2 Intercity Transit projects could bring bus service to northeast Lacey

An Intercity Transit bus isn’t coming around the corner in northeast Lacey just yet, but Intercity Transit is taking steps that could bring expanded bus service to Hawks Prairie soon.

That was the takeaway from a presentation given by Intercity Transit General Manager Ann Freeman-Manzanares to Lacey City Council on Thursday.

IT bus lines enter some parts of northeast Lacey, but they don’t make deep runs into the area. There is service to the Hawks Prairie Park & Ride, as well as to Meridian Road, near Orion Drive, according to IT’s system map.

Freeman-Manzanares talked about two projects that might hasten service to northeast Lacey.

The first project is IT’s plan to renovate and expand its headquarters in Olympia on Pattison Street, which is home to IT operations, maintenance and administrative offices. That plan was put on hold when federal dollars for buses and bus facilities were cut, but some federal funding has been restored. It’s not a huge sum — $211 million nationwide for buses and bus facilities — and IT needs $26 million for its project, she said.

“It will take community-wide support to gain state and federal tax dollars,” Freeman-Manzanares told the council.

Councilman Jeff Gadman, the city’s representative on the Intercity Transit Authority, said an expanded Pattison Street location could mean more buses to serve northeast Lacey and the room to park them.

“Expanding the Pattison Street location is as critical as expanding the bus system,” he said.

The second project is to have a consultant examine IT’s current service — something that hasn’t been done since 2006, Freeman-Manzanares said. The consultant will look at what’s working well and not well, then develop some short- and long-range plans, she said. The consultant also will look at areas without service, such as northeast Lacey and recently annexed areas in Tumwater.

“We will be looking at all areas and try to define a way to move forward,” she said.

Deputy Mayor Cynthia Pratt humorously suggested that IT run a streetcar up and down Martin Way, which would free up some buses to serve northeast Lacey.

Councilman Michael Steadman said he is just glad that northeast Lacey is in the conversation.

“The fact that it has been stressed three times is a good sign,” he said. “We have users out there.”

This story was originally published September 16, 2016 at 12:29 AM with the headline "2 Intercity Transit projects could bring bus service to northeast Lacey."