Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Bus Stop Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Public commenter urges shelters and better stop information; director outlines $600,000 for designs
Summary
A University of Tennessee student told the KTA meeting that many stops lack shelters, benches and posted phone numbers; Director Thorne said staff has 15 stops designed and a TDOT $600,000 grant to fund more designs, but right-of-way constraints remain.
Elliot Lloyd, a University of Tennessee Office of Sustainability student worker, told the KTA that many stops in Knoxville lack basic amenities and clear information, including posted phone numbers.
"I was waiting for a bus on Route 11 for over an hour... There was no phone number that I saw on the bus stop," Lloyd said, and urged the agency to add shelters, benches and improve sidewalk and crosswalk access at stops.
Director Thorne responded that staff is working on designing 15 bus stops and has secured $600,000 in a TDOT improvement grant to design additional stops. "We just met with City Engineering... We're in the right of way stage, and then we have $600,000 more to do more bus stop designs," Thorne said, while acknowledging that right-of-way acquisition can slow construction.
Commissioners and staff discussed private-sector involvement in funding amenities, ADA compliance for stops that use FTA dollars and the ideal scenario where a business owns land to speed easements. Thorne said guidelines are already posted online and staff will create a webpage and map showing planned FY items to increase transparency.
Chair Durham suggested creating a small city budget line to match private contributions and used a lighthearted example to urge support: "If anyone is best friends with Dolly Parton, let me know. I will get butterflies in all of the buses if she gives us money," Durham said.
Thorne also committed to checking the signage phone-number issue Lloyd raised and to follow up with the speaker after the meeting. The board set its next meeting for June 25.
