Mamdani announces LaGuardia Airport bus lane to open in time for World Cup

The Mamdani administration hopes to speed up service on Q70-SBS bus service to and from LaGuardia Airport by building a dedicated bus lane on a stretch of Broadway in Jackson Heights ahead of the World Cup.

The eastbound lane would run down the center of Broadway, from Roosevelt Ave. to 69th St. The street would maintain an eastbound and a westbound lane for other motorized traffic on either side of the bus lane.

The Q70-SBS — currently the city’s sole fare-free bus route — connects the  E, F, M, R and No. 7 trains, as well as the LIRR, to LaGuardia Airport. It sees about 9,000 riders a day, according to city data.

“New Yorkers should be able to connect to our major international airports with fast, reliable bus service — but congestion on Broadway in Queens means it can be faster to walk this portion of the Q70-SBS route in Jackson Heights,” Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn said in a statement. “With the influx of visitors expected for the World Cup, the Mamdani administration will be working with urgency to ensure New Yorkers, and soccer fans from across the world, will be able to get where they’re going efficiently.”

A proposal for the center bus lane will be presented to Community Board 3 in the coming weeks. A Mamdani spokesman said the city intended to complete the lane before the first of the 2026 World Cup soccer matches come to the Meadowlands on June 13.

“Arriving in New York City should be fast, affordable and reliable all year-round — not just during major events,” the mayor said in a statement. “This new bus lane will help welcome visitors from around the world this summer while delivering faster commutes every day for the thousands of working-class New Yorkers who rely on the Q70.”

“The World Cup may come and go,” he added, “but the investments we made to our streets and public transit must serve New Yorkers for decades to come.”