Signs Point To Long-Awaited Bus Upgrade

Downtown bus riders should soon have a better sense of when their rides will actually arrive, as the state prepares to roll out new digital signs with real-time information on where a bus is, and when it will get to a stop.

That’s one initiative planned among many in a state Department of Transportation (DOT) push to make New Haven’s beleaguered bus system easier and more enjoyable to use.

DOT Public Transportation Chief Rich Andreski and DOT Deputy Commissioner — and Mill River neighborhood resident — Garrett Eucalitto talked through those planned signage, bus shelter, lighting, and service upgrades during a Thursday interview by the Chapel Street bus stop on the Green.

Following up on the Independent’s recent article about state plans to extend New Haven bus service until 1 a.m. this summer, these two top Connecticut public transit officials stressed that the bus system — long criticized as unreliable, irrational, and inefficient —is slated to transform in the coming months and years.

That’s thanks to a renewed appreciation at the highest levels of the state transportation department of just how essential public bus transit is, especially for urban, lower-income, and historically marginalized commuters, Andreski said.

It’s also thanks to a new level of focus and commitment department-wide on bringing the current system up to par with what Connecticut bus riders deserve and with what other states already have. (Click here to read a call for national transit policy also to focus on bus upgrades.)

“Historically, a lot of energy at our agency has gone into big projects,” like the Hartford Line and CTfastrack, Andreski said.

He said his public transit division is now ​“reorienting our thinking” around bus essentials — like signage, shelter, seating, lighting, and charging stations — to make sure that bus systems like New Haven’s can be easily used and understood by regular commuters and newcomers alike.

“Transit is essential,” Eucalitto added.

Covid-19 has only underscored that truth, as carless commuters in need of getting to the grocery store or work have continued riding the bus at much higher rates than people who formerly commuted by train for work or leisure. (The ongoing pandemic has also seen a high number of drivers as of late calling out sick, resulting in daily cancellations of rush-hour routes from and to central New Haven.)

“We are finally at a point where it’s easier politically” and technologically to dedicate adequate resources towards fitting out bus stops with ​“features,” not ​“amenities,” like solar-powered, real-time bus location signs, Eucalitto said.

“Historically, if you use the bus every day, you know how to use the system,” added Andreski.

The department’s top bus-related priorities now: ​“ease of use in every aspect of the service.”

Real-Time Info & ​“Actual Arrival Times”

The most immediate improvement planned for the bus system in New Haven, and for bus stops across the state, is new digital signs with real-time information on bus location and arrival times, Andreski and Eucalitto said.

Last December, the State Bond Commission approved $2.5 million for the Bureau of Public Transportation to implement a real-time location and bus information system statewide.

Eucalitto said that the DOT plans to start rolling out that new real-time signage system with a pilot on the New Haven Green this August.

Just like New York City has for its subway system and for some bus stops on Lexington Avenue, Andreski said, these signs will be digital screens showing all of the bus routes serve a particular stop, along with ​“real-time information on actual arrival times.”

Eucalitto and Andreski said the pilot will almost certainly take place at the Chapel Street stop on the Green between Church Street and Temple Street. It will likely consist of one large fixed screen displaying routes and arrival times, as well as a smaller screen showing at least when which buses are slated to arrive.

After studying how the New Haven Green pilot goes, they said, the state would then use the $2.5 million approved by the State Bond Commission to roll out a real-time bus location signage plan statewide.

“We have 12,000 bus stops statewide,” Andreski said. At a bare minimum, every stop should have some kind of sign describing relevant routes and schedules.

Eucalitto said that every public bus in the state is already equipped with GPS monitoring. And real-time information on bus locations and arrival times is already available through such apps as Transit.

But not every rider has a smartphone, he and Andreski said. And not every smart phone owner has a data plan. Real-time bus location signs should make it that much easier for riders to see the most basic and essential info for any public transit system: what is the service route, and when is the bus is arriving.

Eucalitto said that the digital signs will be solar powered, and therefore not require any utility digging and installation in order to power up.

