DATA wants your opinions

Durham, N.C. – Durham residents interested in bus service in Durham will get a chance to make their opinions count at an upcoming open house.

The Durham Area Transit Authority will host a public information meeting regarding the short-range transit plan to outline proposed bus service improvements for the next five years. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, December 3, 2008, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the DATA Board Room, located at 1907 Fay Street, Durham.

“Resident feedback received in July 2008 was incorporated into planning the proposed improvements in the short-range plan,” said Pierre Owusu, senior transportation planner for the City of Durham. “Following public input, a complete draft of priorities for the short-range transit plan will be reviewed by an advisory community made up of various City departments, all of the local education institutions, community leaders, and other stakeholders.” According to Owusu, the short-range transit plan will be ready for consideration by the DATA Board of Trustees by January 2009.

Transportation will be provided from the Downtown Transfer Facility to the DATA Operations facility beginning at 12:45 p.m. The bus will depart every 30 minutes. The regularly scheduled DATA Board meeting will follow the open house at 7:15 p.m.

To review the first draft of the short-range transit plan or to send comments, visit the City’s Web site at http://DATA.durhamnc.gov or call (919) 560-1535, extension 214.

Here's mine - more frequent bus service, bus routes that don't require you to change at the depot to get to the other side of town, more bus stops with shelters and benches. And updating the DPAC website with information on how to get there using the bus would be nice, too. By the way, if you can figure out exactly where on the city/DATA website to submit comments these comments, please let me know. I have a meeting in Hillsborough tomorrow from 5 - 7:30, so i'm going to miss this open house.