Free Downtown Connection buses began operating Nov. 20

As of November 20, Lower Manhattan is better connected thanks to a new bus service from the Alliance for Downtown New York. Free to the public, the "Downtown Connection" bus service aims to move passengers from South Street Seaport to Battery Park to the World Financial Center faster than any other mode of transportation.

Downtown Connection buses will travel along Water Street from Beekman Street, around the tip of Lower Manhattan on Battery Place, and continue through Battery Park City along South End Avenue to Chambers Street (via West Street). Riders can hop on or off at more than a dozen stops each way, or travel end-to-end in less than 30 minutes. The buses run approximately every 10 minutes.

"The complexity of street patterns and difficulty of large city buses to navigate the neighborhood's smaller streets make this service invaluable for downtown residents, shoppers, visitors, and commuters," said Alliance President Carl Weisbrod. "The Downtown Connection helps knit together east and west sides of the community."

Buses run seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

"The community has long awaited this great amenity downtown," said Community Board 1 Chairperson Madelyn Wils. "Not only will it improve access to the many historic attractions in Lower Manhattan, but it will also help drive traffic to local retailers and restaurants.

"This service is the wave of the future -- not just for Lower Manhattan but for other parts of the city as well," Wils added.

Each of the seven buses in the Downtown Connection fleet carry more than 20 seated passengers, are wheelchair accessible, and run on ultra-low sulfur fuel. They were ushered into service at a ceremony yesterday in Battery Park attended by officials including city Department of Transportation Commissioner Iris Weinshall, Lower Manhattan Development Corporation Chairman John Whitehead, and BPCA President Tim Carey.

CB1's Madelyn Wils is on hand for inaugural ride

"Obviously the need for this service was even greater after September 11 -- and as streets open up and the World Trade Center is redeveloped, [the Alliance] will be able to expand service," Weisbrod said.

The Alliance, which manages the Downtown-Lower Manhattan Business Improvement District, will seek to extend the five-mile Downtown Connection route across Liberty Street or other streets as they open to crosstown traffic.

For more information and a map of bus stops, click here.