Public Transit Adds New Services, Expands Others

April 13, 2001

Public transit in Phoenix has responded to last year's voter approved Transit 2000 with more frequent service, expanded weekend and evening service and the installation of dozens of bus shelters and bus pullouts.

Buses now are running many more hours and miles since voters endorsed the Phoenix Transit Plan and sales tax to help finance it.

Among major upgrades were the addition of Sunday service, which draws more than 22,000 riders, and the extension of weekday service hours to about 10 p.m. Buses now run every 30 minutes on 11 busy Saturday routes and nine Sunday and holiday routes.

By the end of the year, 96 new buses will expand and replace the existing fleet. “Service is better in spite of the fact that new buses have not yet been delivered,” says Neal Manske, Public Transit director. “We've done with what we have.”

Additionally, new transit centers and park-n-ride locations are in the planning and design stages and a Neighborhood Mini-Bus Service will start in Ahwatukee where residents helped determine how to run it.

Planning also is advancing on the Light Rail Transit project, a multi-city effort that opened its first community office, launched a Web site and conducted more than 200 public meetings. Faster and more frequent morning and evening commutes in five high volume traffic corridors are in the works through the Bus Rapid Transit program.

For more information on the transit plan, call (602) 262-7242. For bus schedules and routes, call (602) 253-5000 or visit www.phoenix.gov/PUBLICTRANSIT/index.html on the Internet.