Transit Master Plan Recommendations December 2020

Rhode Island Transit Master Plan Recommendations December 2020

Adopted by the State Planning Council on December 10, 2020 Acknowledgments Transit Forward RI presents a program to enhance and further develop Rhode Island's passenger transportation network to better meet the near- and long-term mobility needs of our state's residents, workers and visitors. The project is a collaboration between the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA), the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT), and the Rhode Island Division of Statewide Planning.

Rhode Island Public Transit Authority Scott Avedisian Chief Executive Officer

Rhode Island Department of Transportation Peter Alviti, Jr., P.E. Director

Rhode Island Division of Statewide Planning Meredith Brady Associate Director for Planning

Project Manager Sarah Ingle Director, Long Range Planning Rhode Island Public Transit Authority

Title VI Notice to Beneficiaries The Rhode Island Division of Statewide Planning (RIDSP) operates its programs, services, and activities in compliance with federal nondiscrimination laws including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, and related statutes and regulations. Title VI prohibits discrimination in federally assisted programs and requires that no person in the United States of America shall, on the grounds of race, color, or national origin (including limited English proficiency), be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be otherwise subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal assistance. Related federal nondiscrimination laws administrated by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), or both that prohibit discrimination on the basis of age, sex, and disability. These protected categories are contemplated within RIDSP’s Title VI Program consistent with federal interpretation and administration. Additionally, the RIDSP provides meaningful access to its programs, services, and activities to individuals with limited English proficiency, in compliance with US Department of Transportation (USDOT) policy and guidance on federal Executive Order 13166.

Disclaimer The preparation and publication of this document were financed in part by funds provided by the USDOT, FHWA, and FTA. The provision of Federal financial assistance should not be construed as denoting U.S. Government approval of plans, policies, programs or projects contained herein. Table of Contents P Preface...... i

1 Introduction ...... 1

2 Recommendations at a Glance...... 3

3 Why and Where Transit Needs to Improve ...... 7

4 Initiative 1: Improve Existing Services...... 11

5 Initiative 2: Expand Services to New Areas ...... 21

6 Initiative 3: Develop High Capacity Transit...... 29

7 Initiative 4: Improve Access to Transit...... 35

8 Initiative 5: Make Service Easier to Use ...... 41

9 Costs and Benefits...... 47

10 Next Steps...... 55

P Preface

COVID-19 and Its Impacts on the Plan Transit Forward RI 2040 COVID-19 and Its Impacts on the Plan

The first draft of the Transit Forward RI 2040 plan was produced in Long-Term Outlook March 2020 just as COVID-19 stay at home orders were issued. Transit Looking at 2021 and beyond, the economy will gradually re-open and demand plummeted and by early April, RIPTA ridership was down by most travel demand should return. However, there will likely be some over 75% compared to March. It has since been increasing, but is still changes. To the extent that some workers continue to work at home down by approximately 50%. Providence Line ridership declined by either full-time or part of the time, overall commuting over 90% and is not yet recovering in the same manner as bus ridership.

Impacts-to-Date There have been dramatic changes in the number of people traveling and when they travel. A lower proportion of people are traveling during traditional peak periods and more are traveling during the midday and early evening. Also, a high proportion of those who are now working at home are white, have higher incomes, and work traditional nine to five hours. Those who are still commuting are largely essential workers who must work on site, and a high proportion are people of color with lower incomes and who work non-traditional hours. Consequently, ridership declines have been very different throughout the state.

Short-Term Outlook A vaccine is now available but will take months to be widely distributed and negative impacts of the pandemic on transit ridership will continue until that time. In the interim, people are expected to return to work gradually. The need to social distance will continue to encourage many former transit riders to drive, making traffic congestion worse. By June 2020, while transit ridership was still only back to half of pre-pandemic levels, Rhode Island’s automobile traffic had returned to 99% of February levels. Social distancing requirements also mean that buses can carry only partial loads, and RIPTA has reduced its acceptable maximum loads from 39 to 20. Consequently, RIPTA must provide more service to carry fewer riders. Revenues will remain down throughout the short-term, as fewer riders produce less fare revenue.

Rhode Island Angel of Hope and Strength by Shepard Fairey

ii Preface levels may be lower than they otherwise would be. Still, a balanced • Much of the Frequent Transit Network will consist of light transportation system will be essential to meeting Rhode Island’s rail and/or Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lines, Rapid Bus lines, transportation needs, and transit will continue to be the second most and Transit Emphasis Corridors. Light rail, BRT lines, and popular way for people to get to and from work. Transit improvements Transit Emphasis Corridor services will run in dedicated will also be the most effective way to minimize increases in traffic transit lanes. All will also include transit signal priority. While congestion, as reflected in Rhode Island’s Congestion Management Plan. the development of these lines will take many years, RIPTA and RIDOT can begin to develop transit lanes and transit Plan Adjustments signal priority in the short-term in the future LRT/BRT and Rapid Bus corridors – to provide partial benefits sooner Transit Forward RI 2040 is a plan for improvements over the next 20 and to avoid the state’s most important transit routes from years. Over a 20-year period, the plan remains valid, and will help Rhode becoming bogged down in worsening traffic congestion. An Island become stronger economically and make it a better place to live, additional short-term improvement would be the extension work, and play. However, the implementation plan presented in Chapter of R-Line service to Central Falls. 10 has been adjusted to move some elements forward and to move others back. Maps presented throughout this document depict proposed • The development of light rail and BRT lines typically takes improvements through 2040. eight to 10 years. Given this long timeframe, and in spite of current difficulties, RIPTA should begin project development In general: for the first LRT/BRT line in Year 1. • Short-term improvements should focus first on the core system • Most commuter rail improvements had already been slated where demand is highest. As described in Chapter 5, the plan for the mid to long-term. The opening of the Pawtucket/ includes a significant amount of expansion to new areas, mostly to Central Falls Station and service there should proceed in provide service coverage to areas with moderate to low demand. the short-term. The development of an Amtrak station at Until the pandemic is over, demand in most of these areas will TF Green Airport should occur following a bounce back in remain too low to support service. While the start of service air travel. More frequent Providence Line service between expansion to new areas remains in the short-term, this would begin Providence and Boston will be led by Boston’s MBTA, and later in the period rather than sooner. had already been slated as a long-term project. • Many short-term improvements would be inexpensive to • There is currently no demand for some projects such as implement and could help draw people back to transit and should service to special events. However, these continue to be proceed quickly. Two examples include the use of MBTA monthly included in the short-term in anticipation that special events passes on Amtrak trains between Providence and Boston and app- will restart in 2021 or 2022. based reservations, fare payment, and vehicle tracking for Flex service.

• The plan emphasizes more frequent service for longer hours including the development of a Frequent Transit Network of routes that would provide service at least every 15 minutes throughout most of the day. This network would be developed over time. Given current ridership demand patterns, initial frequency improvements should focus on more frequent midday and evening service.

iii

1 Introduction

What's This All About? Transit Forward RI 2040 What's This All About?

Rhode Island's economic health and quality of life are directly tied to the strength of its transit network. Just as RhodeWorks identified and is implementing improvements to the state road network, Transit Forward RI is designed to support corresponding improvements to the state’s transit services. These improvements are designed to enhance mobility, help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, encourage active transportation, support economic development, and make Rhode Island a better place to live, work, and play.

Rhode Island begins from a strong starting point. Although demand for transit greatly exceeds what is now provided, RIPTA’s services are already much better than those in other similarly sized cities in New England, as well as larger cities such as Nashville, Kansas City, and Fort Worth.

A plan of this scale will take time to implement in its entirety, but Rhode Island can – and will – begin introducing improvements in the short-term with the goal of fulfilling the plan’s vision by 2040. Many plan components are funded and poised to advance. In the short-term, among other things, riders will see faster transit services in dedicated lanes, investments in stops and regional hubs, and increased transit frequency. The plan represents the results of months of data-driven analysis, public and stakeholder outreach, and pragmatic debate among state transportation leaders. The plan is bold and ambitious, and it is vital to Rhode Island regaining its economic leadership regionally and nationally.

This plan has been designed to achieve four major goals:

2 Recommendations at a Glance

Recommendations at a Glance

Providence Metro Area Services

Statewide Services

3 Transit Forward RI 2040 Recommendations at a Glance Initiative 1 Improve Existing Services Transit Forward RI is based on five major initiatives:

A major shortcoming of existing services is that they operate infrequently and Initiative 1 for short hours. A major focal point of the plan is to provide more frequent service for longer hours, including the development of a Frequent Transit Improve Existing Services Network to provide frequent services to the state’s major destinations, faster and more frequent Providence Line service, and more.

Initiative 2 Initiative 2 Expand Services to New Areas Expand Services to New Areas To bring service to more people, service would also be expanded to new areas. These improvements will include new local services, new crosstown Initiative 3 routes, new service partnerships, an Amtrak station at TF Green Airport, and Develop High Capacity Transit new Flex service to, from, and within the Quonset Industrial Park.

Initiative 3 Initiative 4 Develop High Capacity Transit Improve Access to Transit The development of High Capacity Transit Services - Rapid Bus, Bus Rapid Transit, and Light Rail - would make transit in high-demand areas much more attractive by making it frequent, fast, and reliable. Initiative 5

Make Service Easier to Use Initiative 4 Improve Access to Transit

Together, these initiatives will produce a great leap forward A positive transit experience includes getting to and from transit stops. to produce a world class transit system for Providence and Transit Forward RI will provide more and better options to get to and from Rhode Island, greatly enhancing Rhode Island's attractiveness transit comfortably and safely. and competitiveness to employers and residents.

These initiatives are summarized here, with service maps Initiative 5 presented on the following pages. Make Service Easier to Use

RIPTA and RIDOT will adopt new technologies and methods to make service easier to use, including easier fare payment and better integration of available services.

4 Recommendations at a Glance Recommended Providence Metro Area Services RECOMMENDED SERVICES RECOMMENDED PROVIDENCE METRO AREA PROVIDENCE

To view the map online, visit: http://transitforwardri.com

5 Transit Forward RI 2040 Recommended Statewide Services STATEWIDE RECOMMENDED SERVICES RECOMMENDED

24X

To view the map online, visit: http://transitforwardri.com

6 Why and Where Transit Needs to Improve

3 Why and Where Transit Needs to Improve

The Demand for Transit in Rhode Island

Providence Metro Area Services

Statewide Services

7 Transit Forward RI 2040 The Demand for Transit in Rhode Island

In much of Rhode Island, the demand for transit greatly exceeds what is There is Demand for Higher Quality Services provided. This mismatch is greatest in the Providence core, but exists in In general, RIPTA and RIDOT provide service in the areas where many other places as well. demand is highest and in other areas where there is sufficient underlying demand for transit service. However, many of the higher Demand for Service is Highest in Urban Areas demand markets remain under-served, in that there is demand for The demand for transit is highest – by far – in the Providence metro more robust services than are currently provided. In particular, there is area. Demand is very high in Providence, Pawtucket, Central Falls, and a clear demand for more frequent service for longer hours. parts of North Providence, and high in East Providence, Warwick, and Major Metro Area Corridors much of Cranston. Transit demand in most of the rest of the Providence metro area is moderate. Key improvements that are needed include: With the exception of the R-Line, which provides Rapid Bus service, major corridors are currently served by local bus service. In most Transit Needs to Be More Frequent of these corridors, there is demand for more frequent service and/ The most important driver of transit ridership is how frequently the bus or service for longer hours. In some, there are also opportunities to comes. At present, RIPTA defines frequent service as every 20 minutes upgrade service to Rapid Bus, BRT, or even light rail. or better, while the more common national definition is every 15 minutes. Using either standard, only one bus route – the R-Line – provides Areas and Corridors with High Transit Propensity in Providence frequent service from at least 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM. RIPTA needs to provide frequent service on many more routes.

Service Needs to Operate for Longer Hours At present, only four bus routes begin service before 5:00 AM and only five operate until after midnight. Especially to connect people with jobs with non-traditional hours, more service needs to operate for longer hours.

Service Needs to be Faster With few exceptions such as rail in dedicated rights-of-way, taking transit will take longer than driving. However, to the extent that the difference can be reduced, more people will choose transit. There are a number of ways to make service faster. With the R-Line, RIPTA made service faster by introducing Transit Signal Priority (TSP) and consolidating stops to better balance travel times with walk times. The Downtown Transit Connector (DTC) will provide exclusive lanes for buses in downtown Providence. Additional options include queue jump lanes, transit signal priority, off-board fare payment, and more.

8 Why and Where Transit Needs to Improve

There is Also Demand for New Fixed-Route Transit Services Boston Commuter Demand is Very High Outside of the Providence Metro Area While most Rhode Island residents work in Rhode Island, the highest A number of areas around Rhode Island warrant more transit service than demand for commuter transit service is to and from Boston. This is is currently provided, including new local bus routes, Flex services, and for a number of reasons, but two are particularly important: regional services. 1. MBTA commuter rail and Amtrak service is faster than Opportunities for New Transit Services in Rhode Island driving and much more reliable 2. Parking costs in Boston are very high High levels of service (40 MBTA round trips and 38 Amtrak one-way trips) also make these trips convenient. The proportion of Rhode Island residents who use transit to commute to Boston ranges by station from 47% to 76%. While more work trips are made to Providence overall, the demand for commuter service is much lower. This is because the factors that make transit so attractive to Boston are not in place for trips to Providence: 1. Transit is much slower. All express buses operate on congested roadways, and MBTA commuter rail between Wickford Junction and Providence runs slowly to avoid conflicts with Amtrak trains. 2. Parking in Providence is relatively inexpensive for most, and free for many. The proportion of Rhode Island residents who use transit to commute to Providence, by route, is 10% or lower, and usually less than 5%.

Better Rail Service Can Strengthen Economic Ties with Boston Rail ties between Rhode Island and Boston are already very good. The MBTA runs 40 weekday round trips between Providence and Boston and Amtrak runs 38 one-way trips. In total, there are more trains between Boston and Providence than between Boston and any other terminal city. Providence is also one of the highest- ridership commuter rail stations outside of Boston and one of the highest ridership stations in the entire Amtrak system. However, there is still much room for improvement, and stronger links with Boston would strengthen Rhode Island economically. Opportunities include faster MBTA service, additional trains to fill gaps in existing schedules, joint MBTA and Amtrak ticketing, and the operation of more MBTA service south of Providence to Warwick/TF Green Airport.

