The Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Thursday presented plans to rebuild the Jamaica Bus Depot and requested removal from the city map of a roughly 220-foot segment of Tuskegee Airmen Way to permit an internal U-turn and queuing lane for buses.

Mike Walco, representing MTA Construction and Development, told the Queensborough president’s land use public hearing that the existing depot—built in 1939—has “employee conditions [that] are in very poor shape” and is insufficient to maintain the area’s bus fleet. He said the new facility is being designed to support a future electric bus fleet and to keep buses off nearby residential streets, including 10 Seventh Avenue and 160 Fifth Street.

The MTA’s plan would reroute bus access to enter from Merrick Boulevard, proceed behind a sound wall into an outdoor parking/queuing area on MTA property, sweep through the site and make a U-turn into a new maintenance building. Walco said the long internal sweep and on-site queuing are required to satisfy Department of Transportation requirements so buses do not queue onto public streets during fueling or wash delays.

The new single-story maintenance building would include 15 maintenance bays sized for articulated buses, three fueling lanes, three automatic bus-wash lanes, rooftop and at‑grade parking, and staff amenities including lockers and showers. Walco said the depot’s capacity would be larger than the current facility and that the building is intended to be LEED certified.

Lucille Songhai, senior director of government and community relations at MTA headquarters, described the MTA’s community outreach. She said the project team holds monthly construction advisory committee meetings with residents of 160 Fifth Street, Community Board 12 members, elected officials and other stakeholders, and that the agency maintains a project hotline and established customer‑service channels for complaints. Songhai said MTA staff route complaints to the depot’s assistant general manager, who follows up directly with constituents and nearby businesses.

Walco said MTA acquired commercial properties along Merrick Boulevard and Eric Boulevard in prior years and that some trees and a Department of Transportation traffic median on the demapping area would be affected. He emphasized that Tuskegee Airmen Way would remain a public street except for the specific 220‑foot segment proposed for removal from the city map.

Songhai told the hearing that Community Board 12 considered the demapping in June and voted 26–1 in favor. Chair Lisa Atkins (director of housing, acting on behalf of Queensborough President Donovan Richards) noted there were no public speakers on the item at the hearing.

The agency presented renderings showing a sound wall between the depot’s service drive and the Allen Senior Center and described the wall and internal routing as measures to limit noise and vehicle impacts on adjacent residences and senior housing.

The hearing record indicates the MTA will continue to coordinate with the Department of Transportation and Parks on tree removals and construction staging. MTA representatives remained available to answer questions during the public hearing.