The City of Saskatoon has unveiled the latest configuration of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system. Now the city is looking for the public’s thoughts on the layout.
Community organizations like the Broadway Business Improvement District (BID) are also providing feedback.
“I’m very excited that we’ve been able to offer input and to look at opportunities that will really be best for this really small geographical neighbourhood, but this will be a big impact,” DeeAnn Mercier, executive director of the district, said.
The Blue Line is configured to run down Broadway Avenue, with northbound and southbound transit stations at Main Street.
Overall, the BID is excited about the new system, but there are concerns from businesses in the area.
“The No. 1 thing I’ve heard from the merchants on Broadway is they don’t want any reduction in parking,” Mercier said. “I think that’s really key when we have such limited parking there; so we want to make sure that while they can get to the area in multiple ways that the parking works.”
Another concern for the Broadway area is the timelines on any possible construction that would need to be done to accommodate the new transit line.
“In 2016, the roadway was torn up for the majority of that summer and that was really detrimental to business that year,” Mercier said. “So I would say on Broadway, we’re a little gun-shy from having a massive upheaval like that.”
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There are currently three options for where the Blue Line should run. Either directly on Broadway Avenue; up the Victoria Avenue traffic bridge to 8th Street, or up Victoria Avenue to Broadway via Main Street.
“We’re having some of those discussions about what would be best for the buses, what would be best for businesses, and what would be best for the transit users,” Mercier said.
The proposed plan along with a summary of stakeholder and public input will be presented to city council for consideration in the spring.
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