Busway

Usage: Limited

Busways restrict through movements at intersections to only buses and generally trucks. Local traffic is still able to access a busway via side streets, but vehicles are usually required to make the next available turn off the corridor. An example is 14th Street in Manhattan.

Limited access transit streets include streets which further restrict access to a portion of or the entire street so only buses and emergency vehicles are able to use that segment of roadway.

Livingston Street, Brooklyn
14th Street, Manhattan

Benefits

  • Busways grant buses and trucks priority by restricting through movements for other vehicles 
  • Limited Access Transit Streets prioritize buses on corridors that either are too narrow for traditional lanes or require additional enforcement to keep the bus lanes clear
  • Improves bus speeds and reliability by separating buses from potential congestion in mixed traffic and by reducing or eliminating their need to merge in and out of traffic at bus stops
  • Provides means for emergency vehicles to bypass traffic
  • Busways permit local access and curb activity

Considerations

  • Limited Access transit streets require review of existing loading and parking demand
  • Busways can accommodate both high bus and truck demand but forces other through vehicles to reroute

Application

  • Consider on all streets with very high bus volumes or bus ridership and adequate roadway width, regardless of congestion
  • Avoid on streets where the roadway geometry prevents the safe operation of a bus lane in conjunction with other necessary uses of the roadway

Design

Review Markings

  • Typically 24 to 48 feet in width
  • Color Surface Treatment is preferred at block ends for busways to indicate no through traffic
  • Automated enforcement is used to keep bus lanes clear 
  • Busways generally incorporate forced right turns on each block to limit through traffic, but restrictions should be tailored to each corridor
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