Tens of thousands of desperate commuters in Queens are in for a long-awaited change. Speedier bus service and other improvements are on the way along one of the borough's busiest boulevards. NY1's Jose Martinez filed this report.

There are 10 lanes of traffic on some sections of Woodhaven Boulevard, a congested corridor that carries more than 30,000 riders daily on 10 bus routes.

"Woodhaven is going to be busy no matter how you crack it. It's going to be busy, like, with all the people commuting," one area resident says.

Now Woodhaven Boulevard, which becomes Cross Bay Boulevard in southern Queens, is about to see a transit makeover that aims to create speedier commutes and safer streets.

On Tuesday, the city Transportation Department unveiled a plan for limited-stop Select Bus Service on the boulevards—from the Rockaways to Woodside—connecting riders to subway stations along the way.

"The configuration of the roadway is pretty unique in New York. It is one of the widest roadways in all the city," says Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg.

Queens is the only borough without select buses. Officials say travel times typically are reduced by as much as 23 percent with the buses, which feature quicker bording and fewer stops.

"Instead of everyone getting on the bus and then having to swipe their MetroCards, you buy your ticket off the bus and everyone just gets off very quickly, you can board at multiple doors," says Trottenberg.

The plan for Woodhaven and Cross Bay Bouvelards calls for barriers to create bus-only lanes. The DOT hopes to begin the work in 2017—just when the next mayoral race will be held.

Some residents are not sold on the idea of bus-only lanes.

"There will be less opportunities for cars and trucks to go north and south, which will do what?  Nobody knows where those cars are going to go and they don't know where those trucks are going to go," says Phil McManus of the Queens Public Transit Committee.

DOT says its design will help on a stretch where there have been 24 fatalities since 2008.

Officials say the design they've selected makes sense not only for bus riders but also for pedestrians and drivers.

"We have the possibility of making these bus lanes really segregated from traffic," Trottenberg says.

The project will cost $200 million. Officials hope that federal funding will pick up much of the tab.