By: Deborah Johnson Wood
The Rapid, Grand Rapids’ transit bus service, posted a record year with 9.8 million riders. And according to CEO Peter Varga, that momentum will carry over into some significant happenings for the organization and the region in the coming years.
Varga spoke about the local transit authority’s successes, the forthcoming Bus Rapid Transit system and the proposed downtown streeetcar system at the University of Michigan Urban Land Institute Real Estate Forum in Grand Rapids on Thursday.
“The BRT is definitely going to happen,” Varga said. “It will reduce congestion along Division Street, promote transit-oriented development and create permanent jobs.”
The BRT received $32 million in federal funding from Very Small Starts, and a matching $8 million investment from the State of Michigan. The line will run north along Division from 60th Street, circling past colleges, hospitals and through downtown to Rapid Central Station. The BRT has 19 stops, pre-paid ticketing, level boarding, a dedicated traffic lane and the ability to turn red lights to green to quickly shuttle passengers along the route.
A proposed $69 million streetcar loop would run along Monroe Avenue connecting the North Monroe area to the southern boundary of downtown Grand Rapids with the hope of extending pederian walkability and increasing downtown circulation.
“Every community that adds a streetcar always outdoes ridership and development estimates,” Varga said. “A streetcar would also raise tax revenue for the city because of increased property values, and it would add jobs and increase income tax revenues.”
A feasibility study completed in May indicated that the city can sustain the first phase of a streetcar line. A new committee will study and pursue public/private funding.
If the streetcar receives funding, both the BRT and the streetcar could be operational in 2012.
Source: Peter Varga, The Rapid
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Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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