Commuter Alert: MTA Starts Fining Drivers Caught On Camera Blocking 14th Street Bus Lanes
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Attention drivers: Starting today, if you are caught on camera blocking the 14th Street bus lanes, you face a fine.
From the hours of 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., only buses and trucks are permitted to drive straight up 14th Street between 3rd and 9th avenues. The goal is to speed up the commute for bus riders.
Since the start of the program, the MTA says there has been an increase in ridership on the M14 bus line and a decrease in travel time.
"It does go by much quicker, much faster. But I don't see that much of a change," Harlem commuter Autema Suber told CBS2.
Resident Sophie Purdom said life on the busy thoroughfare has been much different since the changes took effect.
"It was very busy before with cars backed up all the time," she said. "I can walk my dog, I can open my window and it's a whole lot quieter. So it makes it a much more livable space."
Cars can still make pick-ups and drop-offs but must take the next possible right turn.
The MTA installed forward-facing cameras on the buses themselves back in November to capture cars blocking bus lanes. The 60-day grace period ended Tuesday, meaning warnings will turn to fines.
The first fine is $50 and will go up to as much as $250 for a fifth violation or more.
The M14 bus route is now the third route to have this mounted camera system, joining M15 and B44 buses.
The MTA says 9,100 warnings and violations have been issued since October.
"I got it twice already," said cab driver Saeed Qureshi. "It's not easy. We cannot commute easily."
The MTA plans to have bus-mounted cameras deployed on 1,000 buses in every borough over the next two years.
