At the March 22 meeting of Richmond City Council, the city administration introduced an ordinance to direct funds from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation to paint the Pulse Bus Rapid Transit bus-only lanes red.

“With this ordinance, we’ll join other pioneering cities in using red lanes to help complete our streets, building a safer and more efficient transit system for our riders,” said Mayor Stoney.

The pavement of the transit-only lanes will be painted red, either solid or hatched, starting with the stretch of Broad Street between Thompson Street and Foushee Street. At peak travel, approximately 14 buses per hour use that section of the major thoroughfare.

Red lanes have two key benefits: route efficiency and pedestrian safety. Clearly marked, bright red lanes help drivers understand when they must vacate a bus lane, which improves bus arrival times. The clear red markings also indicate to pedestrians that the traffic flow is different from other lanes, inspiring extra caution.

The grant funds were secured by the city’s Office of Equitable Transit and Mobility, led by longtime transit professional Dironna Moore Clarke.

“Complete streets lead to safer, faster, better transit,” said Clarke. “As we seek to build out a truly multimodal network, the red bus lanes along the Pulse route will serve as a model for other key corridors.”

A combination of city funds and the state grant will make this project possible. The state will reimburse the city over $1.6 million for the project, and the city is allocating $413,452 from the Department of Public Works Central Virginia Transportation Authority special fund account.  

Project completion is planned for Spring 2022.

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