What is a bus shoulder lane?
Bus shoulder lanes are regular, paved shoulders of roads, usually marked with a diamond symbol or pavement markings and signs that say “Bus Only.” Buses use these shoulders as regular travel lanes, usually during rush hour, to bypass congestion in the regular lanes. Bus shoulder lanes give a travel time advantage to transit users, rewarding them for using transit by allowing them to “beat the traffic.” Bus shoulder lanes also allow buses to maintain their schedules during rush hour, increasing reliability. Bus shoulder lanes can be found on Highway 36 and I-35W.