9 Transit Forward RI 2040

St St Price Rite N6 N16 Woonsocket Municipal SocialREGIONAL Pine Swamp Rd RI Main LEGEND Proposed Regional Rapid Bus ServicePark n’ Ride 54 87 Better Express Services Could Improve Zambarano Douglas Turnpike 146 Landmark Memorial Hospital Fairmount St Smithfield Rd 87 Medical Ctr Clinton St Transit Services BURRILLVILLE SLATERSVILLE WOON- N6 CVS Providence Commutes SOCKET X Light Rail; 10-minute frequency for most of day Park n’ Ride N Smithfield Expy Nate Whipple Hwy X BRT; 10-minute frequency for most of day

Rehabilitation Hospital MASSACHUSETTS

S Main St Slatersville Flex CUMBERLAND RHODE ISLAND Rapid Bus; 10-minute frequency for most of day NORTH SMITHFIELD Walmart X 282 Pascoag/ East Ave LOCAL Slatersville Flex Although relatively inexpensive and free employer-provided 282 Pascoag/ Every 15-minutes peak or most of day North Smithfield XX Park n’ Ride N16 282 Pascoag/ XX Every 20-minute during peak periods PASCOAG MANVILLE LOCAL Slaterville Flex Douglas Pike 295 XX Every 30-minutes peak for most of day parking in Providence reduces commuter transit demand, LOCAL Lincoln Mall Every 60-minutes throughout day Victory Hwy Amica XX Pascoag Park n’ Ride N6 LOCAL 75 Angell Rd Park n’ Ride Lincoln Mall 9X XX Regional Rapid Bus; at least every 30 mins peak there are still opportunities for improvement. These include Broncos Hwy Fidelity George Washington Hwy 54 N6 XX Express Bus LOCAL RI 75 44 Bryant 75 MBTA Commuter Rail University 146 295 Stop & Shop 71 more frequent peak period express service to provide riders North Broad St XX New Flex Service LOCAL CHEPACHET 50 SMITHFIELD Central LINCOLN Airport Mobility Hubs with more flexibility. 9X Douglas Pike REGIONAL LOCAL Intermodal connectivity hubs with direct access GLOCESTER LOCAL

Lonsdale Ave CENTRAL to the RI transit network. Regional and Local. 44 Putnam Pike FALLS

NORTH Transit Center Better Regional Services Could Strengthen Rt 44/ Putnam Pike PROVIDENCE 95 Interstate Highway Park n’ Ride 9X LOCAL PAWTUCKET Park-n-Ride

Smith St 54 East Ave 6 US Highway Economic Ties between Rhode Island’s JOHNSTON Train Station Snake Den

W Greenville Rd State Park RI Airport RI Highway LOCAL LOCAL Hartford Pike Hartford Ave 146 Communities 10X LOCAL LOCAL 6 10X PROVIDENCE Ferry Chopmist Hill 10X Park n’ Ride 9X DOWNTOWN LOCAL Parks & green spaces Chopmist Hill Rd LOCAL PROVIDENCE Education East Rd Rhode Island has some of the strongest regional transit Government Buildings Seekonk 6 N15 Square Mall Healthcare FOSTER Water markets in the Northeast, if not the United States. Plainfield Pike Recreation Railroads SCITUATE LOCAL Plainfield Pike Roger Shopping Ferry Routes These include Woonsocket – Providence and Newport – Tunk Hill Rd Williams ParkLOCAL LOCAL Scituate 24X Reservoir Reservoir Ave 66 EAST Providence via the West Bay. Other strong markets include 14 PROVIDENCE CRANSTON White Church Park n’ Ride Scituate Ave LOCAL Newport – Providence via the East Bay and Narraganset Elmwood Ave Police Cove Park n’ Ride 61X N Main St WARWICK 60 WARREN REGIONAL County Rd Warwick Ave Child St – South Kingstown – Kingston – Providence. TF Green Airport LOCAL BARRINGTON WEST 14 Warren Park n’ Ride WARWICK Franklin St LOCAL North Rd

66 St n

Metacom Ave

242 W Warwick/ Mai Existing services between Woonsocket and Providence MASSACHUSETTS Flat River Rd Coventry Flex Centerville Rd RI RHODE ISLAND N14 114 Main St Flat River Rd LOCAL Gooding Ave and between Newport and Pawtucket are well-used, but Park n’ Ride 3 COVENTRY See Providence Metro Map BRISTOL N14 Harkney Hill Rd Tiogue Ave Stop & Shop 60 61X 13 GREENWICH VFW very basic. Upgraded services such as Regional Rapid Hope St Hall at Hope Colt BAY Park n’ Ride WARWICK State Park LOCAL LOCAL NARRAGANSETT BAY

Post Rd RI 95X 95 Division St Goddard LOCAL State Park 138 Bus with better stop facilities, transit priority, and bus on West Greenwich East Greenwich Ferry Rd MOUNT Fish Rd Park n’ Ride Park n’ Ride 14 Metacom Ave 65X Roger Williams HOPE Park n’ Ride BAY 66 University Main St 61X RI shoulder operations would make service faster and more Mt Hope LOCAL 24 Victory Hwy Bridge Prudence Island Prudence Island Ferry Fall River61X Expy EAST GREENWICH Airport LOCAL 24X Big River LOCAL Mt. Hope Bridge comfortable. Other markets where there is demand for Post Rd Park n’ Ride Portsmouth Park n’ Ride Beach Pond Rt 2 & Rt 4 24X State Park 95 Park n’ Ride TIVERTON RI RI NORTH 102 KINGSTOWN PRUDENCE

4 Bristol Ferry Rd stronger regional service are Newport to Kingston/URI and ISLAND LOCAL RI WEST GREENWICH 65X Nooseneck Hill Rd N289: Wickford/ 60 177 LOCAL 60 66 Quonset Quonset Airport to and from Quonset. Col Rodman Hwy Quonset REGIONAL 14 Business Martha’s Vineyard Fast Ferry

95X Wickford Junction Park E Main Rd Park n’ Ride Weetamoo Wickford W Main Rd Woods RI RI Ten Rod Rd WICKFORD 165 Junction RI RI 102 Victory Hwy Station Phillips St 114 138 Rd Main Col Rodman Hwy PORTSMOUTH Union St 24X 66 Boston Neck Rd 60 EXETER CONANICUT 95 ISLAND Oxbow Apts

Spring St 63 Stop & Shop W Main Rd E Main Rd 60 1 14 Jamestown Bridge RI Gate 17 Middletown 138 14LOCAL Park n’ Ride HOPE NORTH LOCAL VALLEY RI KINGSTOWN Rt 1A & Rt 138 MIDDLETOWN LOCAL Park n’ Ride

2 Rd Stop & Shop LOCAL 65X h 63 N18 HOPKINTON Kingstown Rd RI Green End Ave Nort 64 64 W Main Rd anicus Ave on anicus 138 Wyoming/Richmond N20

UNIVERSITY OF C Park n’ Ride N20 14 REGIONAL St George’s RI RHODE ISLAND Narragansett Ave School Wood 138 REGIONAL 64 64 River Richmond Mooresfield Rd JAMESTOWN

Airport RI Rd 63 Health West Kingston Rt 1 & Rt 138 N18 Carolina Park n’ Ride 64 Park n’ Ride k URI Bay RICHMOND 66 138 211 URI Flex Campus

CONNECTICUT 95X Nec Fort Adams 67 RHODE ISLAND Schneider Kingston n Electric 66 SOUTH Station Kingstown Rd KINGSTOWN Harrison Ave Bosto

N20 D R A Y E NIV S’ANEWPORT H T R A M O T 95 1 LOCAL Great Swamp Wakefield Mall 65X Ashaway/Hopkinton South County Trail Park n’ Ride Park n’ Ride LOCAL

RI Worden ini sterial Rd TO BLOCK ISLAND Pond M Main St HOPKINTON 2 South County Hospital Narragansett 1 High School Stop & Shop N20 S Pier Rd ASHAWAY Rd

Main St reet SOUTH Trail

KINGSTOWN h NARRAGANSETT CHARLESTOWN

Ashaway Rd Post Rd N19 ut h County 1 Point Judit Point

So Commodore Perry Hwy Burnside Ave LOCAL BRADFORD LOCAL Scarborough Westerly Station Burlingame KnowleswayBeach WESTERLY Post Rd Aldi 66 Westerly Walmart Hospital N19 Sand Hill Cove Rd Stop & Shop 1 Westerly Airport Roger Wheeler ISLAND State Beach K C K ISLAND O BLO O T TO BLOC 10 Initiative 1 | Improve Existing Services

4 Initiative 1: Improve Existing Services

Local Bus, Express Bus, and Flex Services

Rail Service to and from Boston

11 Transit Forward RI 2040

Initiative 1 Improve Existing Services

A fundamental starting point for Transit Forward RI will be to improve existing services. Existing services will be improved in a number of different ways:

Local Bus, Express Bus, and Flex Service • Development of a Frequent Transit Network • More frequent serice for longer hours • Transit Priority to make service faster • More frequent and faster express bus service

• Flex service improvements

Rail to and from Boston • Faster service • More frequent service

12 Initiative 1 | Improve Existing Services A Frequent Transit Network Will Make It Easy to Get to Rhode Island's Most Popular Destinations

Market LOCAL LOCAL South Basket The most important way to improve transit service is to make it Lincoln Woods 50 State Park N6 Attleboro B Station Frequent Transit Network 75 road St CCRI 73 CCRI Lincoln 51 Old Louisquisset Pike frequent. Frequent transit is typically defined as services that operates 54 N12 Beneﬁt St Park n’ Ride LOCAL Beneﬁt St

N12LOCAL Bradley St Stop

CENTRAL River Blackstone N117 & Shop 35 Olney 95 73 Pond DexterFAL St LS 295 Cottage St 76 Smithﬁeld Ave every 15 minutes or less. Frequent transit allows riders to use services Lonsdale Ave Twin River Road 51

Broad St Central Ave Twin 54 72 Pawtucket/ River Broadway 73 N6 Cross St Central Falls 72 StationTolman Douglas Pike Price 75 HS without a schedule and connect areas of highest demand to one 51 Ten Mile River Reservation Rite Newport Ave 54 Armistice Blvd SMITHFIELD LINCOLN DOWNTOWN Armistice Blvd RI RI Weeden St ose velt PAWTUCKET 76 246 146 Ro Walcott St 80

Wenscott Summit another. Networks of frequent transit allow for short, convenient Smithﬁeld Esmond St 76 Crossing Reservoir McCoy Main Stadium 73N10 50 80 Power Rd Mineral Spring Ave George Bennett Hwy

mo nd St Memorial NORTH Main StGrace St George St Slater transfers, which greatly expand the reach of travel by transit in a Putnam Pike Es 73 Hospital Douglas Ave N10 Park n’ Ride Prospect St Columbus Ave Park 9X 44 58 Waterman Ave PROVIDENCE 73 School St Stop & Shop N10 72

Main St PAWTUCKET 44 Mineral Spring Ave shorter amount of time. 51 78 78 N10 95 58 71 PawtucketN117 Ave 35 Narragansett 58 N10 58 Park Plaza Canada Pond Beverage Hill Rd 9X Charles St 78 Smithfield Rd Smithfield Ave Upper LOCAL 58 RI N12 Narragansett Central LOCAL N10 High Service Ave Service High East Ave Business Park Fatima 146 Pawtucket Ave Pond 35 The Frequent Transit Network would consist of a total of 19 routes with Fruit Hill Hospital Job Lot Park n’ Ride 55 Shaw’s Douglas Ave 78 Smithfield Ave 7th St Ave Newport 58 LOCALBranch Ave 58 RUMFORD Peter Pan Smith St Greenville Ave Admiral St Save-A-Lot North Burial Miriam service frequencies of 15 minutes or better. Ground Hospital PROVIDENCE RI Silver Spring St Wannamoisett 146 Charles 58 N Main St 57 Park n’ Ride Rochambeau Ave Country Club Gentian Ave St P n’ R Branch Ave George Waterman Rd Pawtucket Ave

iv er Ave Seekonk River Fruit Hill Ave Walmart 27 R 55 50 54 Blackstone Blvd 295 Providence 72 College Rd 44 College Admiral St 51 Butler Greenville Ave Woonasquatucket Ave 55 95 ov e Ave Hospital 92 La Salle Smith St Douglas Ave Wilson Ave Camp St Academy Hope St

Rhode Island College N Main St Elmgr Mt. Pleasant 57 Doyle St 40 Roger Williams Ave Oakland Ave Whole High School Roger Williams Foods N117 50 N12 Blackstone Medical Center Hope HS Park 35 78 27 56 Mount Pleasant Ave 56 Chalkstone Ave N9 REGIONALREGIONAL WAYLAND Stop & Shop Orms St N7 Lloyd Ave 27 56 Providence SQUARE Butler Sisson St ha yer Henderson

VA Medical T EAGLE N9 Station LOCAL Angell St Massasoit 9X 56 Park n’ Ride Bridge roadway Center Brown LOCAL 32 10X SQUARE 95 35 24X 35Henderson Expy Wampanoag Hunts

N7 Francis St RISD LOCAL 33 N B 6 LOCAL Plaza/ Mills Manton Ave 40 61X 32 Valley St 34 34 LOCAL Stop & Shop I-295/US 6 Price Rite Waterman St LOCAL Taunton Park n’ Ride Hartford Ave Atwells Ave 33 Pawtucket Ave 10X 10 S Main St Massasoit Park-n-Ride 92 Sabin St REGIONALREGIONAL 33 DOWNTOWN FOX Pitman Waterfront Dr Stop & Shop OLNEYVILLE

FEDERAL Ives St 6A 9X 10X6 30 PROVIDENCE St Dyer POINT Eastside 32 28 HILL 60 Wickenden St 9X Den 27 9X S Water St Marketplace Taunton Ave nis J 10X Dorrance 78 92 Taunton Ave Shaw’s E Providence Roberts Expy GlenbridgeHartford Ave Ave 10X Broadway High School EAST 9X Killingly St 27 92 78 Waterman Ave LOCAL N117 60 E Prov 6 LOCAL 31 REGIONAL Govt Ctr PROVIDENCE 28 Westminster St Newport Ferry 19 28 6 Point St 34 Olneyville Square N9 19560 24X Commercial Way RI Atwood Ave Neutaconkanut 19 61X 114 A Park N1N133 Classical HS Broad St6 N117 Chapin Ave Warren Ave County St CentralN12 HS N9 PROVIDENCE R Rhode Island Hospital DHS Blackstone St 33 34 JOHNSTON N9 Veterans Providence River S Broadway Evergreen Ellery St 3 Metacomet Pocasset Ave Union Ave Cranston St 6 RI Highland Ave 18 31 CCRI N8 4 Golf Course 32 Apts 24X 295 30 Potters Ave St Joseph Liston 114 Hospital 14 HuntingtonN13 Ave Allens Ave Memorial Pkwy Plainfield St N13N13 66 Martin St Elmwood Ave N13 Prairie Ave Eddy St65X 195 y Potters Ave 61X St Mink Fall River Ave 95X Pawtucket Ave Dyer Ave Laurel Hill R Veterans MemorialArmingto Pkwy n 60 Cranston Print Broad St Thurbers Ave Corner Cranston St RI Works Pond Garfield Chestnut Commerce W Alvarez 32 Lifespan Medical 114 A 34 Atwood Ave Dyer Hill Ave 95 Oce lainfield Pike 30 Narragansett Blvd P Pond Brewery Parkade High School Sackett 18 Stop & Shop 19 Colony 33 32 CRANSTON Mashapaug House 14 N8 Tripps Ln Pond 65X Bradley Wampanoag Trail River St School St 66 Hospital Plainfield Pike 10 RIPTA 95X R Citizens Bank Independence Wy Gansett Ave Facilities Plainfield Pike Spectacle Save-A-Lot Johnson & Wales Randall N117 Pond 20 6 Hawthorne Harborside Bay View Pond Academy 19 30 Roger Williams 33

Zoo Pawtucket Ave

Comstock Pkwy Sailor Wy Amﬂex Dr Walmart Atwood Ave N12 Harborside Blvd RI Park Ave 114 N11 Park Ave Cranston HS Cranston N11 LOCAL 3 295 Stop & Shop LOCAL East Industrial 95 Broad St 4 Park Roger Williams Pontiac Park 60 Phenix Ave

N11 Elmwood Ave 61X on g Rd Providence River Budl Rolfe Sq Park Ave LOCALWarwick Ave 33 LOCAL Cranston St Reservoir Ave N11 Pontiac Ave CRANSTON Price Rite 30 A Colonial Ave 22 Broad St N12 queduct Rd Pawtuxet Job Lot Stop & Shop 3 Oxboes Park RIVERSIDE N8 PAWTUXET 20 Shaws 4 VILLAGE il lside

H Post Rd Bullocks Point Ave Pontiac Ave Garden City Garden City Park n’ Ride Crescent View Ave 33 Midway Rd

Sockanosset CrossWhol Rde Elmwood Ave Foods WARWICK Crescent Park Shaws Carousel

Post Rd Warwick Ave 37 20 Walmart 3 se tt Pkwy Oaklawn Ave DMV

rr agan Shaw’s New LondonTrac Ave N8 Tribunal 4 Na Willet Ave Howard Ave Pilgrim HS N12 Pontiac Ave Narragansett Pkwy LEGEND Warwick Ave Crescent Park Carousel 295 30 22 8 Transit Services Pawtuxet River 3 New London Ave Bald H Bald 4 X Light Rail; 10-minute frequency for most of the day 14 X BRT; 10-minute frequency for most of the day CRANSTON il l Rd East St 66 X Rapid Bus; 10-minute frequency for most of the day Mayﬁeld Ave LOCAL 65X Jeerson Blvd Airport Rd X Extension of Rapid Bus service; half as much service Post Rd 95X il l Rd Dave’s XX Every 15-minutes peak or most of the day

