-Line buses and the Metro-North Railroad by eliminating duplicate fares, which would require the participation of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
If approved, new policies of fare reciprocity and parity would allow Bee-Line riders to transfer to the Metro-North for free, or take a Metro-North trip within Westchester for the same cost as a Bee-Line trip. Currently, a rider transferring between the two transit systems pays separate fares.
Anyone seeking to review and comment on the draft plan may do so by visiting westchestermobility.org. Public comment is being solicited through Friday.
Asher Stockler is a reporter for The Journal News. You can find him on Twitter at@quasiasheror send him an email atastockler@lohud.com. Reach him securely: asher.stockler@protonmail.com.
