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The Source for Public Transportation News and Analysis February 21, 2014
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Ann Arbor Board Approves Five-Year Improvement Program
The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (TheRide) Board of Directors unanimously adopted a Five-Year Transit Improvement Program to improve connectivity among municipalities in the agency’s southeastern Michigan service area.

“The board understands that public transportation is essential to promoting vibrant communities that are attractive to employers and employees, places where connections can happen, where productivity and creativity increase, and where professional networks foster collaboration and innovation,” said TheRide Chief Executive Officer Michael G. Ford.

The program—created with input from riders, the public, community leaders and organizations, and elected officials—includes an additional 90,000 service hours per year, which would represent a 44 percent annual increase over existing services. If more local funding is secured, the program will enhance current operations and routes and increase public transit access in underserved areas through more destinations, more frequent service, more direct service, later weekday and weekend service, and redesigned routes over the next five years.

The board’s adoption of the program does not include a proposal for funding. That determination will be part of ongoing discussions between TheRide and local government officials. Authority officials said they are considering a recommendation to place a 0.7-mill, five-year property tax increase proposal on the 2014 ballot for residents in Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, and Ypsilanti Township.

If the board and voters approve the millage, it would generate $4.3 million for new and expanded services annually through 2019.
State and federal matching funds would help fund the improved services proposed in the plan: Every $1 spent by local taxpayers would generally receive a $2 match. The agency would also help pay for improved services through fares and purchase-of-service agreements with communities not in the service area.
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