June 9, 2026
Bus Changes In Eastern Queens Brings Frustration
By John Myers
By Nazeeha Ahmed
In the summer of 2025, the MTA issued a wave of changes for almost all bus routes throughout the city. When presenting these changes, the MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Liber said “We are moving bus stops to make sure they serve more people. We are taking away some bus stops in the interest of having faster rides.” Concepts for these changes have been in development since 2019, and MTA designers have been gathering information and contacting local communities on how to improve their bus routes. The results were major changes to almost all the bus routes throughout the city.
Northeastern Queens is a quiet, more reserved area that borders Long Island. There is no connection to the Subway lines, and in order to get to work, school or daily activities commuters must take one of the buses that run along Hillside Avenue to the nearest 179st train station and the F-line to reach the bigger city. Despite five buses primarily going through this avenue, riders often complain of the buses being extremely crowded or delayed. And the new changes only seemed to make things worse.
Azduar Rahman, a senior citizen who lives in Queens Village reported that the bus stops are now spaced farther apart. “I have a cane, it’s hard to walk so far. The bus stop used to be right near my house, but now I have to walk two blocks uphill.” This sentiment is shared by many other elders in the community, but it is also a concern for students, as the local buses transport thousands of kids to various high schools and middle schools around Hillside Avenue. Khandaker Akter, a student at Thomas A. Edison C.T.E. High School, says that the new bus changes make it harder for her to get to school every day. “I used to be able to take the Q77 and Q76. Now I have to walk farther for Q1, and I always miss my bus. I keep coming late to school and my teachers get upset.”
An additional change that happened was switching the local bus terminal, which serves fifteen bus lines from the historical Jamaica 165th Street terminal that has been in use since the 1930s to a new one on 168th street. The MTA explained this was to revamp the old terminal and will only be temporarily, but the new terminal has brought some frustration to the residents. Arfa Sultana uses the terminal to get to her doctor’s appointments but said that “Before all the buses came to the same place and you got on the first one that took you. Now everything is confusing and far apart. It’s hard to cross and I don’t know what bus is about to go so I miss my bus.”
Mr. Chevry, an MTA bus operator, commented, “If enough people have the same issue with a stop, you can call 311 and report the stop to transit. Pay attention to the signage in buses or the waiting areas because sometimes there are surveys to take where your feedback is helpful.”
