New York City will put a bus lane in the middle of Broadway in Queens between 69th Street and Roosevelt Avenue, a move officials say is aimed at speeding trips on the Q70-SBS to Laguardia Airport before the World Cup rush begins.

Mayor Zohan Mamdani announced the plan on Wednesday, saying the lane would help welcome visitors from around the world this summer while also delivering faster commutes for the thousands of working-class New Yorkers who rely on the route every day. The city expects the lane to be finished before World Cup matches begin in June.

The lane will be used primarily by the Q70-SBS, the bus that links travelers to and from Laguardia Airport with the Long Island Rail Road and the No. 7, E, F, M and R subway lines. City officials said the project matters now because the 2026 FIFA World Cup will bring more travel demand this summer, and they want the airport connection ready in time.

The case for the lane is built on congestion that already slows buses to a crawl. City transportation officials said buses on that stretch of Broadway can move as slowly as 2.7 mph during the evening rush, a pace so slow that the DOT has said it can be faster to walk part of the Q70-SBS route in Jackson Heights. Mike Flynn, speaking for the project, said New Yorkers should be able to connect to airports with fast, reliable bus service, but congestion on Broadway makes that hard.

The Department of Transportation will bring the proposal to the local community board later this month, where the city will have to defend the lane’s impact on traffic as well as its timing. That meeting is the next official step before crews can move ahead, and the city’s deadline is clear: get the lane done before June. For commuters, airline passengers and soccer fans alike, the question is no longer whether Broadway needs help. The city is betting the answer is yes, and that the fix has to arrive before the first World Cup crowds do.