Following the (possibly temporary) demise of the much-loved/hated Fung Wah bus line, regular New York-Boston commuters have been left with a void in their transportation options. Entrepreneur Joel Azumah hopes to change that with his Interstate Bus company, on which he hopes to send four coaches a day to Beantown at $20 each way, but with a twist on the usual discount bus formula. His carriers will leave from Harlem, not Chinatown.
Residents and members of the local community board, however, are not thrilled with the idea, and say Azumah neglected to consult them before planning on making his stops at 125th Street. “125th Street is already one of our most challenging corridors,” said Peggy Morales of CB11’s Transportation Committee. “You can’t just come and decide, ‘I’m going to do this here.”
There’s also the problem of the city Department of Transportation, which received the power to regulate inter-city bus services last year, and says it hasn’t even received an application for the Harlem line.
Azumah, however, is unfazed, and plans to consult the DOT or the Harlem Community Board. “The location where we are stopping has the ability for us to stop there. My company has decided we will stop in this area,” he said. “I think it’s important to make a move now, when people are looking for affordable transportation.”
(Photo: Steven Hughes/Flickr)
