Quincy Transit Lines seeks input on possible route changes

QUINCY — Although the population has remained stagnant, the demographics of Quincy have changed a great deal over the last 25 years.

And the City of Quincy has not examined its bus routes during that time.

Marty Stegeman, director of Quincy Transit Lines, said that was the purpose for bringing in a consultant to host a pair of meetings Thursday night to examine possible changes to the city’s bus routes, with the possibility of extending out into Adams County, which would call for financial assistance from the County.

“The goal is to find out what the community thinks would work as well,” Stegeman said. “Not just what the consultants think or what we think. We’ve been working on trying to get the consultants in for seven years. We haven’t had a route study for more than two decades. We need to review what we’re doing and try to provide the best alternatives for the community.

About 50 people attended the meetings where six routes were examined, two of which included running routes into Adams County.

Andrew Parker from TranSystems, the city’s consultant on the route study, said most routes will average 30 minutes and would extend more to the east of 30th Street. Evening and weekend bus routes will also be revamped with a goal of shortening transfer times between buses.

One of the “Urban” plans would keep Downtown buses 7th and Jersey Street as a hub with new shelters, and a possible new transit center in that area.

Attendees also were able to choose their favorite plans, with the most popular being a transfer station at the Quincy Town Center featuring Broadway routes running from Fifth to 48th Streets. This plan has the best access to east end shopping, John Wood Community College and the city’s Amtrak Station.

One rural option has routes running as far as Clayton, with a fee of $1.50 that would be on demand only, should Adams County opt to provide financial support.

Stegeman said he hoped to have all of the presentation on the city’s Website sometime next week.