New London Ave 22 Pontiac Ave 95 Marketplace ProvidencXX e Every 20-minute during peak periods 13 N8 3 4 River 242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex Bald H 30 XX Every 30-minutes peak or most of the day. TF GreenTF Connector Green Rd Warwick Ave West Shore Rd 295 XX Every 60-minutes throughout the day. 29 G Knight St REGIONALREGIONAL reenwich Ave 65X Station 66 14 XX Regional Rapid Bus; at least every 30 mins peak 95X 66 TF Green Providence St XX Express Bus Phenix 22 Airport Warwick Hotel WEST Rhode Pond CONIMICUT 13 29 30 MBTA Commuter Rail WARWICK Island 8 29 Highland St Mall Warwick WARWICK Church Ave Mall Transit Emphasis Corridors 13 East Ave Stop & Shop Main St River Point 29 Post Rd Corridors with high-frequency transit service Park 3 4 (every 10 mins or better in each direction) with East Main St N8 29 Beach Ave 29 29 BRT-type amenities Bald Hill Rd East Ave Jeerson Blvd CCRI N5 14 West Shore Rd Providence St LOCAL Tidewater Dr y Flex Providence St LOCAL 66 8 Strawberry Field Rd Mobility Hubs 13 Industrial Dr 65X Sandy Ln 95X Greenwood Church 29 REGIONAL LOCAL Intermodal connectivity hubs with direct access Park n’ Ride Main Ave Stop & Shop to the RI transit network. Regional and Local. Warwick Sandy Ln Providence St Little Warwick/ Coventr W Warwick/ Warwick Ave Kent 95 Gorton Pond Hospital Greenwich Ave Warwick Vets 242 242 Main St Main Ave Memorial HS Transit Center Interstate Highway ARCTIC Pond Bishop 95 Bald Hill Rd Toll Gate Post Rd VILLAGE 29 Hendricken Park-n-Ride Veterans Longmeadow Ave 242 West Warkwick/ High School 14 APPONAUG West Shore Rd HS 13 Toll Gate Rd Memorial 6 US Highway Coventry Flex Drive 29 8 Train Station 29 West Shore Rd k Ave Washington St New London Ave 29 8 Buttonwoods Ave Samuel Gorton Ave Airport RI REGIONAL Roberts St k Nec RI Highway REGIONAL13 Centerville Rd Centerville Rd 146 29 Long St Ferry Route 117 Post Rd Kent County ac h Ave

Warwic Parks & green spaces YMCA Park n’ Ride Ginsu Way 4 Education Barton Ave Kent Count Courthouse Dia Warwick Government Buildings ive r

nd H mo nd City Park Oakland Be 14 Healthcare Water

uxe t R Bald Hill Rd ke r Ln 66 Post Rd Main St

65X il l Rd 3 Recreation Railroads Paw t Qua Cowesett Corners 95X Suburban Pkwy Cowesett Rd Stop & Shop Cowesett Ave Shopping Ferry Routes 29 Greenwich Bay 242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex 95

13 Transit Forward RI 2040 More Frequent Service for Longer Hours Will Make it Much Easier to Travel by Transit

In addition to the Frequent Transit Network, more frequent service for longer hours would also be provided on nearly all other routes – changes designed to make service more convenient and to better match service levels with demand. All routes would be classified according to one of the route classifications shown below. Nearly all routes would operate more frequently and for longer hours. Equally important, far fewer routes would operate infrequently.

Changes in Service Frequencies (Number of Routes) Route Type Today Recommended Light Rail, BRT, and Rapid Bus (Every 10 Minutes) 1 9

Regional Rapid Bus 0 4

Frequent Local (Every 15 Minutes) 4 10

Local (Every 16 to 30 Minutes) 19 32

Local (Every 31 to 60 Minutes) 15 0

Local (Less frequent than every 60 Minutes) 7 0

Express 8 7

Flex Zones 7 8

TOTAL 61 68

Earlier and later service will also be provided to serve a greater range of work hours as well as more flexibility for other types of trips.

Changes in Service Spans (Number of Routes) Number of Routes Today Recommended

Service Before 6 AM 22 23

Service After 10 PM 22 32

Service After Midnight 5 19 TOTAL 49 74

14 Market Basket Lincoln Woods State Park B CCRI road St

CCRI Lincoln Old Louisquisset Pike Park n’ Ride Beneﬁt St Beneﬁt St Stop Bradley St

CENTRAL River Blackstone N117 & Shop 35 Road Olney 95 Pond DexterFAL St LS 295 Cottage St Smithﬁeld Ave Twin River Lonsdale Ave

Broad St Central Ave Twin

River Broadway Cross St Tolman Douglas Pike Price HS Ten Mile River Reservation Rite Newport Ave Armistice Blvd SMITHFIELD LINCOLN DOWNTOWN Armistice Blvd RI RI Weeden St ose velt PAWTUCKET 246 146 Ro Walcott St Smithﬁeld Esmond St Wenscott Summit Crossing Reservoir McCoy Main Stadium

Power Rd Mineral Spring Ave George Bennett Hwy mo nd St Memorial NORTH Main StGrace St George St Slater Putnam Pike Es Hospital Douglas Ave Park n’ Ride Prospect St Columbus Ave Park 44 Waterman Ave PROVIDENCE School St Stop & Shop

Main St PAWTUCKET 44 Mineral Spring Ave Initiative 1 | Improve Existing Services 95 PawtucketN117 Ave 35 Narragansett Transit Emphasis Corridors and Transit Priority Will Make Transit Faster Park Plaza

Canada Pond Beverage Hill Rd Charles St Smithﬁeld Rd Smithﬁeld Ave Upper Aside from more frequent service,RI the other improvement that passengers want the most is faster service. High-capacity transit linesNarraganset wouldt Central

High Service Ave Service High East Ave Business Park Fatima operate at least partially in dedicated146 lanes free from traffic delays, and Rapid Bus and Regional Rapid Bus routesPawtucket would Ave operate with queuePon jumpd Hospital Job 35 Fruit Hill lanes, transit signal priority, and bus on shoulder use that wouldLot minimize traffic-related delays. There would also be: Park n’ Ride Shaw’s Douglas Ave Smithﬁeld Ave 7th St Ave Newport • An east-west Transit EmphasisBranch Corridor Ave (TEC) between Olneyville Square and East Providence.RUMFORD This TEC would be similar to the Downtown Transit Corridor (DTC) and would use Broadway throughPeter Pa nFederal Hill, Angell and Waterman Streets on College Hill, and the Henderson Smith Save-A-Lot Greenville Ave Bridge and HendersonAdmiral St Expressway in East Providence.North Buria l Miriam St RI Ground Hospital PROVIDENCE Silver Spring St Wannamoisett • Transit priority at traffic chokepoints146 Charles at key locationsN Main Sthroughoutt Rhode Island as part of roadway improvement projects. Park n’ Ride Rochambeau Ave Country Club Gentian Ave St P n’ R Branch Ave George Waterman Rd Pawtucket Ave

iv er Ave Seekonk River Fruit Hill Ave Walmart 27 R East-West Transit Emphasis Corridor and Associated Services Blackstone Blvd 295 Providence College Rd 44 College Admiral St Butler Greenville Ave Woonasquatucket Ave 95 ov e Ave Hospital La Salle Smith St Douglas Ave Wilson Ave Camp St Academy Hope St

Rhode Island College N Main St Elmgr Mt. Pleasant Doyle St 40 Roger Williams Ave High School Oakland Ave Whole Roger Williams Foods N117 Blackstone Medical Center Hope HS Park 35

27 Mount Pleasant Ave Chalkstone Ave WAYLAND Stop & Shop Orms St Lloyd Ave 27 SQUARE Butler Sisson St ha yer Henderson VA Medical T Massasoit EAGLE LOCAL Angell St Bridge Park n’ Ride Center Brown 32 SQUARE 95 35 24X 35Henderson Expy Wampanoag Hunts

Francis St RISD 6 33 N Broadway Plaza/ Mills Manton Ave 40 61X 32 Valley St 34 34 LOCAL Stop & Shop Taunton I-295/US 6 Hartford Ave Price Rite Waterman St 33 Pawtucket Ave Park n’ Ride Atwells Ave S Main St Massasoit Park-n-Ride 10 Sabin St 33 DOWNTOWN FOX Pitman Waterfront Dr Stop & Shop OLNEYVILLE

FEDERAL Ives St 6A 6 PROVIDENCE St Dyer POINT Eastside 32 HILL Wickenden St Dennis J Roberts Expy 27 S Water St Marketplace Taunton Ave Dorrance Taunton Ave Shaw’s E Providence Glenbridge Ave Broadway Hartford Ave High School Killingl 27 Waterman Ave EAST LOCAL N117 E Prov 6 Westminster St Govt Ctr PROVIDENCE y St Newport Ferry Point St 34 Olneyville Square 195 24X Commercial Way RI Atwood Ave Neutaconkanut 61X 114 A Park Classical HS Broad St N117 Chapin Ave Warren Ave County St Central HS PROVIDENCE Rhode Island Hospital DHS Blackstone St 33 34 JOHNSTON Veterans Providence River S Broadway Evergreen

Ellery St Metacomet Pocasset Ave Union Ave Cranston St RI CCRI Golf Course Apts Highland Ave Potters Ave St Joseph 32 114 24X 295 Hospital Liston Huntington Ave Allens Ave Memorial Pkwy Plainﬁeld St Martin St Elmwood Ave Prairie Ave Eddy St 195 y Potters Ave St Mink Fall River Ave Pawtucket Ave 61X

Dyer Ave Laurel Hill Veterans MemorialArmingto Pkwy n Cranston Print Broad St Thurbers Ave Corner Cranston St RI Works Pond Garfield Chestnut Lifespan Medical 114 A 34 Commerce W Atwood Ave Dyer Hill Ave Alvarez 95 32 Narraganset Oce Plainfield Pike Pond Brewery Parkade High School Sackett Stop & Shop Colony 33 32 CRANSTON Mashapaug House Tripps Ln 15 Pond Bradley Wampanoag Trail River St School St Hospital Citizens Bank Plainfield Pike 10 RIPTA thorne t Blvd Independence Wy Gansett Ave Facilities Plainfield Pike Spectacle Save-A-Lot Johnson & Wales Randall N117 Pond Haw Harborside Bay View Pond Academy Roger Williams 33

Zoo Pawtucket Ave

Comstock Pkwy Sailor Wy Amﬂex Dr Walmart Atwood Ave Harborside Blvd RI Park Ave Park Ave 114 Cranston Cranston HS Stop & Shop East Industrial 295 95 Broad St Park Roger Williams Pontiac Park Phenix Ave

Elmwood Ave 61X on g Rd Providence River Budl Rolfe Sq Park Ave Warwick Ave 33 Cranston St Reservoir Ave Pontiac Ave CRANSTON Colonial Ave Price Rite Broad St Aqueduct Rd Pawtuxet Job Lot Stop & Shop Oxboes Park RIVERSIDE PAWTUXET Shaws VILLAGE il lside

H Post Rd Bullocks Point Ave Pontiac Ave Garden City Garden City Park n’ Ride Crescent View Ave 33 Midway Rd

Sockanosset CrossWhol Rde Elmwood Ave Foods WARWICK Crescent Park Shaws Carousel

Post Rd Warwick Ave 37 Walmart se tt Pkwy Oaklawn Ave DMV

rr agan Shaw’s New LondonTrac Ave Tribunal Na Willet Ave Howard Ave Pilgrim HS Pontiac Ave Narragansett Pkwy LEGEND

Warwick Ave Crescent Park Carousel 295 Transit Services Pawtuxet River New London Ave

Bald H Bald X Light Rail; 10-minute frequency for most of the day X BRT; 10-minute frequency for most of the day

CRANSTON il l Rd East St X Rapid Bus; 10-minute frequency for most of the day Mayﬁeld Ave Jeerson Blvd Airport Rd X Extension of Rapid Bus service; half as much service Post Rd

il l Rd Dave’s XX Every 15-minutes peak or most of the day

Pontiac Ave Marketplace Providence New London Ave 95 RiveXXr Every 20-minute during peak periods

242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex Bald H XX Every 30-minutes peak or most of the day. TF Green Connector Rd Warwick Ave West Shore Rd 295 XX Every 60-minutes throughout the day. GreenwichKnight Ave St XX Regional Rapid Bus; at least every 30 mins peak TF Green Providence St XX Express Bus Phenix WEST Airport Warwick CONIMICUT Hotel Rhode Pond MBTA Commuter Rail WARWICK Island Highland St Mall Warwick WARWICK Church Ave Mall Transit Emphasis Corridors East Ave Stop & Shop Main St River Point Post Rd Corridors with high-frequency transit service Park (every 10 mins or better in each direction) with East Main St Beach Ave BRT-type amenities Bald Hill Rd CCRI East Ave Jeerson Blvd Providence St WestTidewater Shore Rd Dr y Flex Providence St Strawberry Field Rd Mobility Hubs Sandy Ln Greenwood Church REGIONAL LOCAL Intermodal connectivity hubs with direct access Park n’ Ride Main Ave Stop & Shop to the RI transit network. Regional and Local. Warwick Industrial Dr Sandy Ln Providence St Little Warwick/ Coventr W Warwick/ Warwick Ave Kent 95 Gorton Pond Hospital Greenwich Ave Warwick Vets 242 242 Main St Main Ave Memorial HS Transit Center Interstate Highway ARCTIC Pond Bishop 95 Bald Hill Rd Toll Gate Post Rd VILLAGE Hendricken Park-n-Ride Veterans Longmeadow Ave 242 West Warkwick/ High School APPONAUG West Shore Rd HS Toll Gate Rd Memorial 6 US Highway Coventry Flex Drive Train Station West Shore Rd k Ave Washington St New London Ave Buttonwoods Ave Samuel Gorton Ave Airport RI k Nec RI Highway Roberts St Centerville Rd Centerville Rd 146 Long St Ferry Route 117 Post Rd Kent County ac h Ave

Warwic Parks & green spaces YMCA Park n’ Ride Ginsu Way Education Barton Ave Kent Count Courthouse Dia Warwick Government Buildings ive r nd H mo nd City Park Oakland Be Healthcare Water

uxe t R Bald Hill Rd ke r Ln Post Rd Main St il l Rd Recreation Railroads Paw t Qua Cowesett Corners Suburban Pkwy Cowesett Rd Stop & Shop Cowesett Ave Shopping Ferry Routes Greenwich Bay 242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex 95 Transit Forward RI 2040 Better Express Bus Service Will Improve Commutes

At present, service on some express routes is very limited, with only one Proposed Express Bus on Shoulder Operations or two trips in each direction. Three types of express bus improvements would be made: • More frequent service: At present, service on some express routes is very limited, with only one or two trips in each direction. Service on all routes would be increased to at least four AM inbound and four PM outbound trips. • The use of commuter coaches to provide more comfortable service. • Bus on Shoulder service: Bus on shoulder service would be implemented on Regional Rapid Bus and express routes, in cases where only moderate roadway changes (such as changes to signing and striping) would be needed.

Commuter Coach Bus in New York City

16 Initiative 1 | Improve Existing Services Flex Service Improvements Will Improve Service to the Suburbs and Lower-Density Areas

RIPTA’s Flex services currently require prior day advance reservations by phone and sometimes deny rides because the service is full. To improve service, the following improvements would be added to RIPTA’s existing phone-based system: • App-based same-day/on-demand booking • App-based fare payment • App-based vehicle tracking In addition, and as required, the capacity of the existing services would be increased to accomodate all demand.

17 Transit Forward RI 2040 More Frequent Commuter Rail Service Will Serve a Greater Range of Trips

In Spring 2019, the Rhode Island Governor's Office and RIDOT began discussions with their Massachusetts counterparts on ways to enhance and shorten the trip time between Providence and Boston. Concepts ranging from cross-honoring MBTA commuter rail passes on Amtrak trains to pilot/demonstration services to full electrification on the Providence Line continue to be investigated by both states. In addition, RIDOT remains very active with Massachusetts on efforts to improve commuter rail service overall through Rail Vision and the Northeast Corridor Commission.

