MISSOULA — Planners hired by the city to develop a bus rapid-transit system on Brooks Street presented their final design on Thursday, settling on a side-running route.
Now several years in the making, the project initially proposed a center-running system connecting south Brooks to the downtown transfer station.
But that proposal presented challenges, prompting the switch to the side-running route.
Chris Proud, transit project manager with HDR, said the side-running system offers many of the same benefits and carries a lower cost.
“We feel this has all the same benefits with a lot less of the impacts,” he said. “It doesn't require as much space in order to accomplish it. The overall capital cost is significantly lower. We have the ability to connect pedestrians in, given that our stops are going to be on the outside. It has slightly fewer traffic impacts, and it noticed a difference in the economic development potential.”
The city and Mountain Line received an $850,000 grant four years ago to study the placement of a BRT system on Brooks Street, connecting Midtown to downtown.
The project carried a number of requirements, including the potential for economic development, complete streets, and making it easier for pedestrians to cross the corridor. It also considered housing needs within the district and how the presence of a high-frequency transit line could shape future development.
“That was our job, to make it real, make it fit, and make it work within the context of laying it out in a roadway,” said Proud. “There's still a lot of work to be done to move this forward.”
As designed, Mountain Line would enter and leave downtown on Stephens Avenue and Orange Street and operate the length of Brooks to the city's newly acquired Southgate Crossing property. It's there where a southern transit station would likely sit and serve as the nexus of several other routes.
While on Brooks Street, the buses would operate on the outside lane, or curbside, making 10 stops along the route.
“We have 10 stops we're developing, and we worked with Mountain Line on placement,” said Proud. “It had a lot to do with making sure this is truly rapid transit. This isn't a bus that stops every block. The idea is that it operates more like a train service.”
While the buses would operate in the outside lane of traffic, intersections along the route would be converted to give the bus priority, ensuring it remains on schedule. The plan also proposes a center median to aid pedestrians, a boulevard for snow removal and sidewalks that cater to both pedestrians and bicycles.
The stops would be slightly elevated to better align with the bus.
“It was about providing dependable, frequent and efficient high-capacity transit,” said Proud. “But it was equally focused on supporting development at density and building transit-oriented communities.”
Complete Streets and pedestrian safety are also part of the BRT plan for Brooks Street.
The design, dubbed “Transform Brooks-Connect Midtown,” comes just as the city is set to adopt its new Long Range Transportation Plan. Mountain Line has also completed its new service plan.
All three plans consider transit and the role it plays in land use and development.
“In the long term, we're looking at greatly expanding our fleet capacity,” said Spencer Starke with Mountain Linee. “We're designing around the BRT system, or high-frequency network. That provides a connective service that can be the backbone of our transit service.”
City officials welcomed the Brooks plan and its final design, saying it will enable the project to seek future funding and play a role in shaping the Midtown district, which has a master plan of its own.
“This is a big milestone,” said Annette Marchesseault, a project manager with the Missoula Redevelopment Agency. “The results of this study gave us a very concrete, measurable concept for BRT on Books Street.”
