Episode 57: Transit Stop Transformation
We talk with Kim Cella, Executive Director of Citizens for Modern Transit, and Sheila Holm, Community Outreach Director with AARP St. Louis, about placemaking and activation of transit stops in the St. Louis region.
Topics: AARP, Transit, Community, Mobility Hub, Placemaking, Transit Riders
Recent transformations of transit stops demonstrate the potential to make transit part of the fabric of the community and provide riders with enhanced safety and a pleasant, rewarding experience.
In each case, Citizens for Modern Transit and AARP started by finding out what community members and riders wanted to see. They then enlisted partners, including transit agencies, local jurisdictions, design and planning firms and local businesses, from realtors and banks.
Through these efforts, a bus stop in the City of Maplewood now includes a shelter with a porch swing, a hopscotch game, and improved lighting, as well as artwork to welcome visitors. The Emerson Transit Center in East Saint Louis now boasts a colorful jazz theme, with shaded seating, places to gather and a mural inspired by the work of local high school students. The third transformation, at the Belleville Transit Center, converted the concrete area between bus bays and a MetroLink entrance into an interactive, playful space with musical custom bike racks, benches, and artwork inspired by the city’s annual art fair.
Listen to the podcast to find out the details involved, from budgets to MOUs, and the payoff. For Citizens for Modern Transit, rider enthusiasm and a feeling of ownership have been beyond expectations. For AARP, the projects are making transit spaces safer for users of all ages. “Once we expose people to these stops,” Holm says, they are more open to trying transit. In the case of the Emerson Transit Center, the transformation also played a role in getting a major grant from the state to bring infrastructure and jobs via a 911 call center.
Each transformation was led by Citizens for Modern Transit and AARP St. Louis. Here are the additional partners for each.
- Maplewood, opened June 2020. Partners: City of Maplewood, Citizens National Bank, KaBOOM!
- Emerson Park Transit Center, opened August 2021. Partners: St. Clair County Transit District (SCCTD), Metro Transit, CBB/PGAV; Added Dimension, LLC, Jayvn Solomon of L.O.T.U.S. Labs
- Belleville Transit Center opened June 2022. Partners: St. Clair County Transit District (SCCTD), CBB, City of Belleville and the REALTOR Association of SW Illinois
The next transformation will be at the North Hanley Transit Center in collaboration with Bi-State Development/Metro Transit and Team Better Block.
Before and after photos of transit stop transformations. Photos courtesy of Citizens for Modern Transit.