In November 2019, the MBTA Fiscal Management and Control Board (FMCB) passed a number of resolutions related to commuter rail improvements, including the Providence Line. The MBTA envisions a commuter rail system that will be more similar to rapid transit and will include the following features: • All-day frequent service • Electrified service that uses Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) railcars • High level platforms and all-door boarding and alighting The MBTA FMCB identified the Providence lines as one of the first three lines for these improvements (although a schedule has not yet been set). A key element will be that service between Providence and Boston would operate more frequently, which would be major improvement from today’s service levels.

South of Providence, where service levels will be determined by Rhode Island and demand is significantly lower,service to TF Green would be improved to 20 round trips on weekdays, nine on Saturdays, and seven on Sundays. To and from Wickford Junction, where demand and ridership are fairly low, service will be maintained at 10 round trips per weekday.

In addition, cross-honored fares with Amtrak will be implemented to provide access to select Amtrak trains, which will provide additional service. This is described in more detail below in the fare integration section.

18 Initiative 1 | Improve Existing Services Faster Commuter Rail Service Will Reduce Travel Times

The planned improvements will also include elements to make service faster. These details also need to be worked out, but important improvements could include: • High-level platforms at all Massachusetts stations will significantly reduce dwell time at stations • The use of electrified trains will reduce acceleration times

Cross-Honored Fares with Amtrak will Fill Gaps in Service and Provide Access to Faster Service RIDOT is planning to implement a cross-honor fare agreement with Amtrak that will provide the ability for Providence Line passholders to ride select Amtrak trains. This will provide more frequent service to passholders as well as access to faster and more comfortable trains, and fill gaps in off-peak service.

Initiative 2 | Expand Service to New Areas

5 Initiative 2: Expand Service to New Areas

Local Fixed Route Service to New Areas

New Crosstown Routes

Wickford/Quonset Flex Service

Amtrak Service to TF Green Airport

Network of Mobility Hubs

Expanded Seasonal/Special Event Services

Service Partnership Program

21 Transit Forward RI 2040

Initiative 2 Expand Service to New Areas

Transit Forward RI will provide a vareity of new services: • Bus services to new areas • New crosstown bus routes • Wickford/Quonset Flex service • Network of mobility hubs • Amtrak station at TF Green Airport • Expanded seasonal and special event services • A Service Partnership program to encourage public- private partnerships to expand transit service

22 Initiative 2 | Expand Service to New Areas New Local Fixed-Route Services Will Bring Transit to More People

New local fixed-route services would be developed in areas where there is moderate to high demand, but are currently either unserved or underserved. These routes would be: • Providence • N7 Valley Street • Woonsocket • N16 Bellingham-Manville • Newport • N18 Hillside/Valley • N20 Newport-Narragansett • Narragansett • N20 Newport-Narragansett • Westerly • N19 Westerly-Bradford • New crosstown routes in the Providence Metro Area (see following page)

Woonsocket Newport Westerly

23 Transit Forward RI 2040 New Crosstown Services Will Make Non-Downtown Trips Faster

Most of RIPTA’s services operate to and from downtown Proposed Crosstown Routes Providence, while large numbers of people make “crosstown” trips to other places. A major impediment to providing more crosstown service is that few crosstown roads exist in the Providence Metro Area. Still, a number of opportunities exist, and four new crosstown routes are recommended: • N9 VA Hospital - Eddy Street via Dean Street • N10 Mineral Spring Ave • N11 Cranston/Park Ave • N13 Olneyville Square - Eddy Street In addition, Route 58 Branch Ave would be converted to a crosstown route and Route 29 Kent County would continue to provide crosstown service across Warwick. Crosstown service would also be improved through the development of mobility hubs and more frequent service for longer hours at those locations.

24 Initiative 2 | Expand Service to New Areas Wickford/Quonset Flex Service Will Improve Amtrak Service to TF Green Airport Will Service to an Important Job Site Improve Interstate Connections

New Flex service would be developed in Wickford and the Quonset The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) recently awarded Industrial Park to enhance employee access to Quonset. The new service a grant to RIDOT to undertake preliminary engineering and would provide connections between Regional Rapid Bus services and environmental review for the development of an Amtrak stop at commuter rail. TF Green Airport. Based on a favorable outcome of this phase, funding for construction, and the agreement of Amtrak, some With longer spans of service on regional bus routes, connections would or all Northeast Regional trains would stop at TF Green Station, be available to Quonset for long hours from Providence, South County, providing one of the closest air to intercity rail connections in the Newport, and points in between. country.

25 Transit Forward RI 2040 A Network of Mobility Hubs Will Improve Connections Throughout Rhode Island

Mobility hubs are sites where multimodal transportation options, information resources, placemaking features, and traveler amenities are brought together in a well-designed, publicly accessible space to support a variety of different types of trips.

Transit Forward RI will develop a network of mobility hubs throughout the state. They will be the first point of entry into the regional public transportation network for many travelers, and connecting points for others. They will provide an enjoyable user experience and build a strong relationship between the community and transportation providers.

Mobility hubs vary in size and function based on the types of options available and volumes:

• Large regional mobility hubs such as Kennedy Plaza, Providence Station, and the Newport Visitors Center typically include services and amenities such as indoor shelter, restrooms, bicycle facilities, and staffed or technology-enhanced information kiosks. Regional mobility hubs are located at the ends of major transit lines and in downtowns and major regional activity centers.

• Smaller community mobility hubs that provide mobility services for their immediate surrounding neighborhoods are generally located in village centers and other activity centers in lower density suburban areas. Community mobility hubs typically include bus stops, outdoor shelters, real-time signage, bike/car share, and park and ride lots.

26 Initiative 2 | Expand Service to New Areas

Price Rite N6 N16 Woonsocket Municipal SocialREGIONAL St Pine Swamp Rd Community and Regional Mobility Hubs RI Park n’ Ride Main St LEGEND 54 87 Zambarano Douglas Turnpike 146 Landmark Memorial Hospital Fairmount St Smithfield Rd 87 Medical Ctr Clinton St Transit Services BURRILLVILLE SLATERSVILLE WOON- N6 CVS SOCKET X Light Rail; 10-minute frequency for most of day Park n’ Ride N Smithfield Expy Nate Whipple Hwy X BRT; 10-minute frequency for most of day

Rehabilitation Hospital MASSACHUSETTS

S Main St Slatersville Flex CUMBERLAND RHODE Rapid Bus; 10-minute frequency for most of day NORTH SMITHFIELD Walmart X There will be nine regional mobility hubs and at least one 282 Pascoag/ East Ave LOCAL Slatersville Flex 282 Pascoag/ Every 15-minutes peak or most of day North Smithfield XX Park n’ Ride N16 282 Pascoag/ ISLAND XX Every 20-minute during peak periods PASCOAG MANVILLE LOCAL community mobility hub in each community. Slaterville Flex Douglas Pike XX Every 30-minutes peak for most of day LOCAL 295 Lincoln Mall Every 60-minutes throughout day Victory Hwy Amica XX Pascoag Park n’ Ride N6 LOCAL 75 Angell Rd Park n’ Ride Lincoln Mall 9X XX Regional Rapid Bus; at least every 30 mins peak Broncos Hwy Fidelity George Washington Hwy 54 N6 XX Express Bus Regional Mobility Hubs LOCAL RI 75 44 Bryant 75 MBTA Commuter Rail University 146 295 Stop & Shop 71 North Broad St XX New Flex Service LOCAL CHEPACHET 50 SMITHFIELD Central LINCOLN Airport • Providence/Kennedy Plaza • Woonsocket/Downtown 9X Mobility Hubs

Douglas Pike REGIONAL LOCAL Intermodal connectivity hubs with direct access GLOCESTER LOCAL

Lonsdale Ave CENTRAL to the RI transit network. Regional and Local. 44 Putnam Pike FALLS

CONNECTICUT 54 Note: There would be local mobility hubs in each community. • Providence/Providence • Warwick/TF Green Airport RHODE ISLAND Greenville Broadway However, these are not shwon on the map as speciﬁc Shopping Center Waterman Ave Station locations have not yet been determined. NORTH Transit Center Rt 44/ Putnam Pike PROVIDENCE 95 Interstate Highway • North Kingstown/Wickford Park n’ Ride LOCAL 9X PAWTUCKET Park-n-Ride • Providence/Jewelry District Junction JOHNSTON Smith St 54 East Ave 6 US Highway Snake Den Train Station

W Greenville Rd State Park RI Airport RI Highway Hartford Pike Hartford Ave LOCAL 146 LOCAL 10X 6 10X LOCAL PROVIDENCE LOCAL Ferry • Pawtucket/Central Falls • University of Rhode Island Chopmist Hill 10X Park n’ Ride 9X LOCAL Parks & green spaces Chopmist Hill Rd LOCAL Education East Rd Buildings Seekonk Government • Newport Visitors Center 6 N15 Square Mall Healthcare FOSTER Water Plainfield Pike Recreation Railroads SCITUATE LOCAL Plainfield Pike Roger Shopping Ferry Routes Tunk Hill Rd Williams ParkLOCAL Community Mobility Hubs Scituate LOCAL 24X Reservoir Reservoir Ave 66 EAST 14 PROVIDENCE

CRANSTON • Barrington • Middletown White Church Park n’ Ride Scituate Ave LOCAL Elmwood Ave Police Cove Park n’ Ride 61X N Main St • Bristol • Narragansett WARWICK 60 WARREN REGIONAL County Rd Warwick Ave TF Green Airport LOCAL Child St BARRINGTON WEST 14 Warren Park n’ Ride WARWICK Franklin St LOCAL

• Burrillville • New Shoreham North Rd 66 St n

Metacom Ave

242 W Warwick/ Mai Flat River Rd Coventry Flex MASSACHUSETTS Centerville Rd RI RHODE ISLAND N14 114 • Central Falls Main St • North Kingstown/ Flat River Rd LOCAL Gooding Ave 3 Park n’ Ride COVENTRY See Providence Metro Map BRISTOL Quonset Gateway Harkney Hill Rd N14 Tiogue Ave Stop & Shop 60 61X • Charlestown 13 GREENWICH VFW Hall at Hope Colt Hope St BAY Park n’ Ride WARWICK State Park LOCAL LOCAL NARRAGANSETT BAY

Post Rd RI 95X 95 Division St Goddard • North Providence LOCAL State Park 138 West Greenwich East Greenwich Ferry Rd MOUNT 14 Metacom Ave Fish Rd • College Hill Park n’ Ride Park n’ Ride 65X Roger Williams HOPE Park n’ Ride BAY 66 University Main St 61X RI Mt Hope LOCAL 24 • North Smithfield Victory Hwy Bridge Prudence Island Prudence Island Ferry 61X • Coventry LOCAL Fall River Expy EAST GREENWICH Airport 24X Big River LOCAL Mt. Hope Bridge Post Rd Park n’ Ride Portsmouth Park n’ Ride Beach Pond Rt 2 & Rt 4 24X • Portsmouth State Park 95 Park n’ Ride TIVERTON RI RI NORTH • Cranston/Knightsville 102 KINGSTOWN PRUDENCE

4 Bristol Ferry Rd ISLAND LOCAL RI WEST GREENWICH 65X Nooseneck Hill Rd N289: Wickford/ 60 177 LOCAL 60 • Providence/Olneyville 66 Quonset Quonset Airport • Cranston/Pawtuxet Col Rodman Hwy Quonset REGIONAL 14 Business Martha’s Vineyard Fast Ferry

95X Wickford Junction Park E Main Rd Park n’ Ride Weetamoo Wickford W Main Rd Woods • Richmond RI RI Ten Rod Rd WICKFORD 165 Junction RI RI • Cumberland 102 Victory Hwy Station Phillips St 114 138 Rd Main Col Rodman Hwy PORTSMOUTH Union St 24X • Scituate Boston Neck Rd • East Greenwich 66 60 EXETER CONANICUT 95 ISLAND Oxbow Apts

Spring St 63 Stop & Shop W Main Rd E Main Rd • East Providence • Smithfield/Bryant 60 1 14 Jamestown Bridge RI Gate 17 Middletown University 138 14LOCAL Park n’ Ride HOPE NORTH LOCAL VALLEY RI KINGSTOWN Rt 1A & Rt 138 MIDDLETOWN LOCAL Park n’ Ride • Wampanoag Plaza 2 Rd LOCAL Stop & Shop 65X h 63 N18 HOPKINTON Kingstown Rd RI Green End Ave Nort • Tiverton 64 64 W Main Rd anicus Ave on anicus 138 Wyoming/Richmond N20

UNIVERSITY OF C Park n’ Ride N20 14 REGIONAL St George’s RI RHODE ISLAND • Exeter Narragansett Ave School Wood 138 REGIONAL 64 64 River Richmond Mooresfield Rd JAMESTOWN

Airport RI Rd 63 Health West Kingston Rt 1 & Rt 138 N18 • Warren Carolina Park n’ Ride 64 138 Park n’ Ride k URI Bay RICHMOND 66 211 URI Flex Campus

CONNECTICUT 95X Nec Fort Adams 67 RHODE ISLAND Schneider n Kingston 66 SOUTH • Foster Electric Station Kingstown Rd KINGSTOWN Harrison Ave Bosto

• Warwick/Arctic N20 D R A Y E NIV S’ANEWPORT H T R A M O T 1 LOCAL 95 LOCAL Great • Glocester Swamp Wakefield Mall 65X Ashaway/Hopkinton South County Trail Park n’ Ride Park n’ Ride • Warwick/CCRI LOCAL RI Worden ini sterial Rd TO BLOCK ISLAND M 2 Pond South County Main St • Hopkinton HOPKINTON Narragansett Hospital 1 High School Stop & Shop N20 • Westerly S Pier Rd ASHAWAY Rd

Main St reet SOUTH

KINGSTOWN h NARRAGANSETT • Jamestown CHARLESTOWN

Ashaway Rd Post Rd N19 ut h County Trail 1

• West Greenwich Judit Point So Commodore Perry Hwy Burnside Ave LOCAL • Johnston BRADFORD LOCAL Scarborough Westerly Station Burlingame KnowleswayBeach WESTERLY Post Rd Aldi 66 Westerly Walmart • Lincoln Hospital N19 1 Sand Hill Cove Rd Stop & Shop Westerly Airport Roger Wheeler ISLAND State Beach • Little Compton K BLOCK ISLAND O BLOC O T TO

27 Transit Forward RI 2040 Additional Service Will Better Serve Service Partnerships Will Engender Special Event and Seasonal Demands Public-Private Partnerships

RIDOT currently provides seasonal ferry service to Newport and Bristol. Due to financial constraints, transit systems can never provide as RIPTA provides seasonal services to beaches and in Newport, as well much service as all constituents want. To provide additional services as shuttle services from Providence Station and Downtown to the ferry beyond what could otherwise be provided, several transit agencies terminal on India Street have developed programs that enable local governments, businesses, and other entities a way to directly fund specific transit service To better support tourist-related businesses and residents and improvements – a process known “service partnerships.” visitors, RIPTA and RIDOT will include annual budget set-asides for the operation of special event services. These programs enable stakeholders to purchase additional services while providing transit agencies the financial means to satisfy requests for new or expanded services. In other parts of the country, service partnerships have been used to enhance transit services in a wide range of scopes and contexts. These have included:

• A $40 million-dollar annual contribution from the City of Seattle to King County Metro for expanded bus service.

• Direct investments Amazon and Microsoft to provide more frequent service for longer hours on public transit routes that serve their corporate campuses.

• Purchasing of specific bus trips or routes that enable shift workers to access suburban office buildings in cities like Rochester, NY and Cincinnati, OH.

• The funding of additional service by many communities in the Phoenix area.

RIPTA can develop a Service Partnership program that can specify how outside organizations can partner with RIPTA to provide additional service. As described above, these service partnerships could include the expansion of traditional transit services, as well as new rideshare, microtransit, Flex, shuttle, or other services.

28 Initiative 3 | Develop High Capacity Transit Services

6 Initiative 3: Develop High Capacity Transit Services

Rapid Bus

Regional Rapid Bus

Light Rail and Bus Rapid Transit

29 Transit Forward RI 2040

Initiative 3 Develop High Capacity Transit Services

High Capacity Transit services are those that serve high volume markets with fast and frequent high-quality service. Recommended urban services include Rapid Bus, Bus Rapid Transit, and/or Light Rail, which are summarized below. The R-Line is an example of Rapid Bus service. At a statewide level, Regional Rapid Bus services are also recommended.