Shelters, Seats, & Electric Vehicles

In addition to the real-time signage pilot and $2.5 million rollout, Andreski and Eucalitto said the DOT plans on revamping bus shelters statewide to make sure all stops have some kind of place to rest and cover from the rain and snow.

Eucalitto said the DOT has budgeted $15 million in its five-year capital plan to dedicate to bus shelter upgrades.

If the governor succeeds in implementing his proposed highway usage fee, he said, the amount of money potentially available for bus shelters would jump to $23 million over the next five years.

While the $15 million in capital funds is contingent upon the State Bond Commission’s approval and the additional $8 million rests on whether or not highway usage fees go into effect, Andreski and Eucalitto said that providing some form of ​“shelter, lighting, and place to rest,” like a bench, is a top priority for the department.

While the busiest of the 12,000 statewide bus stops will have ​“the most features,” Andreski said, his department endeavors over the next five years to make sure there is ​“a sign, a seat, and a light at every spot.”

The two top transit officials also said that the state plans to convert all of its public buses to electric vehicles in the next 12 to 15 years. Eight of the first 12 vehicles in this new electric fleet should be coming to New Haven in the coming months, Andreski said, with the other four going to Stamford.

Eucalitto said the new battery-electric buses will be quieter than the current hybrid vehicles, and will not spew diesel emissions while traveling along city streets.

Move New Haven On The Move

These various bus system improvements are slated to take place alongside the work the DOT will be doing to realize the recommendations included in the state-funded, decade-in-the-making Move New Haven transit study.

Those recommendations include everything from bus stop consolidation to building out a local Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system with new express routes along Grand Avenue, Dixwell Avenue, Whalley Avenue, and Congress Avenue to new mini-hub stations in Fair Haven, Dixwell, and Westville, dedicated ​“bus only” lanes, and transit signal priority.

Eucalitto said the department has budgeted $2 million to bring on an engineering and design staffer to work on how exactly the department would go about implementing a new BRT system.

He said the department has also set aside $20 million in its five-year base capital plan for these various bus system infrastructure upgrades, and would see an additional $65 million set aside for such projects if the governor’s highway usage fees take effect.

And on top of those state sources of funding, the DOT will be applying in the coming two or three years for as much federal money as it can get from a Biden Administration U.S. Department of Transportation they hope will be more sympathetic than the previous administration to funding large-scale public transportation projects.

Andreski referred to New Haven’s hub-and-spoke model — whereby all of the buses funnel down to a single spot on the Green downtown before radiating out to various routes outside of the city center — as the ​“Achilles heel” of the bus system.

Building out more mini-hubs and points of connection outside of the city center should make it easier and more convenient for riders who don’t need to come downtown.

And Andreski and Eucalitto said that, along with all of these infrastructure upgrades, the DOT also plans to continue to invest in extended service for New Haven buses — just like the 1 a.m. extension set to take effect this summer, pending various public hearings and approvals.

“Increase frequency and increase access,” Eucalitto said. Those are the department’s goals for a better bus system.

“I think over the next couple of years, riders are going to see a lot of significant changes” to how buses in New Haven and statewide work.

“Long Waiting”; ​“They’re Not Punctual”

Bus riders waiting at the Chapel Street stop Thursday morning greeted the prospect of new real-time signs, shelters, seating, and lighting with enthusiasm.

They also all told the Independent that their top recommendation for how to improve the bus system is more frequent and reliable service.

“Long waiting,” Jose Flores said about his biggest complaint with how the bus system works today.

Sometimes a bus doesn’t come for 55 minutes, he said. And then when one does, there’s an identical bus running an identical route right behind it.

A Southern Connecticut State University student named Amy said the bus system works just fine for her. ​“I’m used to it,” she said. When she has to wait longer than expected for a bus, she puts her headphones in and dances a little to keep herself occupied until the ride arrives.

Carmen Hernandez said she rides the bus every day to and from her home on Dixwell Avenue and her work in the Hill.

“They’re not punctual,” she said when asked for her biggest complaint about buses today.

When asked for her thoughts on real-time sign info and new shelters and seating, she said with a smile behind her mask, ​“That would be great! If they do it.”