newyork.localmean.com/crosstown
Crosstown
CROSS-town
Local meaning
Across Manhattan or another part of the city from east to west, rather than mainly uptown or downtown.
Crosstown is practical direction language in Manhattan’s grid. A crosstown bus follows an east–west route, and a crosstown trip often means crossing avenues rather than moving along the island’s north–south spine.
Example in context
- “Take the crosstown bus and transfer at Lexington.”
How it is used
Standard city vocabulary with especially frequent use in Manhattan travel.
neutral, directional
buses, taxis, walking directions, trip planning
Standard city vocabulary with especially frequent use in Manhattan travel.
Not every street runs perfectly east–west, and crosstown routes can shift around parks, traffic patterns, or neighborhood geometry.
Spelling and scope
Standard city vocabulary with especially frequent use in Manhattan travel.
- Search forms
crosstown meaning nyccrosstown busgo crosstown manhattan
LocalMean keeps common search spellings discoverable without claiming that every borough, community, or generation uses one written form.
Frequently asked questions
What direction is crosstown in Manhattan?
It generally means east–west across the island, as opposed to uptown or downtown.
Is crosstown only for buses?
No. It can describe walking, driving, taxis, streets, buses, or any route across town.
Read next
All words →Evidence and further reading
These sources support the regional association, dictionary sense, or broader spread. The entry remains open to correction from New York speakers and qualified reviewers.
- crosstownMerriam-Webster
Dictionary definition for movement or routes across a town or city rather than along its length.
- Subway maps and service informationMetropolitan Transportation Authority
Official context for uptown, downtown, borough, and route-direction language.
- Geographic Variation in Slang SemanticsarXiv
Research showing that slang meanings and associations vary by geography and community.