Those who rely upon the Q23 bus line to travel through Forest Hills and Glendale are about to experience a reversal of fortune.
This Sunday, Sept. 2, the MTA will alter the southern end of the Q23 route serving the retail hub off the intersection of Metropolitan Avenue and Woodhaven Boulevard as well as the Forest Park Crescents co-op complex and a nearby shopping center.
The Q23 bus presently runs westbound along Metropolitan Avenue from southbound 71st Avenue to Woodhaven Boulevard, then turn southbound on the boulevard before turning left onto the eastbound Union Turnpike. The line terminates a few blocks away at the Forest Park Crescents.
Beginning this Sunday, however, southbound Q23 buses will continue along 71st Avenue rather than turn west onto Metropolitan Avenue. These buses will proceed to Union Turnpike, then turn westbound and terminate near the Stop & Shop supermarket across the street from the co-op complex.
There, most buses will begin their northbound trek toward Corona, continuing westbound on Union Turnpike, then turning northbound onto Woodhaven Boulevard and then eastbound onto Metropolitan Avenue back to 71st Avenue.
As a result, the Q23 bus stop located on westbound Metropolitan Avenue at Woodhaven Boulevard will instead be moved to the other side of the avenue, adjacent to the ever-busy Trader Joe’s supermarket. Other Q23 bus stops on the westbound side of Metropolitan Avenue between 71st Avenue and Selfridge Street will also be shifted to the eastbound side.
As previously reported in DNAinfo, the change is being made due to the construction of Select Bus Service (SBS) lanes along Woodhaven and Cross Bay Boulevards, which will result in the elimination of left turns from the southbound Woodhaven Boulevard to the eastbound Union Turnpike. Community Board 6 previously disputed the bus route change and full left-turn ban, but their concerns did not sway the Department of Transportation (DOT), which is creating the SBS system, from changing its plans.
