The Transit Network Improvements Project was about determining where and how transit is delivered and routed to best meet the needs of Red Deerians and transit riders in our region as it grows and changes.
The first phase of the Red Deer Transit Network Improvements project – which went before Council on October 28, 2019 – included delivery of five initiatives, as follows:
- Updated Transit Services Standards, which create the framework for future decision making and define what service should look like going forward (service frequencies and hours of service for different service types, passenger amenities that should be provided at stops, stop spacing, policies, etc.).
- New Bus Route Network and Service Plan to determine how routes could be better structured to serve customers and the growing community and what service should ultimately look like over the longer term.
- Transit Operating and Capital Work Plan to create the step-by-step prioritized plan for investing in service, infrastructure and other supporting improvements, including what should be considered for immediate / short term implementation.
- Development of a Rapid Bus Corridor on Gaetz Avenue to identify where Rapid Bus stations should be placed, what they should look like and what transit priority measures should be implemented on the corridor to help buses move around congestion and operate reliably (queue jump lanes, transit signal priority, etc.).
- Review and Recommendation on Regional Transit Service Connections looking at how regional service ties into the new local network and how they can also be improved.
We are now moving forward with the second phase of the project, which includes the detailed planning and related infrastructure changes, which were part of 2020 capital budget approvals, with the planned implementation of the new route structure taking place August 23, 2020.