GDOT Annual Report 2019

PA R K I N G

Downtown Parking Decks The Greensboro Department of Transportation continues to work to build two new downtown parking decks. In 2017, the City entered into a public-private partnership with Elm Street Center Hotel LLC to design a 720-space parking deck that will be associated with a mixed-use development that will include a hotel, meeting center, and retail space. The developer will design and build the deck and the City will own and operate the deck, which will be located in the 100 block of South Davie Street and will span February One Place. The City has purchased all the property and demolition of existing structures is complete. Design on the deck is approximately 98 percent complete and construction will start later this year when fnal construction agreements are in place. The deck should be completed in the second half of 2020 at a total cost of $27 million. The City is also working to acquire property from Guilford County in order to build a 950-space parking deck in the 200 block of North Eugene Street, south of Bellemeade Street and across the street from First National Bank Field. The new Eugene Street deck will support a planned ofce tower on the northwest corner of Bellemeade and Eugene streets as well as a new hotel at the southwest corner of the intersection. The deck will be behind the new development, which will front Eugene Street. Construction is set to begin late summer 2019 once fnal construction agreements are in place. The total cost is expected to be $25-30 million. Bonds will be issued to build the parking decks and will be paid back over 30 years through parking revenues and property tax revenues, which are projected to increase because of the new downtown developments. Design for the Eugene Street deck is approximately 70 percent complete.

For example, Route 11, a core route, will no longer deviate of of Gate City Boulevard onto Meadowview Road. Instead Route 2, a neighborhood route, will provide the necessary coverage to NC Career Works on Meadowview Road. The route modifcations also include adjustments to bus stop locations where needed for operational efciency and safety in accordance with GDOT’s Vision Zero initiative. The new Route 13 will align with Route 12, replacing the one-way loop provided by the existing Route 12 with two way service. This will efectively double the transit service to the South Elm-Eugene Street and Randleman Road corridors. Both routes will serve the Elmsley Square area, a high demand destination not served by weekday Route 12. The current Route 12 is GTA’s highest ridership route, with nearly 500,000 annual passenger trips and consistently over-crowded buses. GTA has had outstanding service requests to improve this route for years, and now there is fnally an opportunity to take action. Two neighborhood routes, Route 4 and Route 13, into one route enables two buses to be reallocated to the new Route 13. This new route has been designed to provide nearly identical access within a quarter mile as the existing routes, and will maintain 30-minute weekday service. These modifcations will improve the convenience and reliability of the system which will make GTA a more attractive choice for moving around Greensboro. Current estimates suggest GTA may see an increase in its annual ridership of more than 250,000 passenger trips per year based on these modifcations. This increase in ridership will also increase federal funding available for GTA. This frst phase of Mobility Greensboro 2040 implementation will set the stage for future improvements. Mid-term recommendations include increasing frequency to 15-minutes on the core routes. Long-term recommendations include new crosstown connector routes to enable travel around the city without the need to transfer at the Depot. As the full plan is implemented over time, GTA will be in position to redefne itself as a dependable mobility tool that supports the human and social development needs of the community and the planned growth and economic development of the City of Greensboro. To read more about GTA’s Mobility Greensboro 2040, please visit getonboard2040.org.

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