NEXT STOP – 2030: New TMP will guide regional public transit for next 2 decades

The Following was pulled from a section of the Summer-Fall 2010 Rapid Reporter. Download other Rapid Reporters from the right side of The Rapid's News page

On June 30, The Rapid board of directors unanimously approved a new transit master plan that features a host of improvements to be implemented as the system expands service over the next 20 years. The plan calls for reducing the weekday wait for most buses to 15 minutes, extending hours of operation, adding Sunday service on all routes, adding new cross-town routes to reduce downtown transfers, and bringing new “express” routes to outlying suburbs. “And that’s just the beginning,” says The Rapid CEO Peter Varga. “As the region continues to grow we’ll expand service to more customers along our busiest corridors, using modern streetcar lines that link downtown Grand Rapids with the growing Michigan Street Medical Mile. The plan also calls for the addition of two bus rapid transit lines to speed commuting to and from the economic center of the region, reducing automobile traffic, easing congestion, reducing pollution and making more space for the development that creates jobs,” said Varga.
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While the plan may seem ambitious now, it’s in step with the pace of regional growth and matches the expectations of a community that is increasingly turning to public transit, expectations that were expressed in a series of community workshops and town hall-style meetings held over the past year. Rapid Board member and Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell described the new plan as “visionary” and commended the transit board for listening to the community and setting the bar high. Implementation of the plan will be dependent on available and approved funding.