The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) has issued the Notice to Proceed for Phase 2 of the MOVE New Haven Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Project. This milestone advances development of Connecticut’s first on-street BRT system, with VHB leading preliminary design and environmental review to support major service improvements for riders along CTtransit’s four most-traveled bus routes in their New Haven Division.
VHB’s Transit & Rail team has been supporting this critical initiative since 2017, when we helped shape the vision for bus rapid transit through the MOVE New Haven Study, conducted in partnership with CTDOT, CTtransit, the City of New Haven, and the Greater New Haven Transit District. That work identified BRT as a way to improve transit access and service for area residents. Today, the project brings together a broad group of stakeholders, including those partners as well as the City of West Haven, the Town of Hamden, and the South Central Regional Council of Governments (SCRCOG).
Greater New Haven has one of the state’s highest percentages of zero-auto households, along with more than 320,000 jobs and 250,000 households located within a half-mile of existing bus service. To most effectively align the proposed BRT service with rider needs while prioritizing safety and reduced travel time, our team used the analysis we conducted of more than 2.5 million ridership datapoints to develop a data-informed conceptual design. The recently completed 10-percent design included right-sized stops, dedicated bus lanes, a transit signal priority (TSP) system, and mobility hubs that can accommodate a future fleet of electric buses.
In Phase 2, we will initially work with the project partners and stakeholders to refine and confirm the recommended alternative. Once confirmed, we will develop the 30-percent design for more than 14 miles of multimodal improvements along the project’s three BRT corridors and prepare a project implementation plan to support future delivery.
Leveraging our team’s integrated services approach, our engineers will design transit, pedestrian, and bicycle facilities, alongside roadway and utility infrastructure and drainage improvements. At the same time, our environmental team will lead a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review and a Connecticut Environmental Policy Act (CEPA) review, while our grant specialists help CTDOT position the project for additional federal funding opportunities.
“This milestone positions our team to move this vital transit modernization initiative towards implementation and the safer, more accessible, and more reliable bus service for Greater New Haven residents envisioned by the project team and stakeholders,” said David Wilcock, VHB’s National Director, Transit & Rail. “For the project’s next phase, the team will prepare the final design plans and documents necessary to support the construction of the improvements, which will make a regional impact.”
To learn more about the MOVE New Haven BRT project, contact David Wilcock by email or on LinkedIn.
Visit Transit & Rail to learn more about how VHB supports DOTs’ transformative transit projects like the MOVE New Haven BRT system.
