Asheville Transit Master Plan Meeting: April 2

Here is an update on the Asheville Transit site. Please attend the April 2nd meeting!


Transit Master Plan Preliminary Recommendations to be Presented to Public

The consultants, HDR Engineering Inc. of the Carolinas, creating Asheville’s first-ever Transit Master Plan are presenting their preliminary recommendations to the public on Thursday, April 2, from 4pm to 7pm at the Civic Center Banquet Hall. Attendees will be able to view and comment on proposed bus routes, schedule changes, and potential new services. The event’s purpose is to receive feedback from the public before the plan is submitted to City Council.
According to city staff and steering committee members who have seen initial recommendations, the Asheville Transit System’s (ATS) new route structure will feature 30 minute service along parts of Patton Avenue, Haywood Road, and Tunnel Road. There may also be a cross-town route to connect Louisiana Avenue in West Asheville, with neighborhoods in east Asheville.

“The consultants will give multiple presentations to precisely lay out their recommendations,” said ATS Transit Manager, Mariate Echeverry. “The hope is that the public will point out shortfalls in the overall plan before the report is complete.”

The City currently operates with 20 buses. The system is configured as a Hub-and-Spoke system, with service on each route originating and terminating at the downtown transit center. The vast majority of ATS customers are those for whom transit is their main if not only means of transportation. About 30% of all passenger trips made on the ATS are transfers made at the downtown transit center. The other 70% of users either terminate their trip at the transit center or are moving along the routes they originally boarded. About 10 to 14% of current customers say they have a vehicle which could have been used for the trip being taken on the bus.

The final report is expected to be delivered in late summer of this year.

from: http://www.ashevillenc.gov/news/news_releases/default.aspx?id=16414