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Downtown Connection Bus Clocks

Downtown Connection Adds GPS and Clocks

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Downtown Connection Bus Clocks
Downtown Connection Countdown Clocks

Battery Park City residents can now rely on more than just a line of people and distant shadows of the Downtown Connection bus to determine its arrival.

The Downtown Alliance has installed countdown clocks at seven main stops along the Downtown Connection bus route. The bus route connects several main landmarks downtown.

The clocks were installed and include the The World Trade Center, The Financial District, The South Street Seaport, City Hall, Tribeca and Battery Park stops.

Over 836,000 residents and visitors take the Downtown Connection every year. A free service provided by the Downtown Alliance, the buses will be equipped with GPS systems that will communicate with the countdown clocks. The clocks will track the arrivals of the next two buses to help riders make the best use of their time.

The countdown clock should conceivably help add ridership for the buses with a definite arrival time.

According to the Downtown Alliance website,
“Riders of the Downtown Connection—the Alliance for Downtown New York’s free bus service in Lower Manhattan—will now know exactly when the next bus will arrive. The Business Improvement District has installed seven LED signs, which list the next two arrivals, along the 37-stop route.

The NextBus program uses Global Positioning System tracking satellites to provide accurate vehicle arrival/departure information and real-time data to passengers waiting at selected Downtown Connection stops.

Funding for the program was secured by New York State Senator Daniel Squadron and established in coordination with the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT). Thanks to a grant from Goldman Sachs, two additional signs will be installed in Battery Park City in the coming months.

The Downtown Alliance launched the Downtown Connection in late 2003, instantly improving Lower Manhattan’s quality of life and accessibility. The buses shuttled more than 834,000 workers, residents and visitors in 2009, and the Downtown Alliance expects ridership to increase this year. The shuttle buses run at 10-minute intervals from 10 AM to 8 PM daily, with more limited service on weekends.”

Although the use of countdown clocks will conceivably increase ridership for tourists, residents are still reeling from the loss of the W Train and M9 lines. Leaving the question on when residents will be able to have reliable transportation OUTSIDE of the neighborhood?

Lower Manhattan gears up for Fashion's Night Out

Businesses Looking Forward to Fashion’s Night Out

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Lower Manhattan gears up for Fashion's Night Out
Lower Manhattan gears up for Fashion's Night Out (Credit: A Uno Tribeca)

Lower Manhattan cannot be farther from the stilettos that will kick off Fashion Week catwalks, but that won’t stop business owners in our area from celebrating Fashion’s Night Out tomorrow night, especially not Jennifer Gandia of  Greenwich Jewelers.

“Jewelry IS fashion and we’re excited about participating!” says Gandia, “The number of stores participating this year is amazing — way more than last year. There is an event for everyone.”

Participation in an event such as Fashion’s Night Out is important to local businesses. As the global recession has taken its toll on every industry, Lower Manhattan businesses have endured a distinctly tougher economic climate.

The loss of pedestrian traffic from the original World Trade Center site compounded by infrastructural changes and the construction restrictions around the area have forced many businesses to close.

“We feel very disconnected from the rest of the West Side,” says Jennifer Gandia of Greenwich Jewelers on Trinity Place, which is only a few blocks south of the World Trade Center site, “We are ready for the [World Trade Center] site to be completed.”

As most businesses in our area still rely on the Monday through Friday patronage of nearly 300,000 daily workers that commute to our area, Gandia notes that there is a responsibility of business owners to connect with the growing residential population.

“There are many reasons small businesses in this neighborhood have closed. It’s important for the residents to patronize their local shops but its a two way street, the businesses in the area must serve the locals,” says Jennifer Gandia of Greenwich Jewelers, “That means being open when the people who live here are home. We had to change our hours and open on weekends to serve the residents of the neighborhood. In turn they come to use when they need something and know we are here.”

As businesses such as Gandia’s see this as just a bump in the road to recovery, leaders in our area acknowledge that these challenges to small businesses may last for another 5 years.

So much so, that  State Senator Daniel Squadron, Assemblyman Sheldon Silver along with the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation had announced The Small Firm Assistance Program earlier this week. The program seeks to offer aid to small businesses in Lower Manhattan affected by these infrastructural challenges all the way through sunset of December 31, 2015.

Handicaps aside, that doesn’t mean there aren’t signs of hope. According to a recent Downtown Alliance report, economic recovery is on an upswing as nearly 300 new businesses have relocated to Lower Manhattan since 2008.

According to Gandia, “We choose not to focus on the past and instead to remain present minded and plan for our future and the next 30-plus years of serving the downtown community.”

To find out more on how you can support Fashion’s Night Out events in our area, check out the complete listing of shops and their events here.

To see how you can take part in Greenwich Jeweler’s silent auction, view the pieces on auction and find out more details here.