The B52 is a

bus route A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

that constitutes a

public transit Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typic ...

line operating in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, running mostly along Fulton Street, Greene Avenue, and Gates Avenue between

Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third largest central business district in New York City after Midtown Manhattan and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is known for its office and r ...

and

Ridgewood, Queens Ridgewood is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It borders the neighborhoods of Maspeth, Middle Village and Glendale, as well as the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Bushwick and East Williamsburg. Historically, the neighborhood st ...

. The B52 is operated by the MTA

New York City Transit Authority The New York City Transit Authority (also known as NYCTA, the TA, or simply Transit, and branded as MTA New York City Transit) is a New York state public-benefit corporations, public-benefit corporation in the U.S. state of New York (state), New ...

. Its precursor was a

streetcar line A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

that began operation by 1874, and was known as the Greene and Gates Avenues Line. The route became a bus line in 1941.

Route description

The B52's western terminus is at Cadman Plaza West south of Tillary Street near the Jay Street–MetroTech station in

. From here, eastbound service heads north on Cadman Plaza West, east on Tillary Street and south on Adams Street before heading east on Fulton Street. Service continues along Fulton Street until it turns left onto Greene Avenue. Buses then turn right onto Franklin Avenue, before turning left onto Gates Avenue. Buses continue on Gates Avenue until they make a right at Irving Avenue, after which they turn left onto Palmetto Street before terminating at the Ridgewood Intermodal Terminal at Palmetto Street and Wyckoff Avenue near the

Myrtle–Wyckoff Avenues station The Myrtle–Wyckoff Avenues station (announced on New Technology Trains as Myrtle Avenue–Wyckoff Avenue station) is a New York City Subway station complex formed by the intersecting stations of the BMT Canarsie Line and the BMT Myrtle Ave ...

in Ridgewood. Westbound service continues north on Palmetto Street and then makes a left onto St. Nicholas Avenue. Service then turns left onto Gates Avenue, and continues via this street until it makes a right onto Classon Avenue. Buses then make a left onto Greene Avenue, and a right onto Fulton Street, which then becomes Joralemon Street. Service then turns right at Court Street, which turns into Cadman Plaza West, and reach the terminal.

History

The

Brooklyn City Railroad The Brooklyn City Railroad (BCRR) was the oldest and one of the largest operators of streetcars (horsecars and later trolleys) in the City of Brooklyn, New York, continuing in that role when Brooklyn became a borough of New York City in 1898. ...

opened a branch of their Fulton Street Line along Greene Avenue,

Franklin Avenue Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral div ...

, and Gates Avenue to

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

by 1874. By 1897, the line was extended northeast along Gates Avenue past Broadway to

Myrtle Avenue Myrtle Avenue is a street that runs from Duffield Street in Downtown Brooklyn to Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill, Queens, in New York City, United States. Route description Queens Myrtle Avenue has been a major thoroughfare since the early ...

, and east along Myrtle Avenue on trackage built for the Bushwick Avenue Line to

. Buses were substituted for streetcars on October 5, 1941. The B52 was rerouted to run two-way on Gates Avenue between Spring 1991 and October 1993 to accommodate the reconstruction of Greene Avenue and Quincy Street, which was subsequently deferred. The B52 returned to running eastbound on Quincy Street and Linden Street and running westbound on Gates Avenue. The local community then requested reinstating two-way service via Gates Avenue because the street was wider, there was less congestion, and because there were greater housing development densities on that street. Brooklyn Community Boards 2, 3 and 4 supported the change, and a public hearing was held on June 16, 1994. The change went into effect in January 1995.* * * *

References

External links

* {{Brooklyn bus routes Streetcar lines in Brooklyn B052 B052