City Installs New Bus Shelter For No Reason At All

The B49 bus shelter located in front of 2900 Ocean Avenue has been demolished to make way for a brand new one.

The operator of the hydraulic excavator who was sitting in the cab of the truck, as if in the “calm after the storm,” told us that a new bus shelter will be installed by the next day.

When asked if there was something wrong with the shelter, or if there was some accident that prompted the replacement, he replied, “No, as far as I know, nothing was wrong with it. The city has a lot of money to spend.”

The NYC Department of Transportation says on its website:

We will replace every bus shelter and install an  additional 200 (3300 bus shelters total) by 2011. DOT is working closely  with community leaders to identify the best locations for additional  shelters to ensure that new locations best serve each community and the  riding public. For the first time ever, all of our bus shelters will  offer seating, especially important for the eldery (sic) and disabled. The  City is also exploring exciting new technologies like Bluetooth, LCD  screens and real-time bus arrival information.

The DOT tells us that the they are replacing every bus shelter in order to best serve each community. But to fully understand why the city would destroy a perfectly intact bus shelter (a day before Earth Day, nonetheless) to build a new one, we have to figure out the private enterprise that will benefit most from these contracts with the city.

This photograph was taken on Wednesday, April 21, 2010. Has anyone seen the new fancy bus shelter? Let us know, and shoot us a photograph if you have one.