Rhode Island can make incremental advances to High Capacity Transit in the short-term through investments in transit priority infrastructure and reallocation of right-of-way.

30 Initiative 1 | Improve Existing Services Rapid Bus Will Extend R Line-type Service Throughout the Metro Area

Market LOCAL South Basket Rapid Bus services have many of the same features as Bus Rapid Transit Lincoln Woods Proposed 50Rapid Bus Routes State Park N6 Attleboro B Station CCRI 75 road St 73 CCRI Lincoln 51 Old Louisquisset Pike (BRT) services but operate in mixed traffic rather than dedicated bus 54 N12 Beneﬁt St Park n’ Ride Beneﬁt St LOCAL Stop Bradley St

CENTRAL River Blackstone N117 & Shop 35 Olney 95 73 Pond DexterFAL St LS 295 Cottage St 76 Smithﬁeld Ave lanes. They require fewer resources than BRT systems but provide Lonsdale Ave Twin River Road 51

Broad St Central Ave Twin 54 72 Pawtucket/ River Broadway Central Falls 73 72 N6 Cross St 75 StationTolman higher-quality service than local buses. Douglas Pike Price HS 51 Ten Mile River Reservation Rite Newport Ave 54 Armistice Blvd SMITHFIELD LINCOLN DOWNTOWN Armistice Blvd RI RI Weeden St ose velt PAWTUCKET 76 246 146 Ro Walcott St 80

Wenscott Summit Smithﬁeld Esmond St 76 Crossing Reservoir McCoy Main Stadium Rapid Bus lines have a combination of the following elements: 73N10 50 80 Power Rd Mineral Spring Ave George Bennett Hwy

mo nd St Memorial NORTH Main StGrace St George St Slater Putnam Pike Es 73 Hospital Douglas Ave N10 Park n’ Ride Prospect St Columbus Ave Park 9X 44 58 Waterman Ave PROVIDENCE 73 School St Stop & Shop N10 72

Main St PAWTUCKET • Unique identity and Branding 44 Mineral Spring Ave N10 51 95 78 78 58 71 PawtucketN117 Ave 35 Narragansett 58 N10 58 Park Plaza Canada Pond Beverage Hill Rd 9X Charles St 78 Smithfield Rd Smithfield Ave Upper 58 RI N12 Narragansett Central LOCALLOCAL N10 High Service Ave Service High East Ave Business Park Fatima 146 Pawtucket Ave Pond • Premium Stations Hospital Job 35 Fruit Hill Lot Park n’ Ride 55 Shaw’s Douglas Ave 78 Smithfield Ave 7th St Ave Newport 58 LOCALBranch Ave 58 RUMFORD Peter Pan Smith St Greenville Ave Admiral St Save-A-Lot North Burial Miriam RI Ground Hospital PROVIDENCE Silver Spring St Wannamoisett 146 Charles 58 N Main St 57 Park n’ Ride Rochambeau Ave Country Club

• Real-Time Passenger Information Gentian Ave Branch Ave St P n’ R George Waterman Rd Pawtucket Ave

Rhode Island College N Main St Elmgr • Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Technologies Doyle St Roger Williams Ave Mt. Pleasant 57 40 Oakland Ave Whole High School Roger Williams Foods N117 50 N12 Blackstone Medical Center Hope HS Park 35 78 27 56 Mount Pleasant Ave 56 Chalkstone Ave N9 REGIONAL WAYLAND Stop & Shop Orms St N7 Lloyd Ave 27 56 Providence SQUARE Butler Sisson St ha yer Henderson 9X 56 Park n’ Ride EAGLE VA Medical N9 Station T Angell St Bridge Massasoit Center Brown LOCAL 32 • Effective Connections 10X SQUARE 95 35 24X 35Henderson Expy Wampanoag Hunts

N7 Francis St RISD 33 N Broadway 6 LOCAL Plaza/ Mills Manton Ave 40 61X 32 Valley St 34 34 Stop & Shop I-295/US 6 Price Rite Waterman St LOCAL Taunton Park n’ Ride Hartford Ave Atwells Ave 33 Pawtucket Ave 10X 10 S Main St Massasoit Park-n-Ride 92 Sabin St REGIONAL 33 DOWNTOWN FOX Pitman Waterfront Dr Stop & Shop OLNEYVILLE

FEDERAL Ives St 6A 9X 10X6 30 PROVIDENCE St Dyer POINT Eastside 32 28 HILL 60 Wickenden St 9X Den 27 9X S Water St Marketplace Taunton Ave • Transit Signal Priority Robertsnis J Expy 10X Dorrance 78 92 Taunton Ave Shaw’s E Providence Glenbridge Ave 10X Broadway Hartford Ave High School EAST 9X Killingly St 27 92 78 Waterman Ave N117 60 E Prov 6 LOCALLOCAL 31 Govt Ctr PROVIDENCE 28 Westminster St Newport Ferry 19 28 6 Point St 34 ial Way Olneyville Square N9 19560 24X Commerc RI Atwood Ave Neutaconkanut 19 61X 114 A Park N13 Classical HS Broad St6 N117 Chapin Ave Warren Ave County St The R-Line is currently RIPTA’s only Rapid Bus service, with 10-minute CentralN12 HS N9 PROVIDENCE R Rhode Island Hospital DHS Blackstone St 33 34 JOHNSTON N9 Veterans Providence River S Broadway Evergreen Ellery St 3 Metacomet Pocasset Ave Union Ave Cranston St 6 RI Highland Ave 18 30 31 CCRI N8 4 Golf Course 32 Apts 24X frequency most of the day, high quality stations, more limited stops, 295 Potters Ave St Joseph Liston 114 field St Hospital 14 HuntingtonN13 Ave Allens Ave Memorial Pkwy Plain N13 66 Martin St Elmwood Ave Prairie Ave Eddy St65X 195 y Potters Ave 61X St Mink Fall River Ave 95X Pawtucket Ave queue jump lanes, transit signal priority, and special branding. The Dyer Ave Laurel Hill R Veterans MemorialArmingto Pkwy n 60 Cranston Print Broad St Thurbers Ave Corner Cranston St RI Works Pond Garfield Chestnut Commerce W Alvarez 32 Lifespan Medical 114 A 34 Atwood Ave Dyer Hill Ave 95 Oce 30 Narragansett Blvd Plainfield Pike Pond Brewery Parkade High School Sackett 18 Stop & Shop southern portion of the R-Line, as well as six other rapid Rapid Bus lines 19 Colony 33 32 CRANSTON Mashapaug House 14 N8 Tripps Ln Pond 65X Bradley Wampanoag Trail River St School St 66 Hospital Plainfield Pike 10 RIPTA 95X R Citizens Bank Independence Wy Gansett Ave Facilities Plainfield Pike Spectacle Save-A-Lot 20 Johnson & Wales would be developed: Randall N117 Pond 6 Hawthorne Harborside Bay View Pond Academy 19 30 Roger Williams 33

Zoo Pawtucket Ave

Comstock Pkwy Sailor Wy Amﬂex Dr Walmart Atwood Ave N12 Harborside Blvd RI Park Ave Park Ave 114 Cranston Cranston HS 3 295 Stop & Shop LOCAL East Industrial 95 Broad St 4 Park Roger Williams • Southern part of R-Line Pontiac Park 60 Phenix Ave

Elmwood Ave 61X on g Rd Providence River Budl Rolfe Sq Park Ave Warwick Ave 33 LOCAL Cranston St Reservoir Ave Pontiac Ave CRANSTON Price Rite • 20 Elmwood Ave 30 Aqueduct RdColonial Ave 22 Broad St N12 Pawtuxet Job Lot Stop & Shop 3 Oxboes Park RIVERSIDE N8 PAWTUXET 20 Shaws 4 VILLAGE il lside

H Post Rd Bullocks Point Ave • 27 Broadway-Manton Pontiac Ave Garden City Garden City Park n’ Ride Crescent View Ave 33 Midway Rd

Sockanosset CrossWhol Rde Elmwood Ave Foods WARWICK Crescent Park Shaws Carousel

Post Rd Warwick Ave • 31 Cranston St 37 20 Walmart 3 se tt Pkwy Oaklawn Ave DMV

rr agan Shaw’s New LondonTrac Ave N8 Tribunal 4 Na Willet Ave Howard Ave Pilgrim HS N12 Pontiac Ave Narragansett Pkwy LEGEND Warwick Ave Crescent Park Carousel • 56 Chalkstone Ave 295 30 22 8 Transit Services Pawtuxet River 3 New London Ave Bald H Bald 4 X Light Rail; 10-minute frequency for most of the day 14 X BRT; 10-minute frequency for most of the day CRANSTON il l Rd East St 66 X Rapid Bus; 10-minute frequency for most of the day Mayﬁeld Ave LOCAL 65X Jeerson Blvd Airport Rd X Extension of Rapid Bus service; half as much service • 78 Beverage Hill-East Providence Post Rd 95X il l Rd Dave’s XX Every 15-minutes peak or most of the day

New London Ave 22 Pontiac Ave 95 Marketplace ProvidencXX e Every 20-minute during peak periods 13 N8 3 4 River 242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex Bald H 30 XX Every 30-minutes peak or most of the day. TF GreenTF Connector Green Rd Warwick Ave West Shore Rd 295 XX Every 60-minutes throughout the day. 29 GreenwichKnight Ave St REGIONAL 65X Station 66 14 XX Regional Rapid Bus; at least every 30 mins peak • N117 Hope/Dyer-Pocasset (which would replace the northern 95X 66 TF Green Providence St XX Express Bus Phenix 22 Airport Warwick Hotel WEST Rhode Pond CONIMICUT 13 29 30 MBTA Commuter Rail WARWICK Island 8 29 Highland St Mall Warwick WARWICK Church Ave end of Route 1 Hope/Eddy and Route 17 Dyer-Pocasset) Mall Transit Emphasis Corridors 13 East Ave Stop & Shop Main St River Point 29 Post Rd Corridors with high-frequency transit service Park 3 4 (every 10 mins or better in each direction) with East Main St N8 29 Beach Ave 29 29 BRT-type amenities Bald Hill Rd East Ave Jeerson Blvd CCRI N5 14 West Shore Rd Providence St LOCAL Tidewater Dr y Flex Providence St 8 13 66 Strawberry Mobility Hubs 65X Sandy Ln 95X Greenwood Church Field Rd 29 REGIONAL LOCAL Intermodal connectivity hubs with direct access Park n’ Ride Main Ave Stop & Shop to the RI transit network. Regional and Local. Warwick Industrial Dr Sandy Ln Providence St Little Warwick/ Coventr W Warwick/ Warwick Ave Kent 95 Gorton Pond Hospital Greenwich Ave Warwick Vets 242 242 Main St Main Ave Memorial HS Transit Center Interstate Highway ARCTIC Pond Bishop 95 Bald Hill Rd Toll Gate Post Rd VILLAGE 29 Hendricken Park-n-Ride Veterans Longmeadow Ave 242 West Warkwick/ High School 14 APPONAUG West Shore Rd HS 13 Toll Gate Rd Memorial 6 US Highway Coventry Flex Drive 29 8 Train Station 29 West Shore Rd k Ave Washington St New London Ave 29 8 Buttonwoods Ave Samuel Gorton Ave Airport RI Roberts St k Nec RI Highway REGIONAL13 Centerville Rd Centerville Rd 146 29 Long St Ferry Route 117 Post Rd Kent County ac h Ave

Warwic Parks & green spaces YMCA Park n’ Ride Ginsu Way 4 Education Barton Ave Kent Count Courthouse Dia Warwick Government Buildings ive r

nd H mo nd City Park Oakland Be 14 Healthcare Water

uxe t R Bald Hill Rd ke r Ln 66 Post Rd Main St

65X il l Rd 3 Recreation Railroads Paw t Qua Cowesett Corners 95X Suburban Pkwy Cowesett Rd Stop & Shop Cowesett Ave Shopping Ferry Routes 29 Greenwich Bay 242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex 95

31 Transit Forward RI 2040 Regional Rapid Bus Will Provide Fast, High Quality Service to Connect Rhode Island's Regional Centers

t Price Rite N6 N16 Woonsocket Municipal SocialREGIONAL St Pine Swamp Rd RI Main S LEGEND One of the most effective ways to encourage transit use is to Proposed Regional Rapid Bus RoutesPark n’ Ride 54 87 Zambarano Douglas Turnpike 146 Landmark Memorial Hospital Fairmount St Smithfield Rd 87 Medical Ctr Clinton St Transit Services BURRILLVILLE SLATERSVILLE increase travel speed by implementing transit priority strategies. WOON- N6 CVS SOCKET X Light Rail; 10-minute frequency for most of day Park n’ Ride N Smithfield Expy Nate Whipple Hwy X BRT; 10-minute frequency for most of day

Rehabilitation Hospital MASSACHUSETTS

S Main St Slatersville Flex Highway bus routes are often slowed by congestion, and the Walmart CUMBERLAND RHODE ISLAND X Rapid Bus; 10-minute frequency for most of day NORTH SMITHFIELD 282 Pascoag/ East Ave LOCAL Slatersville Flex 282 Pascoag/ Every 15-minutes peak or most of day North Smithfield XX Park n’ Ride N16 282 Pascoag/ XX Every 20-minute during peak periods PASCOAG MANVILLE LOCAL development of transit priority for these routes and better Slaterville Flex Douglas Pike XX Every 30-minutes peak for most of day LOCAL 295 Lincoln Mall Every 60-minutes throughout day Victory Hwy Amica XX Pascoag Park n’ Ride N6 LOCAL 75 Angell Rd Park n’ Ride Lincoln Mall circulation in and out of a station can make service faster and 9X XX Regional Rapid Bus; at least every 30 mins peak Broncos Hwy Fidelity George Washington Hwy 54 N6 XX Express Bus LOCAL RI 75 44 Bryant 75 MBTA Commuter Rail University 146 more convenient. 295 Stop & Shop 71 North Broad St XX New Flex Service LOCAL CHEPACHET 50 SMITHFIELD Central LINCOLN Airport 9X Mobility Hubs

Douglas Pike REGIONAL LOCAL Intermodal connectivity hubs with direct access GLOCESTER LOCAL

Regional Rapid Bus service would be similar to urban Rapid Bus Lonsdale Ave CENTRAL to the RI transit network. Regional and Local. 44 Putnam Pike FALLS

CONNECTICUT 54 Note: There would be local mobility hubs in each community. RHODE ISLAND Greenville Broadway However, these are not shwon on the map as speciﬁc Shopping Center Waterman Ave service and would be designed to connect regional centers. As locations have not yet been determined. NORTH Transit Center Rt 44/ Putnam Pike PROVIDENCE 95 Interstate Highway Park n’ Ride 9X LOCAL with urban Rapid Bus, Regional Rapid Bus would feature high PAWTUCKET Park-n-Ride

JOHNSTON Smith St 54 East Ave 6 US Highway Snake Den Train Station

W Greenville Rd State Park quality stations, limited stops, the use of queue jump lanes and RI Airport RI Highway Hartford Pike Hartford Ave LOCAL 146 LOCAL 10X 6 10X LOCAL PROVIDENCE LOCAL Ferry Chopmist Hill 10X transit signal priority, and special branding. Regional Rapid Bus Park n’ Ride 9X DOWNTOWN LOCAL Parks & green spaces Chopmist Hill Rd LOCAL PROVIDENCE Education East Rd Buildings Seekonk Government would also include the use of highway shoulders to bypass 6 N15 Square Mall Healthcare FOSTER Water Plainfield Pike congestion. Four existing routes would be upgraded to Regional Recreation Railroads SCITUATE LOCAL Plainfield Pike Roger Shopping Ferry Routes Tunk Hill Rd Williams ParkLOCAL LOCAL Scituate 24X Reservoir Reservoir Ave 66 EAST Rapid Bus: PROVIDENCE 14

CRANSTON White Church Park n’ Ride Scituate Ave LOCAL Elmwood Ave Police Cove • 14 West Bay Park n’ Ride 61X N Main St WARWICK 60 WARREN REGIONAL County Rd Warwick Ave TF Green Airport LOCAL Child St BARRINGTON WEST 14 Warren Park n’ Ride WARWICK Franklin St LOCAL

