Bx40 and Bx42 buses

The **Bx40** and **Bx42** constitute two public transit lines in the Bronx, New York running primarily on Burnside Avenue, East Tremont Avenue, and Pennyfield Avenue, between Morris Heights and SUNY Maritime College for the Bx40 or Throgs Neck for the Bx42.

Both of the bus routes were originally a streetcar line, which was replaced with buses in 1948. It was also the former Bx6, which had branches A-C, and the Bx28 between West Farms Square–East Tremont Avenue station and Grand Concourse-Burnside Avenue. In 1984, as part of the Bronx bus revamp, the Bx6 and its branches were merged and renumbered the Bx40. In 1989, the Bx42 was created applied to trips via Randall-Balcom Houses and Throgs Neck-Harding Avenue. The Bx28 portion would be discontinued and be replaced by the Bx40.

## Route description

### Bx40

The Bx40 begins at River Park Towers, and uses Cedar Avenue to access West 179th Street and then Burnside Avenue, while buses heading to the terminus use Sedgwick Avenue. It then continues on Burnside Avenue until it turns to Valentine Avenue and then East Tremont Avenue. It continues mostly on East Tremont Avenue until it turns to Harding Avenue and then Pennyfield Avenue, and continues until it ends at SUNY Maritime College.

### Bx42

The Bx42 mostly replicates the Bx40, except for a section in which it uses Randall Avenue, Balcom Avenue, and Dewey Avenue, and turns to Harding Avenue, and continues until it ends at Emerson Avenue.

## History

What is now the Bx40 began service in April 1928, which is the current Bx5. Buses replaced Tremont Avenue Line streetcars on August 21, 1948. Original south-eastern terminus was at Bruckner Boulevard-Balcom Avenue. The Bx6 ran between Westchester Square and Throgs Neck or Edgewater Park. It originally served either terminal. All Fort Schuyler-bound and Locust Point-bound buses started serving Edgewater Park.

The original Bx40 service was rerouted away from Bruckner Boulevard-Balcom Avenue, and former Bx6 service became part of the rerouted Bx40 service, running all times.

The Bx40 originally had four south-eastern destinations until September 1989, which was the Bx6 from Throgs Neck to Fort Schuyler, the Bx6B from Throgs Neck to Davis Avenue, the Bx6A from Locust Point to Tierney Place, and the weekday rush hour-only service Bx6C from Randall to Balcom Houses and to Westchester Square–East Tremont Avenue on the IRT Pelham Line. Service was merged with the former Bx6/6A/6B/6C services in July 1974, but buses serving Throgs Neck, Edgewater Park, Fort Schuyler and Locust Point, and Bruckner Boulevard terminus was discontinued.

On February 19, 1984, the Bx6 was renumbered the Bx40, as part of the Bronx bus revamp. On the same date, the portion of the former Bx28 route between West Farms Square–East Tremont Avenue on the IRT White Plains Road Line and Grand Concourse-Burnside Avenue, which was near Tremont Avenue on the IND Concourse Line via Tremont Avenue was discontinued, and replaced by the Bx40 service.

The original western terminus was at Burnside Avenue-Sedgwick Avenue. Service was extended to the River Park Towers in February 1984, and Throgs Neck-bound buses started running towards Cedar Avenue and West 179th Street in September 1997.

In September 1989, the Bx42 designation was created and applied to trips via Randall-Balcom Houses and Throgs Neck-Harding Avenue in September 1989, but service was partially cut back from Davis Avenue to Balcom Avenue. Service was later extended to run towards Emerson Avenue in November 2006.

The Bx8 service merged with the former Bx23 service (Westchester Avenue-Buhre Avenue to Throgs Neck-Schley Avenue) and former Bx40 split branched services (Edgewater Park and Locust Point) in September 1989.

Bx40 buses ran via Lawton Avenue in both directions until June 30, 2002, when it started running via Harding Avenue.

As part of the MTA's 2017 Fast Forward Plan to speed up mass transit service, a draft plan for a reorganization of Bronx bus routes was proposed in draft format in June 2019, with a final version published in October 2019. The plan included rerouting service on both routes from Webster Avenue to the 180th Street/Tremont Avenue intersection via 180th Street rather than Tremont Avenue, with the rerouted Bx36 covering Tremont Avenue. This change was proposed to be implemented by mid-2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, the changes were halted for over a year. In February 2022, it was announced that the modifications would take place on June 26, 2022.