CTfastrak’s expansion study, presented publicly this week, shows construction work on projects to extend the current 9.4 mile bus line east likely will not begin until early 2019, depending on funding available for implementation.
The planned proposals to expand the busway service east include adding stops in East Hartford, Manchester, Vernon, Tolland and Storrs, connecting with existing CTfastrak service to create a public transportation corridor that runs from Waterbury in the west to UConn Storrs in the east.
The UConn Storrs-Hartford route has estimated annual operating costs of $1.4 million, while the Burnside Avenue corridor is estimated at $2.8 million. A Buckland Hills shuttle estimate of operating costs comes in at $998,000.
The UConn Storrs-Hartford route could begin operating in August of 2017 for service, but some design and construction work would remain for the park-and-ride lot, said Lisa Rivers, transit manager for Connecticut Department of Transportation.
The timetable for fiscal 2018-19 improvements includes continued vehicle procurement through late 2017; awarding station design and contractor work starting in early 2017; beginning to expand eastern services in late 2017, and beginning station construction in early 2019. The projects are anticipated to extend into 2020.
