aprilmay2021 - 14

Omaha Metro Transit
" There was some economic development that began after ORBT
was announced, wherein these
developers actually cited ORBT
as one of the reasons why they
were relocating to that corridor.
So, the corridor was really primed
for this premium transit service, "
said Simon.

Making the Case
for ORBT

One project hurdle Omaha Metro
faced early on was informing the
public of what exactly BRT could
do. Plus, transit investments had
been stagnant in the city for a
few years and the system needed
a revival.
" The city had been talking
about a streetcar for decades now,
so people were used to hearing
about it and just waiting to see
something happen, " Rose said.
So, the agency embarked on a
mission to educate the public and
gain their trust and buy-in, with
Rose describing it as a grassroots
effort in the very beginning. A
project stakeholder committee was
created in 2015 as the genesis of
getting the community involved.
The committee included 30-40
representatives from nonprofits,
social services, accessibility advocates and more, and remained
intact from start to finish of the
project. Starting with the committee, Rose and the agency made the
case for a BRT route. Simon adds
they also highlighted the economic development impact BRT would
bring to the corridor.
" The good part of a year was
trying to drive that message home
and trying to [show] how this
could change how people look
at transit and the city of Omaha
going forward, " said Simon.
Rose also hosted several community meetings with neighborhood associations, local
businesses and nonprofits, high
schools, universities and current
riders. Once the public was sold
on the BRT concept, the agency
asked the public to identify their

14 |

WHEN DESIGNING
the stations,
Omaha Metro
focused on
materials such
as concrete and
acrylic to ensure
durability and
maitainability.

" BRT

was seen as
this really
important piece
for us because it
intersected with
almost every single
one of the lines on
our map. We called
it connecting the
dots at the time. "
-LAUREN CENCIC,
Omaha Metro
CEO

Mass Transit | MassTransitmag.com | APRIL/MAY 2021

priorities for the project, which
included ease of accessibility and
increased frequency of service.
These needs were addressed
by having level boarding of buses
via raised station platforms and
implementing a simple, 10-minute frequency. The agency also
began soliciting feedback about
what the public wanted to see
with this service down to the last
detail-everything from technology and passenger amenities
to the interior layout of vehicles
and the name and brand of the
new line.
" We really made a concreted effort from start to finish to
get feedback on all aspects of
the project, not just where the
route should be and where the
stops should be, but really what
it would look and feel like because
we wanted a community ownership of this, " Cencic said.

CENCIC AND Rose joined Omaha
Mayor Jean Stothert (center)
to celebrate the launch of
ORBT in November.

After spending several years
gathering feedback and gaining
community support, the community's interest and excitement
peaked when construction began
and they were able to finally see
what was once a difficult concept
to grasp come to life.
" When our main corridor in
town was starting to shut down
because we were building bus stations, that blew people's mind, "
said Rose.

Selling the Benefits
of Transit

After presenting to major stakeholders and selling them on the
concept, and specifically the large
philanthropic community, Omaha Metro was able to ask them for
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aprilmay2021

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