Tom Crimmins Realty Blog

Staten Island is long known as a place where cars rule the road.

But on Monday the attention was on its bus riders, and the state-of-the-art buses hitting the borough's streets, replacing a model now a decade old.

“There’s significant investment going on in Staten Island on both the railway but also the bus network," NYC Transit President Andy Byford said. "These buses contain modern amenities.”

• What's on Tap for the MTA's New Fare Payment System?

There are 41 buses already on the road, and by year's end, 77 will be.

They are equipped with modern amenities, such as:

• USB charging ports
• Wi-Fi
• Safety technology, such as a pedestrian turn warning system and cameras.
• Digital screens that display where the buses are along their routes. Some buses on the island have already been equipped with these screens.

The buses will replace Orion Hybrid buses that rolled out in 2009, and the MTA says the new buses will be used on routes operating out of the Yukon Bus Depot.

They also have technology that will let interact with traffic signals, allowing them to get green lights more often, including at 53 intersections along a speedy, select bus route on Hylan Boulevard.