Central Oklahoma long-range transit plan presented to Norman City Council

Norman — At a special meeting Tuesday, Sept. 23, city staff and regional partners presented the draft Central Oklahoma Long Range Transit Plan to the Norman City Council, outlining a 20‑ to 30‑year strategy that would expand high‑frequency routes, introduce on‑demand service zones and seek new funding sources.

Taylor Johnson, transit parking program manager for the city’s public works department, said the presentation was the council’s third update on the project and noted “it's really been about 20 years since we've done this as a region.” Chip Nolan of Embark and Joan Sharpe of the Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG) walked the council through the plan’s vision, public engagement findings and broad cost estimates.

The plan uses ACOG population and employment projections as a starting point and proposes a regional network that the presenters said would include 16 high‑frequency routes and about 430 miles of higher‑capacity service, eight cross‑town routes and 13 on‑demand zones. Presenters said selected Regional Transit Authority (RTA) corridors have completed alternatives analyses and assigned modes, but dedicated funding for those corridors has not been secured.

ACOG projections cited by presenters estimate about 434,000 residents and 320,000 jobs across the study area and, over the next 20 years, roughly 1.1 billion transit trips in total. Economic modeling using the American Public Transit Association methodology was presented as showing expanded transit access to 151,000 additional jobs, 1,300 sustained jobs, and an estimated $100 million in annual local economic growth; presenters also cited $28 million in annual congestion‑related savings. Capital costs were shown in a range of $500 million to $725 million, with annual operations and maintenance estimated between $125 million and $175 million.

Councilor Grant asked whether the plan addressed Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) needs. Johnson said project staff created “heat maps” combining census and demographic data — including concentrations of people who do not drive, older adults and low‑income populations — and that those layers were a basis for route and service recommendations. He pointed council members to the project website for the maps and materials: connectcentralokay.com.

Presenters emphasized an implementation approach that layers short‑, mid‑ and long‑term recommendations. The short‑term work focuses on local service investments and frequency improvements; mid‑term elements include RTA projects; long‑term elements could add bus rapid transit and streetcar projects. Presenters recommended ongoing coordination among Embark, ACOG, local governments and major employers, and said a final action plan and implementation schedule will be provided in the plan document.

Nolan and Sharpe said the draft plan is scheduled to go to the ACOG board for adoption in November. A council member offered to include the project QR code and link in the city’s outgoing weekly communications to bolster public input. The presentation concluded with council members asking for regular updates; presenters suggested a five‑year update cadence with more frequent reporting on major milestones.