14 A service to the dense Grand St. Coops and to the many businesses on Ave. A is far from adequate – even while there are three 14 D busses for every one 14 A bus.  The problem of inadequate service can be at least partly resolved by extending the 14 D’s route.  Instead of having its eastern terminus at Delancey St., it should continue two blocks south to Grand St. to service westbound Grand St. residents.  The 14 D would cut back to Delancey St. via Columbia St. to resume its current route.  This would add approximately 5 blocks to its route – and attract more customers who are otherwise stuck waiting and waiting.  It would also be helpful to make some of the buses express buses along a long, exceedingly slow route.  If the MTA's problem is the fear of bus traffic jams on Grand Street, locate the terminus around the corner, on the FDR access road, which was formerly the terminus for the Houston St. crosstown.  The result: better bus service, with no traffic jams.  

Also, the Houston St. crosstown (21) is one of the southernmost crosstown buses in Manhattan - and the sketchiest.  Whereas uptown crosstown buses run once every several minutes, the 21 runs, at best, every 20 minutes, and often every half hour or every hour.  Nor does it run on schedule, so when the next bus will appear is anyone's guess.  I frequently walk, even when carrying heavy equipment, rather than wait forever for a bus which is less frequent than an oasis in a desert.  This lack of service also has a negative impact on Houston St. businesses, which lose customers because of such sporadic service, directly impacting the city's economic vitality.