 |
NEWS HEADLINES |
|
|
| CLASSIFIEDS |
| » The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation is looking for a director of Northern Virginia rail projects. [More] |
| » The Sacramento Regional Transit District seeks a director, planning. [More] |
| » The Minnesota Valley Transit Authority requests proposals for a CAD/AVL system. [More] |
| View more Classified Ads » |
| TO PLACE AN AD: E-mail the requested date(s) of publication to: ptads@apta.com. Mailing address is: Passenger Transport, 1300 I Street NW, Suite 1200 East, Washington, DC 20005.
Ad copy is not accepted by phone. DEADLINE: 3 p.m. EST, Friday, one week prior to publication date. INFORMATION: Phone (202) 496-4877. |
AC Transit Reopens Bus Facility at Historic Site; Sustainable Features Key to Redesign
The Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit), Oakland, CA, continued to make history when it recently reopened a bus facility with such sustainable design advancements as a low flow bus wash with internal water recycling and reuse system, two industrial wastewater treatment systems, a stormwater treatment and filtration system and a high-efficiency, low-emission emergency generator.
The Division 3 facility, which originally opened in 1906 as the area’s first streetcar barn in the aftermath of the San Francisco Earthquake, closed in 2011 because of economic concerns. The new facility in nearby Richmond includes 15 new maintenance bays, inspection pits and a tire shop for AC Transit buses.
“The closure of Division 3 in 2011 represented one of the most difficult decisions the AC Transit board has faced,” said AC Transit Board President Elsa Ortiz. “But much like the mythological phoenix arose renewed, so has Division 3. Now we have a bus division that returns jobs to Richmond. It’s built with unsurpassed technology and invests cap-and-trade funds for environmentally and economically sensible approaches to our transit.”
AC Transit General Manager Michael Hursh added, “Reopening Division 3 helps alleviate capacity concerns at other bus divisions and is a positive advancement toward meeting our goal to respond to increasing ridership district-wide. I am incredibly proud that our staff has diligently worked to re-engineer service from a yard we affectionately refer to as ‘D3.’ Ultimately, D3 will play a pivotal role in AC Transit’s unprecedented service expansion known as AC Go.”
The Richmond site began serving the region’s first bus-only line in the 1930s. As the number of bus lines grew, the site became the birthplace of public transportation in western Contra Costa County.
Cost controls following the 2011 closure allowed the landmark bus division to reopen following an $18 million rehabilitation project, with costs covered largely by AC Transit’s operating funds, but supported with FTA and state funds.
|
|
| AC Transit General Manager Michael Hursh, fourth from left, joined local officials, AC Transit board members and union representatives at the reopening of the Division 3 bus facility in Richmond, CA. |
|
