Getting Around NYC by Bus

NYC's 3,700 buses operate throughout the five boroughs on more than 200 routes. You are usually within a few blocks of a bus stop.

Cost: The cost is $2 per ride, no matter the distance. You can pay your fare with a MetroCard, a token, or exact change in coins. The driver does not give change and fareboxes do not accept dollar bills or pennies. A MetroCard can save you money on multiple rides. Options include the $7 one-day Fun Pass; the 7- ($24) and 30-day ($76) unlimited ride cards; and a pay-per-ride card ($10 for 6 rides, $20 for 12 rides, but you may put any amount onto a MetroCard).

Transfers: If you pay your fare with MetroCard, you may transfer free from bus to subway, subway to bus, or bus to bus within two hours of the time you paid your fare. Unlimited Ride MetroCard includes all transfers, at no charge.

Where to Get a MetroCard: There are 3,500 MetroCard merchants throughout the city including NYC's Official Visitor Information Center and many subway stations and hotels.

Routes run uptown/downtown and crosstown from 6am until shortly after midnight, with waiting time between each bus approximately 5-15 minutes, depending on the time of day. Keep in mind that while buses are a great way to see the city and get to your destination, the ride can be slow going when there is a lot of traffic - if you have the time and patience, sit back and enjoy the ride!

There are many transfer points (for example, taking the bus up First Avenue to 34th Street and transfering to a bus going west, to 5th Avenue at the Empire State Building), making it easy to get to most destinations. In Manhattan, these crosstown transfers are at the following streets: 8th/9th, 14th, 23rd,34th, 49/50th, 57th, 66/67th, 72nd, 79th, 86th, 96th, 110th, 116th, and 125th.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA; 718/330-1234, non-English 718/ 330-4847) is the source for route and schedule information for subways and buses throughout the five boroughs. Free bus maps are available in the Official NYC Guide at NYC's Official Visitor Information Center, on buses, at subway stations, and by calling 718/330-3322, 9am-5pm, weekdays.

Tips

Bus Stops - How to Locate a Bus Stop: Bus stops have a tall, round sign with a bus emblem and route number; some have bus shelters. Most also include a "Guide-A-Ride," which is a rectangular box attached to the bus sign pole that displays a route map and bus schedule.

Boarding the Bus: As the bus pulls up to the stop, read the destination sign on its front. Board at the front of the bus. You can pay your fare with a MetroCard, a token, or exact change in coins. The driver does not give change and fareboxes do not accept dollar bills or pennies. If you use a MetroCard, position it with the cut corner on the upper left and feed it into the farebox; the farebox will take it internally and then give it back to you.

Transfers/Making Connections: If you pay your fare with a MetroCard, you may transfer free from bus to subway, subway to bus, or bus to bus within two hours of the time you paid your fare. Unlimited Ride MetroCards include all transfers (it's calculated electronically on your MetroCard; you don't need to get a paper transfer), at no charge. If you pay your fare with coins or a token, you may transfer free between buses with intersecting routes. Ask the bus driver for a transfer when you pay your fare.

Getting Off the Bus: Most buses stop every few blocks. Buses marked "Limited" make fewer stops. Push one of the yellow tape strips located between the windows to signal the driver to stop. You can also ask the driver when you board to alert you when you reach your stop. When the bus stops, a green light will appear over the rear door. Exit at the rear by touching the yellow strip on the door; the doors will automatically open. If they don't, push hard on the handles.

Bus Tours

Bus tours are a great way to get around while learning about New York City's culture, attractions, and history. Among the many are D3 Busline - Night Tours, Gray Line New York Sightseeing/Coach USA sightseeing tours by double-decker bus, full-size coach, or the Gray Line New York Trolley, Harlem, Your Way! tours of Harlem's cultural institutions and landmarks, A Hip Hop Look at New York tours, which highlights hip-hop attractions in an educational format, Insight Seeing New York tours, and On Location Tours, Inc., which tour TV's famous sites, including Friends, Seinfeld, Law & Order, and the Jeffersons.

Getting Around NYC - Bus Stations

There are two major bus terminals in Manhattan: the main one, Port Authority, is in midtown Manhattan, near Times Square; the other, the George Washington Bridge Bus Station, is uptown, near the George Washington Bridge. Both have multiple information desks providing assistance for travelers on their main floors.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal

635 Eighth Avenue (40th-42nd Streets), NYC 10018, 212/564-8484

The world's busiest bus terminal, a western anchor of Times Square, serves 58 million riders a year. Approximately 36 bus lines connect Port Authority with virtually any point in the continental United States, Canada, and Mexico. It provides bus service to La Guardia Airport, John F. Kennedy, and Newark International Airports from the Airport Bus Center. There's also service to the Atlantic City, New Jersey casinos, the Meadowlands Sports Complex, Monmouth Park and Aqueduct horse racing tracks, the Jersey shore, Jones Beach, and a host of other recreational facilities.

Port Authority has parking for more than 1,000 cars in a three-story superstructure above the terminal roof, airline ticketing for Continental Airlines, a post office, ATM machines, restaurants, and a bowling alley.

Direct underground passageways connect the terminal with the A, C, E, N, R, S, 1, 2, 3, 7, and 9 subway lines.

George Washington Bridge Bus Station

4211 Broadway (between 178th and 179th Streets), 800/221-9903

Visitors arriving from northern New Jersey and Rockland County, New York, may also arrive at the George Washington Bridge Bus Station, in the Washington Heights area of upper Manhattan. In 2001, the bus station handled approximately 4.9 million passengers and served seven bus carriers. There is new bus service that goes between the three major area airports (JFK, La Guardia, and Newark - Express Bus Service).

The station houses a bank, barber shop and beauty salon, retail stores, restaurants, newsstands, dentist, optician, bookstore, pharmacy, and a Traveler Information Kiosk.

The terminal connects with the A subway line at the 175th Street subway station. Buses that stop at or near the station include the M4, M5, M98, M100, BX7, BX11, BX13, and BX.