The M21 bus route constitutes a public transit line in Manhattan, New York City. The M21 operates between the West Village and the Lower East Side, serving as a Houston Street crosstown.
m21 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston Street Crosstown | |||
_01.jpg) An OBI Orion VII OG HEV 07.501 operating on the M21. | |||
| Overview | |||
| System | MTA Regional Bus Operations | ||
| Operator | New York City Transit Authority | ||
| Garage | Michael J. Quill Depot | ||
| Vehicle | New Flyer Xcelsior XD40 New Flyer Xcelsior XE40 Nova Bus LFS HEV | ||
| Route | |||
| Locale | Manhattan, New York, U.S. | ||
| Communities served | West Village, SoHo, Lower East Side | ||
| Start | West Village – Spring St and Hudson St West Village - 6th Avenue and Spring Street (PM rush hour) | ||
| Via | Houston St | ||
| End | Lower East Side – Grand Street and FDR Drive | ||
| Length | 2.5 miles (4.0 km) | ||
| Service | |||
| Weekend frequency | Every 30 minutes | ||
| Operates | 6:30 AM-11:50 PM | ||
| Annual patronage | 300,809 (2023)[1] | ||
| Transfers | Yes | ||
| Timetable | M21 | ||
| |||
Current route edit
The M21 bus route begins at Spring St at Hudson St in the West Village. Eastbound buses use Sixth Avenue to access Houston Street, whereas westbound buses use Washington Street to access the terminus. The M21 stays on Houston Street until Columbia Street. Eastbound buses continue to FDR Drive, and use the service road to access Grand St, where they terminate. Westbound buses then use Lewis St, Delancey St, and Columbia St to access Houston St, where they head back to the West Side.[2][3]During the afternoon rush hour, M21 buses short turn at 6th Avenue instead of terminating at Washington Street.
History edit
Early history edit
The M21 was originally the New York City Department of Plant and Structures bus route M10 – later became NYCO's 21. This route replaced New York Railways' Avenue C Line streetcar on September 21, 1919.
Recent history edit
Due to the 2010 budget crisis, the M21's weekend service discontinued on June 27, 2010, in conjunction with an extension to its current terminus at Grand Street and FDR Drive.[4] Weekend service was restored on January 6, 2013.[5] On January 3, 2022, the M21 had its western terminus during PM rush hours truncated to 6th Avenue due to rush hour traffic on Varick Street approaching the Holland Tunnel.[6][7]
The M21 operates a fleet of New Flyer XE40s, New Flyer XD40s, and Nova LFS HEV buses. Prior to 2023, the M21 used Orion VII OGs and Orion VII NGs. Prior to 2019, the M21 also used RTS-06 buses.
References edit
- ^ "Subway and bus ridership for 2023". mta.info. April 29, 2024. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
- ^ MTA Regional Bus Operations. "M21 bus schedule".
- ^ "MTA Bus Time". bt.mta.info. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
- ^ "NYCT Revised Service Changes" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 18, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
- ^ "Weekend service restored on Houston St". web.mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. January 2013. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
- ^ "M21 bus schedule". Archived from the original on October 13, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
- ^ "M21 bus schedule". Archived from the original on January 7, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2024.