• 54 Lincoln-Woonsocket North Rd 66 St n

Metacom Ave

242 W Warwick/ Mai Flat River Rd Coventry Flex MASSACHUSETTS Centerville Rd RI RHODE ISLAND N14 114 Main St Flat River Rd LOCAL Gooding Ave • 60 Providence-Newport Park n’ Ride 3 COVENTRY See Providence Metro Map BRISTOL N14 Harkney Hill Rd Tiogue Ave Stop & Shop 60 61X 13 GREENWICH VFW Hall at Hope Colt Hope St BAY Park n’ Ride WARWICK State Park LOCAL LOCAL NARRAGANSETT BAY

Post Rd RI • 66 URI-Galilee 95X 95 Division St Goddard LOCAL State Park 138 West Greenwich Ferry Rd East Greenwich MOUNT Fish Rd Park n’ Ride Park n’ Ride 14 Metacom Ave 65X Roger Williams HOPE Park n’ Ride BAY 66 University Main St 61X RI Mt Hope LOCAL 24 Victory Hwy Bridge Prudence Island Prudence Island Ferry Fall River61X Expy EAST GREENWICH Airport LOCAL 24X Big River LOCAL Mt. Hope Bridge Post Rd Park n’ Ride Portsmouth Park n’ Ride Beach Pond Rt 2 & Rt 4 24X State Park 95 Park n’ Ride TIVERTON RI RI NORTH 102 KINGSTOWN PRUDENCE

4 Bristol Ferry Rd ISLAND LOCAL RI WEST GREENWICH 65X Nooseneck Hill Rd N289: Wickford/ 60 177 LOCAL 60 66 Quonset Quonset Airport Col Rodman Hwy Quonset REGIONAL 14 Business Martha’s Vineyard Fast Ferry

2 Rd Stop & Shop LOCAL 65X h 63 N18 HOPKINTON Kingstown Rd RI Green End Ave Nort 64 64 W Main Rd anicus Ave on anicus 138 Wyoming/Richmond N20

UNIVERSITY OF C Park n’ Ride N20 14 REGIONAL St George’s RI RHODE ISLAND Narragansett Ave School Wood 138 REGIONAL 64 64 River Richmond Mooresfield Rd JAMESTOWN

Airport RI Rd 63 Health West Kingston Rt 1 & Rt 138 N18 Carolina Park n’ Ride 64 Park n’ Ride k URI Bay RICHMOND 66 138 211 URI Flex Campus

CONNECTICUT 95X Nec Fort Adams 67 RHODE ISLAND Schneider Kingston n Electric 66 SOUTH Station Kingstown Rd KINGSTOWN Harrison Ave Bosto

N20 D R A Y E NIV S’ANEWPORT H T R A M O T 95 1 LOCAL Great Swamp Wakefield Mall 65X Ashaway/Hopkinton South County Trail Park n’ Ride Park n’ Ride LOCAL

RI Worden ini sterial Rd TO BLOCK ISLAND Pond M Main St HOPKINTON 2 South County Hospital Narragansett 1 High School Stop & Shop N20 S Pier Rd ASHAWAY Rd

Main St reet SOUTH Trail

KINGSTOWN h NARRAGANSETT CHARLESTOWN

Ashaway Rd Post Rd N19 ut h County 1 Point Judit Point

K ISLAND OC O BL O T TO BLOC 32 Initiative 3 | Develop High Capacity Transit Services Light Rail and/or Bus Rapid Transit Will Provide Much Higher Quality Service

Market LOCAL South Basket Lincoln Woods Proposed Light50 Rail and BRT RoutesState Park N6 Attleboro B Station CCRI 75 road St 73 51 Old Louisquisset Pike CCRI Lincoln N12 Park n’ Ride 54 N12 Beneﬁt St Beneﬁt St LOCALLOCAL Stop Bradley St

CENTRAL River Blackstone 35 is electrified rail service that operates in a N117 & Shop Light Rail Transit (LRT) Olney 95 73 Pond DexterFAL St LS 295 Cottage St 76 Smithﬁeld Ave Twin River Road 51 Lonsdale Ave

Broad St Central Ave Twin 54 72 Pawtucket/ variety of urban environments including completely exclusive rights- River Broadway 73 N6 Cross St Central Falls 72 StationTolman Douglas Pike Price 75 HS 51 Ten Mile River Reservation Rite Newport Ave 54 Armistice Blvd SMITHFIELD LINCOLN DOWNTOWN Armistice Blvd of-way, in exclusive lanes on roadways, and in some cases in mixed RI RI Weeden St ose velt PAWTUCKET 76 246 146 Ro Walcott St 80

Wenscott Summit Smithﬁeld Esmond St 76 Crossing Reservoir McCoy Main Stadium traffic. It serves high volume corridors at higher speeds than local bus 73N10 50 80 Power Rd Mineral Spring Ave George Bennett Hwy

Main St PAWTUCKET 44 Mineral Spring Ave N10 51 95 78 78 58 71 PawtucketN117 Ave 35 Narragansett 58 N10 58 Park Plaza Canada Pond Beverage Hill Rd 9X Charles St 78 Smithfield Rd Smithfield Ave Upper 58 RI N12 Narragansett Central Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is similar to light rail, except that service is LOCAL N10 High Service Ave Service High East Ave Business Park Fatima 146 Pawtucket Ave Pond Hospital Job 35 Fruit Hill Lot Park n’ Ride 55 Shaw’s Douglas Ave 78 Smithfield Ave 7th St Ave Newport provided with buses rather than rail vehicles. Since the late 1990s, 58 LOCALBranch Ave 58 RUMFORD Peter Pan Smith St Greenville Ave Admiral St Save-A-Lot North Burial Miriam RI Ground Hospital PROVIDENCE Silver Spring St Wannamoisett 146 Charles 58 N Main St 57 Park n’ Ride Rochambeau Ave Country Club nearly 200 cities around the world have developed Bus Rapid Transit Gentian Ave Branch Ave St P n’ R George Waterman Rd Pawtucket Ave

iv er Ave Seekonk River Fruit Hill Ave Walmart 27 R 55 50 54 Blackstone Blvd 295 Providence 72 College Rd 44 College Admiral St 51 Butler Greenville Ave Woonasquatucket Ave 55 95 ov e Ave Hospital (BRT) services that can provide Light Rail-like service without the 92 Smith St Douglas Ave Wilson Ave La Salle Camp St Academy Hope St

Rhode Island College N Main St Elmgr Mt. Pleasant 57 Doyle St 40 Roger Williams Ave Oakland Ave Whole High School Roger Williams Foods N117 high costs associated with rail infrastructure. BRT typically has lower 50 N12 Blackstone Medical Center Hope HS Park 35 78 27 56 Mount Pleasant Ave 56 Chalkstone Ave N9 REGIONALREGIONAL WAYLAND Stop & Shop Orms St N7 Lloyd Ave 27 56 Providence SQUARE Butler Sisson St ha yer Henderson 9X 56 Park n’ Ride EAGLE VA Medical N9 Station T Angell St Bridge Massasoit capital and operating costs than Light Rail Transit and faster, more Center Brown LOCAL 32 10X SQUARE 95 35 24X 35Henderson Expy Wampanoag Hunts

N7 Francis St RISD 33 N Broadway 6 LOCAL Plaza/ Mills Manton Ave 40 61X 32 Valley St Price Rite 34 34 Stop & Shop Taunton I-295/US 6 Hartford Ave Waterman St LOCAL 33 Pawtucket Ave Park n’ Ride 10X Atwells Ave S Main St Massasoit Park-n-Ride 10 Sabin St 33 reliable, and more easily identifiable service than typical buses. 92 REGIONAL Pitman Waterfront Dr DOWNTOWN FOX Stop & Shop OLNEYVILLE

FEDERAL Ives St 6A 9X 10X6 30 PROVIDENCE St Dyer POINT Eastside 32 28 HILL 60 Wickenden St 9X Den 27 9X S Water St Marketplace Taunton Ave Robertsnis J Expy 10X Dorrance 78 92 Taunton Ave Shaw’s E Providence Glenbridge Ave 10X Broadway Hartford Ave High School EAST 9X Killingly St 27 92 78 Waterman Ave N117 60 E Prov 6 LOCAL 31 REGIONAL Govt Ctr PROVIDENCE 28 Westminster St Newport Ferry 19 28 6 Point St 34 ial Way Common characteristics of both include: Commerc Olneyville Square N9 19560 24X RI Atwood Ave Neutaconkanut 19 61X 114 A Park N13 Classical HS Broad St6 N117 Chapin Ave Warren Ave County St CentralN12 HS N9 PROVIDENCE R Rhode Island Hospital DHS Blackstone St 33 34 JOHNSTON N9 Veterans Providence River S Broadway Evergreen Ellery St 3 Metacomet Pocasset Ave Union Ave Cranston St 6 RI Highland Ave • Frequent service, typically every 10 minutes or less 18 31 CCRI N8 4 Golf Course 32 Apts 24X 295 30 Potters Ave St Joseph Liston 114 field St Hospital 14 HuntingtonN13 Ave Allens Ave Memorial Pkwy Plain N13 66 Martin St Elmwood Ave Prairie Ave Eddy St65X 195 y Potters Ave 61X St Mink Fall River Ave 95X Pawtucket Ave Dyer Ave Laurel Hill R Veterans MemorialArmingto Pkwy n 60 Cranston Print Broad St Thurbers Ave Corner Cranston St RI Works Pond Garfield • Long span of service, often 18 hours a day or more Chestnut Lifespan Medical Commerce W Alvarez 32 114 A 34 Atwood Ave Dyer Hill Ave 95 Oce 30 Narragansett Blvd Plainfield Pike Pond Brewery Parkade High School Sackett 18 Stop & Shop 19 Colony 33 32 CRANSTON Mashapaug House 14 N8 Tripps Ln Pond 65X Bradley Wampanoag Trail River St School St 66 Hospital Plainfield Pike 10 RIPTA 95X R Citizens Bank Independence Wy Gansett Ave Facilities Plainfield Pike Spectacle Save-A-Lot 20 Johnson & Wales • Dedicated lanes Randall N117 Pond 6 Hawthorne Harborside Bay View Pond Academy 19 30 Roger Williams 33

Zoo Pawtucket Ave

Comstock Pkwy Sailor Wy Amﬂex Dr Walmart Atwood Ave N12 Harborside Blvd RI Park Ave Park Ave 114 Cranston Cranston HS 3 295 Stop & Shop LOCAL East Industrial 95 Broad St 4 Park Roger Williams The development of light rail and/or BRT would make transit in the Pontiac Park 60 Phenix Ave

Elmwood Ave 61X on g Rd Providence River Budl Rolfe Sq Park Ave Warwick Ave 33 highest demand areas much more attractive by making it frequent, Cranston St LOCAL Reservoir Ave Pontiac Ave CRANSTON Price Rite 30 Aqueduct RdColonial Ave 22 Broad St N12 Pawtuxet Job Lot Stop & Shop 3 Oxboes Park RIVERSIDE fast, and reliable. Light rail or BRT – with the choice to be determined N8 PAWTUXET 20 Shaws 4 VILLAGE il lside

H Post Rd based on more detailed project development work –would be Bullocks Point Ave Pontiac Ave Garden City Garden City Park n’ Ride Crescent View Ave 33 Midway Rd

Sockanosset CrossWhol Rde Elmwood Ave developed in Rhode Island’s key north-south corridor between Foods WARWICK Crescent Park Shaws Carousel

Post Rd Warwick Ave 37 20 Walmart 3 se tt Pkwy Central Falls and CCRI Warwick via Pawtucket and Providence. BRT Oaklawn Ave DMV

rr agan Shaw’s New LondonTrac Ave N8 Tribunal 4 Na Willet Ave Howard Ave Pilgrim HS would also be developed between Providence and CCRI Warwick via N12 Pontiac Ave Narragansett Pkwy LEGEND Warwick Ave Crescent Park Carousel 295 30 22 8 Transit Services Pawtuxet River 3 New London Ave TF Green Airport: H Bald 4 X Light Rail; 10-minute frequency for most of the day 14 X BRT; 10-minute frequency for most of the day CRANSTON il l Rd East St 66 X Rapid Bus; 10-minute frequency for most of the day Mayﬁeld Ave LOCAL 65X Jeerson Blvd Airport Rd X Extension of Rapid Bus service; half as much service Post Rd 95X il l Rd Dave’s XX Every 15-minutes peak or most of the day

New London Ave 22 Pontiac Ave 95 Marketplace ProvidencXX e Every 20-minute during peak periods • LRT or BRT: N12 Central Falls and CCRI Warwick via 13 N8 3 4 River 242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex Bald H 30 XX Every 30-minutes peak or most of the day. TF GreenTF Connector Green Rd Warwick Ave West Shore Rd 295 Knight St XX Every 60-minutes throughout the day. 29 Greenwich Ave Station REGIONALREGIONAL 65X 66 14 Regional Rapid Bus; at least every 30 mins peak 95X XX Pawtucket and Providence Station Providence St 66 TF Green XX Express Bus Phenix 22 Airport Warwick Hotel WEST Rhode Pond CONIMICUT 13 29 30 MBTA Commuter Rail WARWICK Island 8 29 Highland St Mall Warwick WARWICK Church Ave Mall Transit Emphasis Corridors 13 East Ave Stop & Shop Main St River Point 29 Post Rd Corridors with high-frequency transit service Park 3 4 (every 10 mins or better in each direction) with East Main St N8 29 Beach Ave • BRT: N8 Providence and CCRI Warwick via TF Green Airport 29 29 BRT-type amenities Bald Hill Rd East Ave Jeerson Blvd CCRI N5 14 West Shore Rd Providence St LOCAL Tidewater Dr y Flex Providence St 8 13 LOCAL 66 Strawberry Mobility Hubs 65X Sandy Ln 95X Greenwood Church Field Rd 29 REGIONAL LOCAL Intermodal connectivity hubs with direct access Park n’ Ride Main Ave Stop & Shop to the RI transit network. Regional and Local. Warwick Industrial Dr Sandy Ln Providence St Little Warwick/ Coventr W Warwick/ Warwick Ave Kent 95 Gorton Pond Hospital Greenwich Ave Warwick Vets 242 242 Main St Main Ave Memorial HS Transit Center Interstate Highway ARCTIC Pond Bishop 95 Bald Hill Rd Toll Gate Post Rd VILLAGE 29 Hendricken Park-n-Ride Veterans Longmeadow Ave 242 West Warkwick/ High School 14 APPONAUG West Shore Rd HS 13 Toll Gate Rd Memorial 6 US Highway Coventry Flex Drive 29 8 Train Station 29 West Shore Rd k Ave Washington St New London Ave 29 8 Buttonwoods Ave Samuel Gorton Ave Airport RI Roberts St k Nec RI Highway REGIONAL13 Centerville Rd Centerville Rd 146 29 Long St Ferry Route 117 Post Rd Kent County ac h Ave

Warwic Parks & green spaces YMCA Park n’ Ride Ginsu Way 4 Education Barton Ave Kent Count Courthouse Dia Warwick Government Buildings ive r

nd H mo nd City Park Oakland Be 14 Healthcare Water

uxe t R Bald Hill Rd ke r Ln 66 Post Rd Main St

65X il l Rd 3 Recreation Railroads Paw t Qua Cowesett Corners 95X Suburban Pkwy Cowesett Rd Stop & Shop Cowesett Ave Shopping Ferry Routes 29 Greenwich Bay 242 W Warwick/ Coventry Flex 95

33 Transit Forward RI 2040

34 Initiative 4 | Improve Access to Transit

7 Initiative 4: Improve Access to Transit

Walking

Driving

Biking

Other

35 Transit Forward RI 2040

Initiative 4 Improve Access to Transit

For people to be able to use transit, they must be able to get to it and then get to where they are going after they leave it. The overwhelming majority of transit riders walk to and from local transit services, a very large proportion drive to regional services, and a much smaller, but increasing number of people bike to and from transit services. In addition, newer options, such as scooters, are becoming increasingly popular. Transit Forward RI includes a wide variety of first mile/last mile improvements:

• Walking/Pedestrian Improvements

• Driving/Park and Ride Lots and Passenger Drop-Off and Pick-up Areas

• Bicycling Improvements

• Other improvements including

• TMA/Employer Shuttles

• Rideshare Partnerships

• Microtransit

In addition, a key to making first mile/last mile connections work will be to ensure that connections can be made at convenient and comfortable locations. The development of mobility hubs is one way in which this will be done. Connections will also be facilitated at transit stations and major stops.

