SUN TRAN’S NORTHWEST BUS FACILITY UNVEILED

Media Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: January 26, 2012
Contact: Michele Joseph, Sun Tran Director of Marketing (520) 206-8810
Michael Graham, City of Tucson Public Information Officer, (520) 400-7108

SUN TRAN’S NORTHWEST BUS FACILITY UNVEILED
Facility construction stimulates local economy, allows for regional transit expansion

TUCSON, Ariz. - Today the City of Tucson and Sun Tran held a ceremony to celebrate the grand opening of Sun Tran’s Northwest Bus Facility located at 3920 North Sun Tran Blvd.  This 25-acre facility will store and maintain Sun Tran’s expanding fleet of buses, and allows the continued expansion of transit service in the region. 

“The completion of this facility represents a major milestone for our community,” said Kate Riley, Sun Tran General Manager.  “This state-of-the-art complex was built in three phases to accommodate the growing need for transit options in our region.”

Phase I was completed in 2005 and included the construction of Sun Tran Boulevard and the City fueling facility, with $8 million of Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funds and 1994 City of Tucson bonds.

Phase II was completed in 2009.  It included the operations building and a portion of the maintenance facility, and was funded with $29 million of Regional Transportation Authority

(RTA) and FTA.  The second phase, built to accommodate operation of up to 150 buses, included 17 bus bays to repair and maintain the fleet, a fare retrieval area, bus wash and dispatch center. 

Phase III was completed in December 2011 and includes expansion of the maintenance building, a new administration building for regional transit operations, and more bus parking.  This phase was funded with just over $16 million from FTA’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus program and $3 million in funding from the RTA.  During its peak month of final phase construction, 186 local full-time jobs were created.

Sun Tran’s Northwest Bus Facility now has the capacity to operate and maintain 250 buses for the entire Tucson region.  Although the $56 million facility is complete, Sun Tran will continue to operate approximately one-third of the service from its location at 4220 S. Park Avenue. 

The Regional Transportation Authority is the fiscal manager of the $2.1 billion plan approved by Pima County voters on May 16, 2006.  The RTA Board is comprised of representatives from the local jurisdictions in Pima County, including the cities of Tucson and South Tucson, Pima County, the towns of Marana, Oro Valley and Sahuarita, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe and the Tohono O’odham Nation.  A representative of the Arizona State Transportation Board also serves on the board.  For more information about the RTA plan, visit www.RTAmobility.com or call (520 770-9410.