To: The Honorable Daniel J. McKee, Governor, State of Rhode Island

       The Honorable K. Joseph Shekarchi, Speaker of the House of Representatives

       The Honorable Dominick J Ruggerio, President of the Senate

       The Honorable Brett P. Smiley, Mayor of Providence

Primary contact: Patricia Raub, RI Transit Rider ritransitriders@gmail.com

We, the undersigned organizations, have deep concerns about the impact to riders by moving the current transit hub to the outskirts of downtown, specifically to Parcel 35 in the I-195 District. We are opposed to the location as well as the idea of moving the hub anywhere outside of the central city, since most passengers disembark right at Kennedy Plaza.   

This site is far removed from many of the destinations where passengers are going, making it less convenient and time consuming for transit riders. Rerouting buses to Parcel 35 will be awkward at best. Most of the streets in and around Parcel 35 are narrow and one-way, difficult for buses to negotiate. The detours needed to serve that location will add to trip times. Former RIPTA planner Marc Ebuña has stated that the location is “not feasible.” At a time when Rhode Island is attempting to lower its carbon emissions to combat climate change, we shouldn’t be building a hub that will decrease ridership rather than increase it.

Although we remain willing to consider a move to a central downtown location other than Parcel 35, it will be difficult to convince us that most other sites will be as advantageous for riders as Kennedy Plaza. Kennedy Plaza has been allowed to deteriorate, but it could be refurbished at a fraction of the cost of constructing a new hub. The real issue is not which new hub location should be chosen, but whether to build an inadequate and costly hub at all.  

The biggest problem RIPTA faces is that of insufficient state funding, not a need to construct a new transit center. RIPTA is an efficient transit service that’s been chronically underfunded for decades. We should prioritize funding RIPTA to be a thriving public transit system that is far more urgent and vital to transit passengers than a new terminal facility at this time.  

Investing in RIPTA for the long term will be far better for the economy and the climate than building a new transit hub that is not convenient for riders’ daily lives.

Thank you for your consideration.

RI Transit Riders

Bike Tiverton

Black Political Action Committee

Black Lives Matter RI

Citizens Climate Lobby

Cityside at Wheeler

Civic Alliance for a Cooler Rhode Island

Clean Water Action

Climate Action Rhode Island

Conservation Law Foundation

Environment Council of Rhode Island

Friends of the William C. O’Neill South County Bike Path

Groundwork Rhode Island

Haus of CODEC

Kennedy Plaza Resilience Coalition

ProsperityForRI.com  

Providence Streets Coalition

Providence Student Union

R.A.M.P. (Real Action Motivates Progress)

Rhode Island Association of Railroad Passengers

Rhode Island Bicycle Coalition

Rhode Island Working Families Party

Smith Hill Advocacy and Partnerships

Trinity Square Together

West Broadway Neighborhood Association

Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council