Art & Culture

An Exhibition Exploring the History of New York City’s Bus Fleet Rolls Into Brooklyn

Bus Festival, an immersive experience featuring pieces of the city’s transportation history from 1918 through 2001, will take place September 19 at Brooklyn Bridge Park

By Alexandria Sillo

September 15, 2026

Vintage green bus crossing a large suspension bridge with steel cables and trusses under a cloudy sky. — Bus 100 on the Manhattan Bridge. Photo: Courtesy of the New York Transit Museum

On Saturday, iconic pieces from New York City’s historic bus fleet will return to the road as Bus Festival 2026 kicks off at Brooklyn Bridge Park. The free-admission, one-day event, presented by the New York Transit Museum and MTA New York City Transit, includes vintage vehicles dating from 1918 through 2001.

Vintage green and yellow bus parked on a patterned stone plaza with a large stone wall in the background. — Bus 3100 at the Emily Warren Roebling Plaza at Brooklyn Bridge Park. Photo: Trent Reeves, New York Transit Museum

“For 50 years, the New York Transit Museum has called a historic subway station home, but our buses are much too big to come inside,” says Regin Shepherd, Acting Director of the New York Transit Museum. “Bus Festival allows us to bring these extraordinary vehicles into the spotlight and welcome the public aboard for a celebration of bus history.”

Restored vintage green double-decker bus inside a spacious garage, showcasing its classic design and exposed engine. — Newly restored 1918 Double Decker Bus 303. Photo: Courtesy of the New York Transit Museum

Highlights include Bus 303, a 1918 restored double-decker open-top vehicle that was operated by the Fifth Avenue Coach Company. The bus will join another double-decker, nicknamed “Betsy,” which dates back to 1931. Bus 3100, from 1956, was the first air-conditioned transit bus in the U.S., and was initially built as an experimental prototype. Other standout vehicles include the Bus 100 from 1959 by General Motors, Bus 5227, which is one of the city’s “Blitz Buses,” Bus 2185, which commemorates the 25^th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, and more.