Slowest bus of the Year

@Uraniumfish I have always wanted to vote in this survey and I am constantly surprised that the M79 doesnt win this award because it can be so erratic as it crosses over from the west side to the east side on 79th street. Sometimes it gets so delayed when it arrives at its stop at Lexington Avenue that it is filled to the gills but then it is usually followed by an absolutely empty bus. I am quite aware of this and usually wait to get into the second empty bus with my shopping bags though when its cold and breezy, its absolute torturous to wait for a delayed bus which never seems to arrive.

I think the bus that goes down 5th (can't remember the number) can be painfully slow; it took me an hour to get from 96th Street to Bryant Square (albeit on the local).

@ajadedidealist that would be the M1/M2/M3/M4 buses I think.. have ridden on some of them and you are right they tend to crawl.

That is an interesting survey. I don't use the M42 bus, so I can't vouch for it. But I do agree with the other posters that there are other buses in Manhattan that drive slow at times.

If I'm not in a rush, though, I don't mind slow buses. I prefer looking out the window (and reading) to suffering in a cramped and crowded subway.

I'v suffered in one or two super-crowded buses in my life, though. And they really are so incredibly slow, I feel like I'm dieing a slow death when I take the bus.

@Uraniumfish They all seem to go pretty slow, don't they? I ONLY take a bus when I have plenty of time to spare, which is saying a lot because in my neighborhood it SHOULD be more convenient to take a bus over the train.

@NeverSleeps I have to take the M79 as the subway is located four blocks away from where I live. If I don't have groceries I usually walk but when I am laden down with a TJs run waiting for the M79 which seems to never arrive is awful.

Has anyone had the experience of being near the bus stop, and when the bus comes, and you are near the bus, the bus driver ignores you and just drives away? That happened to my girlfriend recently.

Guess I'm just a walker - I wouldn't blink to walk a good 20 blocks if I have to, rather than deal with the frustrations of a bus. And I get there in better time, usually

Never happened to me! The worst that happened was missing the (half-hourly) night bus by a HAIR in London, only to spend thirty minutes freezing in a ball dress at 2 am in Vauxhall...

@Uraniumfish me too.. I often outpace the M79 and get a kick while doing so..

@hhusted that often happens to me with the M79 and I get a kick out of beating the bus!

@Uptowngirl: I think the bus driver can see you in the rearview mirror and may get a kick out of seeing us run for it. Do you think so?

@hhusted I wouldn't be surprised.

@Uraniumfish: Yeah, I know what you mean. He's probably looking at me run and saying silently to himself, "Look at that fool run."

@hhusted well I get my kicks by beating him so if he wants to laugh let him..

@Uptowngirl: Yeah, I hear ya. :) :)

I took the bus one time. That's all it took for me to know that it'll never happen again.

@JenMac taking the bus is a necessity for me, residing as I do four blocks away from the subway! Quelle Horreur!

@Uptowngirl: Four blocks is nothing. I live 4 blocks from a subway station and don't find it a chore to get to. In fact, I don't mind the walk. It's good exercise.

@uptown girl: isn't it faster just to walk the 4 blocks than sit out in the cold waiting for that thing?

@JenMac True and I do usually walk except on the way back from the train when i have groceries and such I like to take the bus..

@Uptowngirl: Oh, well if you have groceries that can be a different ball game. I can relate to that. I did that one time. I took the subway to the store, but came back on the bus when I had a handful of bags.

@uptowngirl Four long blocks can be quite a hike. I live four long blocks from Prospect Park and I do not make that journey often, as it is literally an uphill mile which requires a specific sort of weather.

@NeverSleeps: Uphill climbing is great for the heart. Gives it a good workout. When I went to San Francisco last year, I did a lot of hill climbing and man did I feel it. That is when I realized just how strong my heart was.

@NeverSleeps I actually love my neighborhood and always console myself that the walk is adding to my daily cardio , I hoping the Second Avenue subway does come along soon though..
Actually funnily enough even my home in HK is situated on top of a hill, if I need to go to the grocery store its a 45 min expedition at least and a walk up the hill return journey!.

@Uptowngirl: Interesting. My doctor told me that anytime you can exert yourself beyond normal bounds, it exercises and strengthens the heart. I hope that is true. I can't wait to go back to exercising again. I miss it.