QM18 Bus: Riders, Speed & Reliability
South Ozone Park - Midtown Express · Express · Report card from MTA open data, October 2025 – September 2026 · Not affiliated with the MTA · Live bus times on MTA Bus Time →
How busy is the QM18?
Average riders per hour on weekdays, Aug 26, 2026 – Oct 20, 2026. Riders are paid entries (OMNY taps and MetroCard swipes), so people who board without paying aren't counted; riders a day covers October 2025 – September 2026.
The QM18 carries about 102 riders a day (October 2025 – September 2026), #329 of 339 NYC bus routes. On weekdays it is busiest around 7 AM, with about 46 riders that hour.
Busiest stops
MTA estimates for September 2026 from passenger counters on the buses, both directions. They count everyone who boards, so they can run higher than fare-based ridership.
| Stop | Boardings on an average weekday |
|---|---|
| E 57 St/ 3 Av | 14 |
| Lefferts Blvd/135 Av | 12 |
| Queens Blvd/63 Dr | 10 |
| Queens Blvd/67 Av | 10 |
| Lefferts Blvd/Metropolitan Av | 8 |
Speed and reliability
October 2025 – September 2026. Speed includes time at stops and lights. "Spacing" is the MTA's wait assessment: the gap between buses stays within a few minutes of schedule.
It averages 9.5 mph on weekdays, up from 9.3 mph the year before. 74.5% of its trips kept to their scheduled spacing (the MTA's "wait assessment"; local routes overall: 72.1%), and 98% of scheduled buses actually ran.
| QM18 | All local and SBS routes | |
|---|---|---|
| Average weekday speed | 9.5 mph | 7.5 mph |
| Trips that kept their scheduled spacing | 74.5% | 72.1% |
| Scheduled buses that actually ran | 98% | 94% |
| Extra time at stops vs schedule | 3.5 min | – |
| Extra time on board vs schedule | 5.2 min | – |
| Bus-lane camera violations (12 months) | – | 2,864,642 |
Other Express (Queens) routes
All routes QM15 QM5 QM2 QM20 QM6 QM24 QM7 QM34 QM11 QM4 QM25 QM17 QM16 QM8 QM63 QM35 QM68 QM32 QM1 QM12 QM64 QM10 QM65 QM42 QM31 QM40 QM44 QM21 QM36
Questions
How many people ride the QM18 bus?
The QM18 carries about 102 riders a day (October 2025 – September 2026), #329 of 339 NYC bus routes.
When is the QM18 busiest?
On weekdays it is busiest around 7 AM, with about 46 riders that hour.
How fast is the QM18 bus?
It averages 9.5 mph on weekdays, up from 9.3 mph the year before.
Is the QM18 bus reliable?
74.5% of its trips kept to their scheduled spacing (the MTA's "wait assessment"; local routes overall: 72.1%), and 98% of scheduled buses actually ran.
More NYC transit data
- NYC subway ridership: Busiest stations, find your station and an animated subway map, updated daily.
- NYC congestion pricing: Zone map, hours, cost and daily data on whether it's working.
- Every subway line ranked: Which line is the worst? On-time rates, delays and a report card for each line.
Let's talk about transit data
Found something surprising about your station? Have a question the data could answer, or an idea for what to dig into next (congestion pricing, a train line, an event)? I'd love to hear it, and I'm always up for talking about transit data.
Data (data.ny.gov): Bus Hourly Ridership, Bus Speeds, Wait Assessment, Service Delivered, Customer Journey Metrics, Stop Ridership Estimates, Camera Enforcement Violations. Updated Oct 28, 2026. The MTA's own charts: metrics.mta.info.
Source code: github.com/MantieReid/mta-data-analysis · Analysis by Mantie Reid II (CC BY 4.0).