AATA OKs Bus Stop Deal with Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor Transportation Authority special board meeting (April 1, 2011): At a special meeting, announced in advance on March 28, the AATA board voted unanimously to authorize its CEO to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the city of Ann Arbor to construct a bus pullout as part of a bus transfer center on eastbound Washtenaw Avenue, east of Pittsfield Boulevard.
This is a bus pullout area constructed on northeastbound Ann Arbor-Saline Road next to the Woodland Plaza where, among other retail stores, Busch's Fresh Food Market is located. The bus pullout to be constructed on Washtenaw Avenue will be similar in concept. (Photo by the writer.)
The bus pullout is part of a larger project – a transfer center on the south side of Washtenaw Avenue at Pittsfield Boulevard, opposite Arborland mall – which will include a “super shelter.” The project is being paid for with federal stimulus money granted to the AATA. For now, only a center on the south side is being contemplated, because topographical and right-of-way issues pose challenges on the north side.
The city of Ann Arbor has already conducted the bid, and is preparing to award the construction contract. The city will oversee construction activities on the AATA’s behalf, using funds provided through the AATA. The rationale for the city’s oversight of the project is that the city regularly carries out similar projects, and it’s expected there will be fewer problems and a better final product. At its April 4 meeting, the Ann Arbor city council will vote on awarding a construction contract to Fonson Inc.
The MOU had been discussed at the AATA board’s regular monthly meeting on March 17, but board members were reluctant to vote on it without a final draft of the MOU itself in front of them. That led to the need for a special meeting on April 1.
Construction on the bus pullout is to begin in April and be complete by June of this year.
The need for a transfer center at that Washtenaw Avenue location, of which the bus pullout is a part, stems from the termination in July 2009 of a previous arrangement with Arborland shopping center, which provided for a bus stop and transfer center in the Arborland parking lot. [Full Story]