Bus stop codes: find your stop and its next bus

Updated October 29, 2026

Every MTA bus stop in New York City has its own six-digit stop code. Once you know the code for a stop you use, you can check when the next bus will get there in a few seconds, by text message or online, without scrolling through routes and directions.

Where to find the code

Look at the pole at your stop. Most stops have a rectangular box on the pole, called a Guide-A-Ride, that holds the route map and schedule. On it you'll see a green MTA Bus Time panel with the stop code and texting instructions. If there are two Bus Time signs, the top one is for the stop you're standing at; the bottom one explains how to check any other stop along the route.

The box also has a Bus Time QR code. Scan it with your phone camera to open live arrivals for that stop. The MTA explains all of this on its finding your bus stop code page.

One code, one direction

A stop code belongs to a single stop, not a whole intersection. Buses going in opposite directions use different stops, and each stop has its own code. That makes the code a handy way to check that you're waiting on the correct side of the street.

Before you wait, check where the buses at that stop are going. The sign on the pole shows which routes stop there. A live arrivals page for the code shows where each one is heading, for example "to East Harlem 125 St". If that's where you're coming from, you need the stop for the other direction.

On one-way streets, the other direction can be a block or more away. The M15 runs north on 1 Av and south on 2 Av, so its stop at 1 Av and E 79 St (code 401712) only has northbound buses. The Select Bus Service version of a route can use a different stop, too. The M15-SBS stops at 1 Av and E 80 St, not at the M15 local stop on E 79 St.

Get arrivals by text message

MTA Bus Time can send you arrivals by text, which works on any phone that sends SMS. As of October 2026, the MTA's Bus Time texting page explains it like this:

  1. Text the six-digit stop code to 511123.
  2. To see just one route, add it after a space, such as 401712 M15. For a Select Bus Service route, add "-SBS" to the route, as in S79-SBS.
  3. The reply tells you how far away the next buses are.
  4. To refresh, reply R within 20 minutes.

Don't know the code? Text an intersection instead, and Bus Time replies with the stops nearby. To check service alerts, text C and a route, such as C M15. Your carrier's standard texting charges may apply.

Use the code on NYC Bus Times

You can use the same code on this site in either of two ways:

  • Search: type the code into the search box (it says "Route, intersection or stop code") and choose the stop.
  • Go straight to the stop: put the code at the end of nycbustimes.com/stop/. For example, nycbustimes.com/stop/401712 opens the M15 stop at 1 Av and E 79 St.

A stop page shows live arrivals for each route serving that stop. For each route it shows the direction and the next few stops, so you can confirm you're on the correct side. It also lists other routes you can transfer to there, plus nearby stops and how long it takes to walk to each one. Bookmark the pages for stops you use often, and you can check them in one tap.

The MTA's own Bus Time website also accepts stop codes in its search box.

Tips

  • Save the codes for your regular stops in both directions, for example in your phone's notes.
  • When a stop serves several routes, add your route to the text so the reply is shorter.
  • Detours and construction can move a stop for a while. If no buses seem to be coming, look at the service alerts for your route.

To learn how arrival estimates work and what route letters like M, Bx and SIM mean, read how NYC bus times work. To find a route, browse all NYC bus routes.

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