New Regional Transit Plan Pitched By Wayne County

Wayne County Executive Warren Evans has unveiled a new mass transit plan that includes Washtenaw, Oakland and Macomb counties. The plan is called “Connect Southeast Michigan,” and would call for a 1.5 mill tax levy on all four counties, according to media reports. The millage would raise $5.4 billion over a 20-year period to fund expanding regional transit service.

Since the average house in the Regional Transit Authority region is worth $157,504, it would cost the average homeowner about $118 a year, or less than $10 per month, WDIV reported.

Some of the plan highlights include:

• Connecting DTW to the region with four express bus routes connecting the airport with Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, Western Wayne, Oakland, and Wayne and Macomb.
• Expanding the commuter rail service between Detroit and Ann Arbor with eight round-trips a day.
• A proposed 15 bus routes with at least 15-minute rush-hour frequency across the area.
• Five premium routes would be established: Woodward, Michigan, Gratiot, Grand River, and Mound/Van Dyke.

The plan also includes consolidating DDOT, SMART and the RTA, along with improvements to shelters and stations, and implementing universal fare cards, Curbed Detroit reported.

A plan to establish a regional transit plan in Southeast Michigan was rejected by voters on 2016, WDIV reported. Evans hopes the proposal will come before voters later this year.

Read the full report here.

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