DURHAM (Sept. 8, 2020) -- A new GoDurham bus stop with many amenities opened Monday at the Glenn View Station Walmart, a testament to teamwork among the city of Durham, GoDurham, GoTriangle and the retailer to offer a comfortable experience for the transit riders who use GoDurham’s third-busiest stop each day.
A short COVID-19-appropriate ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the occasion today featured Mayor Steve Schewel, Walmart Manager Michael Warren, GoDurham General Manager Doug Middleton, GoTriangle President and CEO Charles Lattuca, Durham City Councilman Charlie Reece and Director Sean Egan with the city’s Transportation Department.
The new bus stop off Glenn School Road replaces the previous stop on East Geer Street near the Walmart. The site averages more than 185 boardings a day.
The new Glenn View Station stop features two bus shelters with built-in solar lights, benches, a trash receptacle, a cart corral and a bike rack. A sign to display bus stop arrival information electronically also is planned.
“The new Glenn View bus stop represents the excellent partnership cultivated with Walmart Corp., which accommodated us to build the new stop on its property,” Mayor Steve Schewel said. “Walmart representatives have told us they are excited about the transit mobility and accessibility benefits the new bus stop will provide to their customers and employees.”
Improving bus stops and adding amenities are an important part of the Durham Transit Plan, which has led to scores of new bus stop improvements since the Durham County Transit Plan was adopted in 2011. Durham County voters also approved a half-cent sales tax to invest in improving the transit network.
The completion of the Glenn View Station bus stop, which is served by GoDurham Route 3, is the last in a group of 20 GoDurham bus stops built over the past year. Improvements to an additional 62 stops are in the design stage now, with 10 close to being ready for construction. GoDurham has more than 1,000 bus stops.
“This much-anticipated improvement is the latest example of the work underway to enhance the transit experience for GoDurham riders,” Egan said. “GoDurham’s Route 3 serves more than 3,000 riders on the average weekday and offers service every 15 minutes from Durham Station to Wellons Village. Those continuing to Glenn View Station will now enjoy a more convenient and comfortable stop. Looking ahead, these riders will also benefit from planned improvements to the Holloway Street Transit Emphasis Corridor and Village Transit Center thanks to funding awards from the Durham County Transit Plan.”
Offering construction opportunities to minority-owned businesses is important to the city and GoDurham, which have developed a process to bid new bus stop projects in batches so that the work is well-suited to smaller companies. Of the four construction packages awarded last year, small minority-owned businesses won three contracts representing nearly 60% of the total construction value, putting Durham tax dollars to work in the community. Lanier Construction, which is a certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise, built the new Glenn View bus stop.
On average, GoDurham transported 33 passengers per hour in 2018 compared with a peer average of 21 riders an hour, outpacing transit systems in Charlotte, Richmond and Norfolk.
Read more about GoDurham at godurhamtransit.org or follow the agency on Twitter @godurhamtransit.
About the City of Durham Transportation Department
The Transportation Department remains steadfast in its commitment to providing and maintaining quality, multimodal infrastructure to improve mobility, promote environmental sustainability and enhance the quality of life for current and future Durham residents, businesses and visitors. To learn more, follow the department on Twitter.