Ok, this was a tough one and I didn’t get to the bottom of it but I just want to be on record as having tried.

Both R. and T. wrote (and T. sent the pics) to ask about the bus stop on the westside of Broadway and Franklin, across from Gourmet Garage. From R.: “The city installed benches and and a peninsula for buses. Oddly, they moved the bus stop to the south side of Franklin, where there are no benches for waiting patrons. It’s not a big deal, other than the money that the city spent and I find it very odd. I wonder if it has something to do with the construction site on the corner.”

And from T.: “The city first jackhammered Broadway and eventually built out a bus bulb in this spot [back in 2012]. Then not long after a crew came and jackhammered the bulb and put Broadway back to the way it was. Then the DOT came back and rebuilt the bus bulb again. Unlike the street repair teams on Worth, these guys work fast but why was the first bulb removed? Was it not up to code? This one is a bit fancier but now it seems to be out of business. Will it be jackhammered once more as part of an endless experiment? My dream would be that this outcropping could be covered in greenery or something besides more car storage for placard abusers.”

SO…I first tried the MTA, where I learned something: “On this topic, New York City DOT would be your point of contact, as it has oversight of bus stops and street design.”

So then to the DOT, which said, “The bus stop was moved to accommodate nearby building construction. Once construction is completed the stop will be restored to its original location.”

They seemed to be unaware (or not?) that the bus stop was indeed restored. The M55 stops at Broadway and Franklin, but neighbors say it still doesn’t use the bulb-out, but tourist buses do.

And since these are some pretty cool stats, here’s a few nuggets on the city’s bus system:

• Ridership: 2.2 million per average weekday; 678 million annual in 2019.
• Number of buses: 5,927 in January 2020
• Number of routes: 234 local, 20 Select Bus Service, and 73 express bus routes in the five boroughs.
• Number of stops on the M55: 67