At their meeting today, the Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the final plan for the Reimagine RTS transit system redesign. The target date for the launch of the reimagined transit system is June 29, 2020.

At a press conference today at the RTS Transit Center, RTS CEO Bill Carpenter announced that RTS’s final recommendation for the Reimagine RTS system redesign will include a new fare structure for military veterans, senior citizens who are 65 and older, and people with disabilities. If the RGRTA Board of Commissioners approves the Reimagine RTS plan, senior citizens 65+ and people with disabilities would pay a half-price fare ($0.50 a ride) all day, and military veterans will ride free.

Statement from Bill Carpenter, President of the New York Public Transit Association and Chief Executive Officer of the Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority, on Budget Agreement

Regional Transit Service (RTS) CEO Bill Carpenter today testified at a joint public hearing in Syracuse on the transformation taking place in public transportation and the need for more funding. The joint public hearing was held by: the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Corporations, Authorities & Commissions; the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Transportation, and; the New York State Assembly Standing Committee on Transportation.

Two members of the Regional Transit Service (RTS) team today testified at a joint public hearing in Buffalo on the importance of public transportation in rural communities and the significant impact increased funding will have on rural economies. Representing RTS at the hearing was Kelly Fitzpatrick, the Regional Manager for RTS Livingston and RTS Wyoming, and Aimee Rader; the Operations Manager for RTS Wyoming. The joint public hearing was held by the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Corporations, Authorities & Commissions, the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Transportation, and the New York State Assembly Standing Committee on Transportation.

At a ceremony on October 4, in Ithaca, NY, RTS, Highland Planning and Transportation Management & Design, Inc. (TMD) received an award from the New York Upstate Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA) as part of their 2018 Professional Awards Program. The award was in the Public Outreach category, recognizing the team’s comprehensive outreach strategy during stage one of Reimagine RTS – the public transit redesign effort underway in Monroe County. Transportation Management & Design, and Highland Planning, were the project consultants to RTS during the first stage of Reimagine RTS.

Monroe Community College (MCC) and Regional Transit Service (RTS) today announced a new transportation program that provides MCC students with unlimited access to all RTS bus routes in Monroe County, and with direct service between MCC’s Brighton and Downtown campuses beginning in the fall 2018 semester.

Consultant’s recommendation for the fixed-route system marks the completion of Stage 1 of Reimagine RTS. RTS now transitions to Stage 2 of Reimagine RTS, to study and identify new mobility options to connect with the fixed-route system and expand the public transit network.

The purpose of Phase 3 is to share the draft of the consultant’s recommendation for the public transit system in Monroe County and gather feedback from the community New survey on the Reimagine RTS website will serve as the primary method of gathering feedback from the community

With phase one complete and phase two underway, Regional Transit Service (RTS) today provided an important update on Reimagine RTS, the study of a redesign of the public transit system in Monroe County. At a press conference earlier today, RTS CEO Bill Carpenter announced the proposed guiding principles and goals, provided a recap of phase one, and discussed next steps.