M50 Bus Wins "Slower Than a Lawnmower" Acclaim

According to this year's annual "Pokey" award, the slowest local bus route in New York City is the M50, which travels crosstown on 49th and 50th Streets between First and Twelfth Avenues, clocking in at just 3.5 miles per hour at noon on a weekday, according to Straphangers Campaign staff and volunteers. The slogan for the winning (losing?) route, which was awarded a golden snail on a pedestal: "You Could Push a Lawnmower Faster Crosstown Than M50 Travels." It's also "barely faster than a pedestrian's typical 3.1 mph speed," explains the Post.

This is the 10th year the NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign and Transportation Alternatives gave out the award. They also gave the Schleppie -- an award featuring golden lumbering elephants on a pedestal -- for the sixth year in a row, to the city's least reliable bus, the M101/102/103, which they say "arrived with big gaps in service or bunched together" more than one out of four times.

Also notable:

According to the groups, the slowest bus routes in each borough are:

B41 6.5 mph Between Kings Plaza and Downtown Brooklyn on Flatbush Avenue
Bx19 5.0 mph Between Botanical Garden in the Bronx and Harlem
M50 3.5 mph Crosstown on 49th and 50th Streets in Manhattan
Q58 7.2 mph Between Ridgewood, Queens, and Flushing/Main Street
S48 8.8 mph Between Richmond Terrace and St. George Ferry Terminal, Staten Island

The good news is, the Select Bus Service routes have succeeded in increasing bus speeds, which is great news for the passengers who've figured out Select Bus Service.

NYPIRG STRAPHANGERS CAMPAIGN

[JDoll / @thisisjendoll]

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