Riverdale bus riders say unreliable service leaves them waiting

In greater Riverdale, bus riders say inconsistent service is leaving them waiting through long, unpredictable gaps year-round, with many saying it has been a longstanding issue.

MTA rider surveys suggest wait times are a particular pain point. In its spring 2025 customer survey, only half of local, limited and Select Bus Service riders said they were satisfied with how long they waited for a bus — 14 percentage points lower than the 64 percent who said they were satisfied with bus service overall.

The Riverdale Press observed Bx7 and Bx10 service at several stops in recent weeks, comparing actual bus arrival times with published MTA schedules. While buses generally began their routes on or close to their scheduled times, service became less consistent farther along the routes, with buses sometimes arriving within minutes of each other, followed by longer gaps.

For neighbors who rely on buses to reach the subway, shop or travel between different parts of the neighborhood, those inconsistencies can add significant time to otherwise short trips.

Betty Carroll, who has lived at the Knolls Cooperative in Spuyten Duyvil for about 13 years and does not own a car, relies primarily on the Bx10 and Bx7.

“What happens is two or three buses in a row, and then you don’t have a bus for a very long time, and then they’re very crowded, and people can’t get on them,” Carroll said.

Carroll said buses are particularly important because many people in the area live too far from subway stations to comfortably walk the hilly terrain, particularly when carrying groceries or navigating damaged sidewalks.

“You have to take a bus to get to a train or another bus,” she said. “So we really depend on the buses a lot.”

David Gellman, a Spuyten Duyvil resident, said the neighborhood’s larger problem is not necessarily its connections north and south, but getting east and west to reach them.

Metro-North serves communities along the western side of the coverage area, while the 1 train is accessible from Kingsbridge and the 4, B and D trains are farther east. For people who do not live near those stations, a local bus can be the first leg of nearly every public transportation trip.

“They are not frequent enough,” Gellman said. “You know, people complain about bus bunching, and it is a little puzzling how that happens.”

Similar inconsistencies appear across the Bronx. A 2025 analysis by the city comptroller’s office using MTA data found the median Bronx bus route was on time roughly 73 percent of the time, while the borough’s median bunching rate — the share of buses arriving within a few minutes of the bus ahead of them — was 10.7 percent.

At West 231st Street and Broadway, where riders transfer from the 1 train to buses traveling uphill into Riverdale, residents say the uneven gaps between buses can be particularly noticeable.

Jeff Siegal, who has lived in Spuyten Duyvil for a decade and frequently rides the bus, typically takes the Bx10 to reach the 1 train. Although he owns a car, he said limited parking around the subway makes the bus a more practical connection.

Siegal said he has long noticed more Bx7 buses than Bx10s at West 231st Street. The distinction matters because portions of the two routes overlap, allowing some Bx7 riders to take either bus, while residents along other portions of the Bx10 route do not have that option.

“A lot of people who take the seven bus can also take the 10 bus,” Siegal said. “Me... I can only take the 10 bus. The question is, why isn’t it a little bit more proportionate? There’s so many more sevens than 10s.”

Siegal said he filed a complaint directly with the MTA and never heard back. He also raised the issue with local elected officials. Siegal said he was told there had been some discussion about adding more Bx10 buses, though nothing concrete has come of it yet.

Gellman raised another concern about the Bx20, which once operated for much more of the day but now runs primarily during weekday rush hours. The route provides a connection from Riverdale to the 1 and A subway lines in Manhattan, and Gellman said its limited schedule leaves riders with fewer options outside commuting hours.

Carroll also said expanded Bx20 service could help alleviate some of the pressure on other routes.

“I would love to see the shorter route of the number 20,” she said. “I think it would eliminate a lot of problems if it ran all the time, not just during this hour.”

Both Carroll and Gellman said they have raised these concerns directly with the MTA, with little result. Carroll said she has complained on more than one occasion. After a bus passed her by without stopping, she spoke to a driver, who called 511 to file a report on her behalf. She separately submitted a complaint through the MTA’s website. She said she never heard back either time.

Commenting on the issue, an MTA spokesperson told The Press “the MTA consistently monitors bus data to ensure optimal service. We appreciate rider feedback on the Bx7 and Bx10 as we continue to evaluate service.”

The agency did not respond to questions about what protocol exists for processing and following up on rider complaints, or why Bx20 service hours were scaled back. Several bus drivers on the routes declined to speak on the record.

The unpredictability in bus arrivals is compounded, Carroll said, by inaccurate online arrival information. She said she has checked the MTA’s website and seen a long wait listed, only to watch a bus pass while she was nearby.

“I mean, it’s just become really burdensome,” Carroll said.