MTA – M21 Bus

Since the M21 has essentially been turned into a crosstown bus, im going to review it as such… compared to the other crosstown buses in the city, the M21 is as good of a crosstown bus as you will get… the ride is actually fast… the only problem is there are too little buses running on the line!

Awful. even if the bus were on time, it would still only be every half hour. always slammed packed. i beat the bus walking at normal pace between ave c and 1^st ave.

Oh, the poor M21… it used to be the Avenue C bus and ran all night (down to the Ear Inn in Soho,) but in the last round of budget cuts, the MTA stripped it of its 24-​hour status and turned it into a stub of its former self. It now runs crosstown, and the M9 (originally a Red & Tan Lines bus, back in the 60s) has been moved from Avenue B to Avenue C. There is no longer an Avenue B bus at all.
It still starts around the Ear Inn on Spring street and continues up to Houston street, but no longer goes up to the VA hospital on 23^rd street; that’s the M9’s job. Watch with terror and amazement as this bus disappears for good in the next round of budget/​service cuts!
[ETA: Recently, the MTA restored weekend service on this bus because Houston street is the gateway to so much shopping. Sad that they don’t see the M8 in the same light, since it’s also a crosstown route that also bypasses mucho shopping.]