With the Salem Area Mass Transit District’s latest approved project, eleven bus stops in Salem will become more accessible with lighting, sidewalk and shelter improvements.
The Cherriots board approved the project during its Oct. 26 meeting, along with a budget calendar. They also heard the agency’s annual performance report, which showed increases in ridership across all services.
READ IT: Agenda
Budget calendar, committee appointments
The board unanimously approved the budget calendar ahead of the next budget year, which outlines the next steps for the district’s budget planning before its adoption deadline of June 30.
The budget committee, which reviews and approved the General Manager’s proposed budget, is scheduled to meet May 7, 8 and 9 if a third meeting is needed, according to the calendar.
The budget will be published the week of May 28, and the committee will present it to the board on June 27.
The budget committee includes a board member and community member from each of Cherriots’ seven subdistricts.
The board also unanimously approved reappointing Ashley Carson Cottingham and Sheronne Blasi as community members on the budget committee, representing subdistricts 6 and 7. Their terms expire June 30, 2026.
Other community members for the upcoming budget cycle include Nick Fortey, Andrew Hickey, Kathy Lincoln, Marie Greene and Carl F. Garner. The budget committee email is listed as [email protected].
Bus stop improvements
The board unanimously approved a $183,999 project to improve accessibility at bus stops in 16 locations, including 11 in Salem. The budget has a 15% contingency for unexpected labor or material costs.
To meet standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act, bus stops must have a sidewalk in good condition, lighting, visibility and meet slope requirements.
“Some of the issues are not only an inconvenience for everyone but are the actual barrier preventing individuals with disabilities from easily accessing transit. These include landscape strips between the curb and sidewalk, trees with low branches, rough sidewalk surfaces, and cars parked on the shoulder,” Service Planning Manager Chris French said in a meeting memo.
Improvements will include adding shelters, lighting, trashcans and walkways. Most of the 16 stops in this project are in Salem, one stop is in Keizer and four are in Marion County.
The bid was awarded to R&R Construction, and the agenda packet doesn’t list a project timeline.
Annual performance report
More people are climbing aboard Cherriots’ buses, according to the agency’s annual performance report which French presented on Thursday.
The report analyzed service data between July 2022 and June 2023.
Service increases in that time included restoring 15 minute frequency to Route 17, adding a new regional route between Keizer, Woodburn and Wilsonville, an additional trip to Dallas, and additional bus stops.
Cherriots weekday local routes, which operate in the Salem-Keizer area, saw a 32.2% increase in boardings this year, around 2,233 boardings a day, and Saturday boardings increased by 34.1% or 1,213 boardings a day. Sunday boardings increased by 55.2%, or 934 boardings a day.
Regional routes also saw increased boardings, with a 33.9% increase on weekdays, an average of 78 more boardings a day, and a 45% increase on Saturday of 42 more boardings a day.
Cherriots Shop and Ride and Cherriots Lift, which provide accessible transit through fixed routes and scheduled rides, also saw modest increases in boardings between 3 and 10%. Sunday Lift boardings increased by 30.1%, an additional 15.5 boardings a day.
Contact reporter Abbey McDonald: [email protected] or 503-704-0355.
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Abbey McDonald joined the Salem Reporter in 2022. She previously worked as the business reporter at The Astorian, where she covered labor issues, health care and social services. A University of Oregon grad, she has also reported for the Malheur Enterprise, The News-Review and Willamette Week.
