The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority has been planning to build a new bus hub since 2014, but a decade later they still haven't landed on where to put it, WJAR-TV reports.
Back in 2014, the plan was to put the hub near the Providence train station. But despite voters approving $35 million for the project, there is still no finalized plan for its location. This week the agency announced that a piece of land in the 195 District was no longer under consideration after feedback from riders.
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The hub is currently located in Kennedy Plaza, but with crime becoming a larger issue at the location, RIPTA hasn't included it on the shortlist of options for its new facility. But some riders want it to stay where it is.
"It's really a waste of taxpayer money," Randall Rose from the Kennedy Plaza Resilience Coalition told WJAR-TV. "This is the place where the biggest concentration of bus rider destinations is in the whole state, and that's why the hub is here."
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RIPTA CEO Chris Durant released a statement on the situation, though the agency declined an interview with the station, saying it could affect the negotiation process.
"We are exploring sites closer to the train station, which would enhance the project's multimodal connectivity and create opportunities for funding through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) and Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing (RRIF) programs. In addition to the funding opportunities that a bus hub would have in close proximity to a train station, the recent investments in infrastructure improvements on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor (NEC) will further improve travel efficiency, increase ridership potential, and support seamless connections between regional and local transit systems. We’re grateful to the Congressional Delegation who have been very supportive of multimodal projects and who continue to make investments in these types of initiatives. Once Next Wave completes its thorough analysis, we look forward to sharing their informed formal recommendation for a potential site later this fall. I want to thank our Board of Directors their continued guidance during this process and look forward to presenting them with a final recommendation in the near future."