36 Initiative 4 | Improve Access to Transit Pedestrian Improvements Will Extend the Reach of Transit

Over 90% of transit riders walk to and from transit. As a result, pedestrian improvements provide greater first mile/last mile benefits than all other approaches combined. In places where pedestrian conditions are good, people will walk farther to transit; where they are bad, people will not walk as far. Pedestrian improvements thus extend the reach of transit and increase ridership.

Pedestrian improvements will be implemented at and around:

• Mobility Hubs

• Rapid Bus stops

• Transit Emphasis Corridor stops

• Commuter rail stations

• LRT/BRT Stations These improvements will include:

• Better sidewalks around transit stops and in neighborhoods, that meet ADA standards

• New pedestrian crossings around transit stops and stations can improve access as well as rider safety and comfort

• Wayfinding, including signs pointing to transit services (and pedestrian network maps at transit stations and major stops) Local communities can assist these efforts significantly. For example, the City of Providence's Great Streets plan focuses on pedestrian and bicycle improvements, and includes a large number of improvements that would ease access to and from transit. This plan can also provide guidance to other communities.

37 Transit Forward RI 2040 Facility Improvements Will Make It Easier to Drive to Transit

The second most common way that people get to and from transit is by driving or being dropped off or picked up. This is especially the case with commuter rail and express bus routes, where large volumes of commuters park at stations and stops and are dropped-off and picked-up. Serving this demand requires parking spaces and curb space for private pick-ups and drop-offs and rideshare and taxi pick-ups and drop-offs.

A variety of improvements can be implemented. These include:

• New park-and-ride lots along express routes:

• Johnston at the intersection of I-295 and US Route 6 to serve Route 9X Pascoag Park-n-Ride and 10X North Scituate

• Lincoln in the vicinity of the CCRI and Twin Rivers to serve Route 54 Woonsocket -Providence Regional Rapid Bus

• Pascoag near the outer end of Route 9X Pascoag Park-n-Ride

• Portsmouth near the intersection of Ferry Road and Boyd’s Lane to serve both Route 60 Newport-Providence via East Bay and the new Route 24 Newport-Fall River-Providence

• Parking and passenger drop-off and pick-up areas at some outer area light rail and BRT stations

• Upgrades at existing stations and stops

Park-and-Ride Lot in Barrington

38 Initiative 4 | Improve Access to Transit Bikes Will be Better Accommodated

Bicycling, whether by a personal or shared bicycle, is another important way to make short trips and connect with transit.

Three types of transit-related bicycling improvements will be implemented:

• Sharing of bus lanes with bicycles

• Bikeshare and bike storage at regional mobility hubs

• Bikeshare and bike racks at urban rail stations and transit stops

39 Transit Forward RI 2040 Other Improvements Will Also Be Made TMA Shuttle Operated by the Route 128 Business Council in Suburban Boston

A number of other improvements will also be made, mostly through the Service Partnerships program described in Initiative 2.

TMA/Employer Shuttles As part of the Service Partnerships program, RIPTA and RIDOT can create incentives for the development of TMAs or employer shuttles. These incentives could include financial incentives that could be less expensive than new publicly funded rideshare partnership and microtransit services. With the development of mobility hubs throughout the state, TMA or employer shuttles could provide connections between mobility hubs and more isolated worksites. The shuttles could be traditional shuttle services or Flex-like microtransit services.

Transportation Management Associations Scooter Parking at Providence Station Transportation Management Associations (TMAs) are member-controlled, member-funded organizations that provide transportation services for a particular area, such as an industrial park, medical center, commercial district, or mall. Employment areas that lack concentrated density but still form a congregation of employees are prime targets for TMAs, which can partner with transit agencies to provide transportation services. Many TMAs run shuttles to and from major activity centers and transit stops.

Rideshare Partnerships Many areas have developed rideshare partnerships with Uber, Lyft, and other competitors. Through these partnerships, subsidized rides are provided to and from mainline transit services. Rideshare partnerships would be developed through the Service Partnership program.

Scooters Scooters will also be accommodated at mobility hubs and transit stations and stops, as permitted by local ordinances.

40 Initiative 5 | Make Transit Easier to Use

8 Initiative 5: Make Transit Easier to Use

Fare Capping/Earn As You Go

Better Information

Fare Integration

Mobility as a Service

41 Transit Forward RI 2040

Initiative 5 Make Transit Easier to Use

In order to improve service for existing transit riders as well as to entice new ones, the full experience of riding transit must be intuitive and seamless. Transit Forward RI proposes a number of ways in which to make transit services easier to use:

• Fare Capping

• Better Information and Signage

• Fare Integration with other regional service providers, such as the MBTA

• Implementation of Mobility as a Service (MaaS) platforms

42 Initiative 5 | Make Transit Easier to Use Fare Capping/Earn as You Go Will Make Fare Payment Much More Flexible

Six different fare options are available for full fare riders, which range from $2 for a single trip to $70 for a monthly pass. The monthly pass provides the best value, but requires an upfront payment for low income riders that can often be difficult. In addition, many riders don’t have the same travel patterns every day.

RIPTA will soon be introducing smartcard fare payment and fare capping to make fare payment more flexible. With the introduction of smartcard fare payment, RIPTA will also be able to introduce fare capping, which is also known as “Earn as You Go,” through which all riders will pay single trip fares up to maximum fare levels for daily, weekly, and monthly use. Earn as You Go will make transit more affordable for lower income riders, provide more flexibility for all riders, and encourage the use of transit on a more spontaneous basis. Although there are still details to be worked out, fare capping will work as follows: • All riders will pay single ride fares for all trips with total costs that will max out at daily and monthly pass rates. • On a daily basis and at current fare levels, riders would pay $2 per trip until they spend $6 which is the current cost of a daily pass. For the rest of the day, all subsequent rides would be free. • Daily expenditures would also roll up to monthly pass costs. After spending $6 per day for 11 days and $4 on the 12th day, all subsequent trips for the rest of the month would be free. Earn as You Go will also be implemented for riders who use discount fares. View TransitCenter's video on Fare Capping at Current Fares Fares with Fare Capping https://vimeo.com/254685338 Single Ride $2 Single Ride $2

Transfer $1 Transfer Free for one hour $2 per trip for the first three trips. Free 1 Day Pass $6 1 Day Pass for all subsequent trips 7 Day Pass $25 -

10 Ride Pass $20 - $6 per day for the first 11 days and $4 Monthly Pass $70 Monthly Pass for the 12th day. Free for the rest of the month.

Fare capping is a new concept that is currently being used by DART in Dallas and TriMet in Portland, OR. Outside of the United States, it is used in the following cities: London, Great Britain; Dublin, Ireland; and Sydney, Australia.

43 Transit Forward RI 2040 Better Information Will be Provided Fares Will be Integrated

RIPTA and RIDOT will provide information in a variety of ways to make Fare integration will enable transit riders to use a single pass to ride transit options easier to understand: services provided by multiple transit providers. Four types of fare integration will be implemented to allow use of: • A single website for regional transit information. This single website would provide information on services provided • MBTA passes honored on Amtrak trains between Providence and by RIPTA, RIDOT, and other available service such as the Boston Providence Line and GATRA services • MBTA passes honored on RIPTA buses • The provision of schedule and real-time information via websites and smartphone apps • SRTA passes on RIPTA Newport-Fall River-Providence service • Real-time information at major stations, stops, mobility hubs, • RIPTA monthly passes on rail trips between Wickford Junction and park-and-ride lots and Providence • Route information, including schedules and maps, at all busy stops • Wayfinding and local information signage at major stops, stations, and mobility hubs

44 Initiative 1 | Improve Existing Services Mobility as a Service Will Make All Available Options Easier to Understand and Use

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) integrates various forms of transportation services into a single platform to provide flexibility and convenience for travelers. People frequently make trips using Mobility ALL YOUR TRANSPORT IN multiple modes – for example, a bus to a downtown station, then ONE PLACE Payments bikeshare to their destination, and maybe Lyft back in the evening As if the weather is bad. At present, this usually means that travelers must learn about these options from many different sources and A pay separately. MaaS provides the ability to plan, book, and pay for different options using a single smartphone app. Service Routing MaaS integrates different public and private transportation services into one app, where users can book transportation, pay for it, and understand the multitude of options to travel from point A to point B. Through MaaS, RIPTA could create its own Transportation Providers app or partner with an app developer to enable partnerships with private transportation companies to allow subscription transportation service. This subscription would allow passengers to have access to RIPTA-provided transit as well as scootershare and rideshare, for example, all for a fixed cost per month.

It is important to note that MaaS is very much an emerging technology that is still in its infancy. At present, many apps that focus on a single service are starting to provide information on other services. Other efforts are starting from the ground up. TNC

RIPTA can develop MaaS as technology allows, with a focus on the following areas • Integration of transit and first mile/last mile connections • Transit schedule and real-time information • Trip planning and booking Infrastructure • Fare payment

Benefits and Costs

9 Benefits and Costs

Benefits of Transit

Benefits and Costs

47 Transit Forward RI 2040

Transit Forward RI 2040 TransitBenefits is critical of for Transit Rhode Island both today and in the future because it...

MAKES RHODE ISLAND ATTRACTS TALENT AND SUPPORTS SUSTAINABLE BOOSTS THE STATE'S 1 A BETTER PLACE TO 2 MAKES RHODE ISLAND 3 GROWTH 4 ECONOMY LIVE, WORK, AND VISIT MORE COMPETITIVE

CONTRIBUTES TO SUPPORTS A HEALTHY SUPPORTS ACCESSIBILITY, HELPS PEOPLE LIVE 5 ACTIVE, HEALTHY 6 ENVIRONMENT 7 AFFORDABILITY, AND 8 INDEPENDENT LIVES LIFESTYLES MOBILITY BEYOND THE AUTO

48 8 Benefits and Costs $ Make Transit Attractive and Compelling

Benefits and Costs Goal 1 Objectives • Make existing services more convenient • Improve passenger experience Transit Forward RI has been developed with a • Better integrate different services focus on improving transit service – to make it • Increase awareness of transit easier for Rhode Islanders to get around, and in a way that makes the state a more attractive place to live, work, and play, and to strengthen Connect People to Life's Activities the economy. Objectives Goal 2 • Connect people with jobs and activities that are part of daily life • Emphasize services that will benefit the largest numbers of people • Develop a unified cross-agency transit decision-making framework

Grow the Economy and Improve Quality of Life Objectives Goal 3 • Prioritize transit improvements that support RI's economic development policies • Provide services that will help Rhode Island retain and attract younger residents • Provide services that help people live independently as they age • Expand service to new areas that are transit-supportive • Build on existing asets including RIPTA services, the Northeast Corridor and proximity to Boston

Ensure Financial and Environmental Sustainability Objectives Goal 4 • Identify and pursue new funding opportunities, including leveraging private funds • Achieve and maintain a state of good repair • Develop cost-effective, implementable transit solutions • Develop services that achieve a high level of public and political support • Work with communities, businesses, and others to build partnerships that support proposed transit strategies • Reduce greenhouse emissions

49 Transit Forward RI 2040 Benefits Ridership RIPTA currently carries approximately 52,600 passengers per day, and Accounting for less frequent early morning and late night service, this 4,700 commuter rail passengers ride to, from, and within Rhode Island. would reduce average commuter rail frequencies to an average of less This ridership would increase to 83,600 to 84,900, depending upon than 25 minutes. whether BRT or LRT is selected for Central Falls-Pawtucket-Providence- Providence-Boston Commuter Rail Average Weekday Service CCRI/Warwick service, and 8,300 on commuter rail. Total ridership would Frequencies (Minutes) increase up to 63% from 57,300 passengers per day to 91,900 to 93,200.

Weekday Ridership

Travel Times In-vehicle travel times will be reduced by 14 to 15%. For RIPTA riders, average trip times will be reduced by five minutes. On longer trips and Service Improvements where premium services are developed, savings will be higher. Transit Forward RI set a goal of reducing commuter rail travel times between Longer Hours of Service Providence and Boston to less than 60 minutes. The FMCB's December At present, only 22 RIPTA routes operate past 10 PM and only five 2019 resolution includes a number of actions to reduce travel times. operate past midnight. Transit Forward RI will increase these numbers to While specific estimates are not yet available, the goal of less than 32 and 19, respectively. 60 minutes appears to be achievable, and even lower travel times are possible. Frequency of Service RIPTA Average In-Vehicle Travel Times (Minutes) At present, RIPTA services operate – on average – every 29 minutes, and commuter rail between Providence and Boston operates at an average of every 60 minutes. Transit Forward RI will reduce RIPTA service frequencies to an average of every 19 minutes. On the Providence line, the MBTA's Fiscal Management and Control Board (FMCB) resolved in December 2019 that service in its densest corridors should operate every 15 to 20 minutes. RIPTA Average Weekday Service Frequencies (Minutes) Providence-Boston Commuter Rail In-Vehicle Travel Times (Minutes)

50 Benefits and Costs

Residents Served Percent of Minority Residents within 1/2-mile of Frequent Transit Today, service is provided within 1/2 mile of 69% of Rhode Island’s residents and 86% of its jobs, but most is infrequent and operate for hours that are short. Thus while service is technically available, it does not provide an attractive option for most people. Transit Forward RI will provide a much higher quality of service.

Total Residents Served by Frequent Transit

Today, only 8% of Rhode Island’s residents have access to service that Younger Residents Served by Frequent Transit operates at least every 15 minutes. Planned improvements will increase Rhode Island, like all states, needs to retain and attract younger the number of residents served by over fivefold to 49%. residents to ensure future success, and younger people want to live in Percent of All Residents within 1/2-mile of Frequent Transit places with excellent transit. At present, only 11% of residents aged 20 to 39 are served by frequent transit. This will increase to 56%.

Percent of Residents Aged 20-39 within 1/2-Mile of Frequent Transit

Low-Income Residents Served by Frequent Transit Improvements for low income residents will be even greater. At present, fewer than 20% of Rhode Island’s low-income residents have Older Adults Served by All Transit access to frequent transit. This will increase to over 70%. Transit forward RI will help older residents live independently. The Percent of Low-Income Households within 1/2-mile of Frequent Transit percentage of elderly residents who are currently served by all forms of transit (within 1/4-mile) will increase from 60% within 1/4-mile of transit to 66%.

Percent of Residents 65 and Older within 1/4-Mile of Any Transit

Minority Residents Served by Frequent Transit Increases to minority residents will be higher still. At present, 22% of Rhode Island’s minority residents have access to frequent transit. This will increase to over 86%.

51 Transit Forward RI 2040

Jobs Served Today only 20% of jobs are within 1/2-mile of frequent transit. This will increase to nearly 60%. A combination of frequent transit to 49% of Rhode Island’s residents – and even higher percentages to disadvantaged residents – and 59% of jobs will greatly increase job opportunities.

Percent of Jobs within 1/2-Mile of Frequent Transit

Total Residents and Jobs Served by Transit As described above, nearly half of residents will have access to frequent transit. An additional 20% will be served by other forms of transit. The total percentage of residents served by some type of transit will increase from 69% to 78%. The total number of jobs within 1/2-mile of some type of transit will increase from 86% to 90%.

52 Benefits and Costs Costs Transit Forward RI represents a major investment OPERATING COSTS PLAN in Rhode Island’s transit services, its people, and its economy. As such, associated costs will be much higher Transit Services than what the state spends today. High Capacity Transit $110 - $118M

Operating Costs Improvements to Existing Services $97M

Total operating costs, in $2020, would range from $230 New Services $20M to $237 million, with the difference depending upon whether or not Central Falls-Providence-CCRI/Warwick Paratransit $14M service is developed as LRT or BRT (with the higher Other $3M cost for LRT). This would be an approximate doubling of current operating costs of $112.9 million for both RIPTA Total $244 - $253M and RIDOT. CAPITAL COSTS PLAN Note also that these costs do not include any increases for faster and more frequent commuter rail service Transit Services between Boston and Providence, as that process is being High Capacity Transit $1.3 - $2.5B led by Massachusetts. The costs do, however, include the cost of additional commuter rail service between Existing RIPTA Services $216M Providence and TF Green Airport. New RIPTA Services $34M

Capital Costs Other $5M

Total capital costs, also in $2020, would be $1.9 to Subtotal $1.5 - $2.7B $3.1 billion over the next 20 years, with the differences again on choices made between LRT and BRT. Average Infrastructure/Facilities expenditures would be $94 to $154 million per year. This would be a significant increase over RIPTA and RIDOT's Transit Priority $63M current expenditures that average approximately $32 Bus Stop Improvements $16M million per year. However, a large proportion of these costs could likely be funded through federal sources. Mobility Hubs $91M As with operating costs, the difference will be driven Park and Ride Lots $9M by choices between light rail and BRT. Also as with operating costs, the capital costs do not include costs to Maintenance Facility $48M upgrade Providence Line service between Boston and New Amtrak Station at TF Green $110M Providence. Subtotal $337M

Total $1.9 - $3.1B

Average Cost per Year $94-$154M

53 Transit Forward RI 2040

54 Next Steps

10 Next Steps

Funding Plan

Implementation

Partnerships

55 Transit Forward RI 2040 Currently Available Funding Federal Funds There are many federal funding programs that provide funding on both Next Steps formula and discretionary bases. The major programs include: • Federal Transit Administration (FTA) formula funding: The FTA provides funding largely for capital purposes, and in limited cases, Develop Funding Plan for operations. RIPTA and RIDOT utilize all of the federal funding for The projects and programs in this plan will provide existing riders which they are eligible. There are also other sources that they could with much better service, and attract many new riders. Some be eligible for, but to date have not had qualifying projects. proposed improvements can begin immediately with available funds. Larger, unbudgeted projects and service upgrades will As the amount of services that RIPTA and RIDOT provide increases, require identification of new or reallocated funding. Depending on the amount of formula funds that it receives will increase. The the specific improvement, there may be opportunities to advance increases would vary depending upon the formulas used in each an incremental approach as a strategy for full implementation is program, with higher increases possible for the development of developed. new rail, BRT, and ferry services and less for local services.

The first implementation step will be to develop a funding plan. • FTA Discretionary Funding: In addition to formula funding, the FTA The Transit Forward RI program was developed using the most has two major discretionary programs (New Starts/Small Starts common process for developing these types of programs, which is and Bus and Bus Facilities), that fund light rail, BRT, and Rapid Bus to determine the desired program and then identify funding. This projects and major bus facilities such as regional mobility hubs and was the case for a number of reasons, the most important of which transit emphasis corridors. By statute, FTA funds can cover up to include: 80% of the capital costs for these types of projects. In practice, • Many potential funding sources, and in particular, federal however, the maximum amounts that FTA now provides is closer to funds, are tied to specific types of projects. Thus, the projects 50%. must be known in order to identify the full range of potential • BUILD Grants: The Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage sources. Development, or BUILD Transportation Discretionary Grant • High levels of public support will be essential to implement program, funding for multi-modal, multi-jurisdictional projects that new sources of funding. It is difficult to generate this support are more difficult to support through traditional DOT programs. without being able to describe proposed improvements. This program, which was known as Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, or TIGER Discretionary Grants has There are many potential funding options. However, there is no provided nearly $7.9 billion over 11 years, and $1 billion for FY 2020. single approach that works for every area. Instead, Rhode Island needs to develop a transit funding plan that will engender broad- • CARES Act Funding: The CARES Act provides funding to help based political and public support. It is expected that the proposed transit systems deal with the financial impacts of the Covid-19 improvements will be funded via competitive federal programs as pandemic and to regain ridership. Rhode Island will receive $104 well as through increases in non-federal contributions. million in CARES Act funding, which could exceed the direct financial impacts and provide funding for projects to regain riders. The most significant existing sources and additional sources used by Unless there is an additional stimulus bill, this will be a one-time other areas include: funding infusion and not a new ongoing source of funding.

56 Next Steps

State Funds service and ridership increases, fare revenues will also increase, but as is currently the case, will cover only a minority portion of operating • State Gas Tax: RIPTA’s primary source of operating funds is a costs. share of the state’s gas tax, which is currently 35¢ per gallon (including a 1¢ environmental surcharge) and adjusted every Potential New Funding Sources two years based on inflation. Of this, 10.25¢ is apportioned to Throughout the United States, transit is funded in many different ways, RIPTA. However, due to improved fuel economy, a shift toward both large scale and small scale. These methods of funding range electrification of vehicles, and other factors, gas tax revenues from sales taxes up to 2.0% to taxes on Uber and Lyft to a 10% tax on are not increasing. poured drinks in bars. The most important include: RhodeWorks is a 10-year program designed • RhodeWorks: Sales Taxes to rebuild Rhode Island’s transportation. Over the 10-year life of the program, $80 million has been allocated for transit Sales taxes are the most important source of funding at many transit improvements. This funding has not yet been programmed and systems and are frequently used to fund major transit expansion represents funding that is available to implement this plan. programs. An example list of transit systems funded by sales taxes along with the tax rates is shown the table on the right. Sales taxes are • State Highway Maintenance Account: Rhode Island has a also the most common way to fund major expansion programs. State Highway Maintenance Account that is funded through license and registration fees, along with a percent of inspection Historically, sales taxes for transit have been well supported by voters, fees, costs for certain transfers and duplicates, and other and approximately 70% of transit initiatives pass. Rhode Island’s miscellaneous transportation-related revenues. Five percent current sales tax is 7%, and for 2020, Rhode Island projects to generate of these funds are allocated to RIPTA to fund operations: $1.4 billion in sales tax revenue. A 1% sales tax rate for transit would in FY 2019 RIPTA was budgeted to receive $4.9 million. In generate approximately $200 million per year. addition, for FY 2018 and 2019, the General Assembly directed an additional $5.0 million to RIPTA to offset a reduction in City/Transit System Sales Tax Rate revenue from the reinstatement of free rides for elderly and disabled riders and to fund debt service on outstanding General Boston/MBTA 1.0% Obligation bonds. Denver/RTD 1.0% Question • Rhode Island Mass Transit Hub Infrastructure Bonds: Los Angeles/LA Metro 2.0% 6, which was approved by Rhode Island voters in 2014, authorized the issuance of $35 million in General Obligation San Diego/MTS 0.5% bonds for “enhancements and renovations to mass transit Phoenix/Valley Metro 0.7% hub infrastructure throughout the State of Rhode Island to improve access to multiple intermodal sites, key transportation, Salt Lake City/UTA 1.2% healthcare, and other locations.” These funds are available for Seattle/King County Metro 1.4% the development of regional and community mobility hubs. Dallas/DART 1.0% Fare Revenue Fort Worth/Trinity Metro 0.5% Fare revenue paid by passengers and third-party sponsors is one of RIPTA’s major sources of operating revenue, and for FY 2020 is projected to generate $24.4 million. In total fare revenues cover approximately 20% of RIPTA’s operating costs. As RIPTA increases

57 Transit Forward RI 2040

Fuel Taxes Local Assessment (General Fund) Rhode Island already uses fuel taxes to fund transit, and could increase Some transit districts assess local communities for the service they the rate to generate additional revenue. Rhode Island’s current fuel receive. For example, in Massachusetts, communities served by the MBTA tax, at 35¢ per gallon, is far from the highest in the country. However, are assessed based on a state-mandated formula that considers local it is above average, particularly when compared with neighboring population, access to other transit authorities, and proximity to Boston. Massachusetts and the northern New England states, which could The amount each community pays does not correlate to the level of make further increases more difficult. Also, gas tax increases often service received. MBTA assessments represented about 8% of its FY19 generate less than is commonly believed. A one cent increase in Rhode budget and cannot increase more than 2.5% annually. Island’s gas tax would generate approximately $4.3 million per year. Other Special Assessment Districts There are also a large number of other sources for funding of transit that Another common way to fund major projects is to develop have either been implemented or are or have been considered. These special assessment districts in areas that benefit from the transit include: improvements. The taxes are typically based on property value, or • Real estate transfer fees sales, special business fees, or other measures of value. They are most • Payroll taxes typically implemented in specific areas to fund specific projects such • Hotel/motel taxes as rail lines. • Rental car taxes Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts • Parking taxes • Taxes on Uber and Lyft trips Tax Increment Financing Districts are similar to Special Assessment • Transportation Climate Initiative (TCI) Districts in that districts are created to encompass areas that will benefit from transit improvements. However, in these districts, rather than increasing taxes, the new property tax revenue generated as a result of increases in property value are used to fund the transit improvements. This approach is often preferred by property owners as tax rates do not increase (although taxes paid do increase due to increased property values). A disadvantage of TIFs compared to Special Assessment Districts is that revenue amounts are much more speculative.

A TIF is being considered in downtown Pawtucket surrounding the future Pawtucket/Central Falls commuter rail station. It is possible that a portion of TIF revenues could be directed towards ongoing maintenance and operation of the new station and adjacent bus hub.

Vehicle Taxes Different forms of vehicle taxes are occasionally used to fund transit. The most significant example is Minnesota, where the state generates transportation funding through a 6.5% sales tax on motor vehicles. This is in lieu of a general sales tax. The funds are used for both highways and transit, with a minimum of 40% directed to transit.

58 Next Steps Plan Implementation

The Transit Forward RI program is large and comprehensive and the routes that serve the greatest number of passengers. In the very will be implemented over time. The plan must be flexible to react to short-term, these should also focus on increasing midday and evening funding opportunities and cost constraints. In the short-term, it will service to better serve essential workers. focus on improving and expanding existing services in a cost-effective Provide More Frequent Commuter Rail Service to Boston manner using available funding. This will include, among other things, more frequent service for longer hours and facility improvements. RIDOT is close to launching a program with Amtrak for the use of Simultaneously, planning will begin for more intensive high capacity MBTA commuter rail passes on select Amtrak trains. This agreement projects the be implemented in the medium to long-term. It is would provide access to more frequent rail service between Providence anticipated that there will be an incremental build-up to many and Boston. proposed plan elements, and the full implementation of the plan will take twenty years. Improve Crosstown Services

Finally, the plan is intended to be flexible. In this regard, as a funding The plan recommends four new crosstown routes to make non- plan is developed and in response to other factors, specific timeframes Providence trips easier. The development of four new routes could be may be adjusted. accomplished quickly and at relatively low cost. It could also relieve crowding on radial routes. Short-Term Improvements Provide Faster Service During the summer and fall of 2019, the public was asked to rank Rhode Island transit riders desire faster service, particularly for Rhode potential transit improvements. The top priorities were: Island - Boston rail service and in primary bus corridors. Proposed • Longer hours of bus service and more weekend service improvements that will provide faster service include the development • More frequent bus service of Rapid Bus, Regional Rapid Bus lines, express bus on shoulder service, and LRT and/or BRT. The MBTA is simultaneously planning for • More frequent commuter rail service to Boston the future of commuter rail via its Rail Vision process which focuses on • Improved crosstown services increased speed and frequency. • Cross-honoring of MBTA passes on Amtrak Northeast Regional trains • Better bus stops The development of Rapid Bus, Regional Rapid Bus and LRT or BRT lines also present the greatest opportunities to leverage federal • More Rapid Bus lines New Starts/Small Starts funding. To be eligible for these funds, the In addition to the development of a funding plan, short-term efforts will development of these projects needs to follow a prescribed FTA be directed at delivering most of these improvements. project development process. This process will also provide the Extend Bus Service Hours and Provide More Frequent Service mechanism to determine whether the Central Falls-CCRI/Warwick line should be developed as LRT or BRT (or Rapid Bus) and similar The most desired improvements are for more frequent service for decisions on other lines. Because federal funding will be essential to longer hours. This input is consistent with the desires of transit the development of this plan, the initiation of project development for riders everywhere. Based on this input, the logical starting point for the highest priority High Capacity Lines should begin in the short-term. improvements will be the development of the frequent transit network as well as more frequent service for longer hours on other routes. An additional early effort to make service faster will be the These improvements will also be expensive in terms of operating cost development of the highway improvements needed to implement increases, and as such, initial implementation efforts should focus on

59 Transit Forward RI 2040 express bus on shoulder service. It is possible that RIDOT could Partnerships incorporate those improvements into upcoming highway projects. The implementation of the Transit Forward RI plan will require strong Development of Providence-Boston commuter rail improvements partnerships among many parties. Most importantly, RIPTA and will be led by the MBTA with RIDOT as a participating stakeholder. RIDOT have many complementary capabilities that can further the The MBTA has direction from the Fiscal Management Control Board implementation of this plan. RIPTA has a particularly strong expertise in (FMCB) on broad goals for improving commuter rail service, including how to design transit services that people want and that will increase a Phase 1 effort involving the Providence Line. As MassDOT and ridership. RIDOT’s experience is in design and construction, and this the MBTA work to advance a funded implementation plan, RIDOT plan includes many projects that will require design and construction remains poised to assist and facilitate necessary changes in Rhode expertise. RIDOT can also make highway improvements that will Island to accommodate for the potential new operations. All future improve transit, especially with respect to express bus on shoulder improvements along the entire Northeast Corridor are coordinated by service. In addition: the Northeast Corridor Commission and its 15-year Northeast Corridor • New LRT and/or BRT and Rapid Bus lines will operate on local Service Development Plan process currently underway, and its ongoing roads. For these lines to be developed as effectively as possible, 5-Year capital planning process. RIDOT, MassDOT and MBTA, along RIPTA will need to work closely with local communities. Local with Amtrak, are active members and participants in these Commission communities will also need to help improve pedestrian and planning efforts. bicycle connections to, from, and around stations. • The development of High Capacity Transit services also provides opportunities for Transit-Oriented Development (TOD). However, while the projects can stimulate demand, many other actions are also require to make it happen. The successful development of TOD will happen through partnerships between RIPTA, RIDOT, local communities, and developers. • The plan includes major improvements to Rhode Island-Boston commuter rail services. These improvements will require close collaboration between RIDOT, the MBTA, and Amtrak. • The use of MBTA commuter rail passes on Amtrak trains and Amtrak service to TF Green Airport will require new partnerships between RIDOT and Amtrak.

60 Next Steps

Project/Program IMPROVE AND EXPAND SERVICES AND LAY GROUNDWORK FOR BIGGER IMPROVEMENTS Develop a funding plan and strategy to leverage existing and new funding sources with broad-based public support Develop a Frequent Transit Network developed by increasing service on existing local routes Provide more frequent service for longer hours on other local routes, with an emphasis on improving midday and evening services in high need areas Use of MBTA Commuter Rail passes on Amtrak trains Complete Pawtucket/Central Falls commuter rail station 1 Introduce app-based reservations, fare payment, and vehicle tracking for Flex service TO Implement bus stop improvements at high volume stops Initiate project development for highest priority LRT and/or BRT lines and Rapid Bus lines 4 Develop bus lanes and Transit Signal Priority in LRT/BRT and Rapid Bus corridors and Transit Emphasis Corridors Extend the R-Line to Central Falls as precursor to LRT/BRT development YEARS Begin to implement bus on shoulder improvements Provide additional services to special events Implement a Service Partnership Program to encourage third-party funding for transit expansion Begin making pedestrian improvements to and from major transit locations Implement joint MBTA, RIPTA, SRTA, and GATRA fares Implement the first services to new areas FOCUS ON HIGH CAPACITY TRANSIT Construct the first High Capacity Transit lines Continue to implement frequency and span improvements 5 Continue to expand service to new areas Implement transit priority at traffic chokepoints TO Develop new park and ride lots Develop an east-west Transit Emphasis Corridor 10 Improve rail service to TF Green Airport, including development of an Amtrak Station YEARS Make bus stop improvements at more stops Develop new regional and community transit hubs Continue to improve pedestrian and bicycle conditions at and around major transit facilities Develop new Mobility-as-a-Service options A COMPREHENSIVE STATEWIDE SYSTEM 11 Frequent rail service between Providence and Boston TO Additional High Capacity Transit lines Continued development of mobility hubs 20 Pedestrian improvements at and around major transit facilities YEARS Continued development of Mobility-as-a-Service options