Pierce Transit breaks ground on first new transit center since the 90s

Pierce Transit is building a new transit center in Spanaway, hoping that the new facility will help connect the region more closely with the rest of Pierce County.

The ceremony held Monday was attended by elected officials and local dignitaries in Spanaway, including U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell and U.S. Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland.

Most major transit services are cutting back on routes

The property, which is near Joint Base Lewis-McCord on Mountain Highway East, will include a new park-and-ride. Mountain Highway East currently has no amenities for riders or operators, with a lack of parking and the ability to serve only about 300 riders each week.

Pierce Transit spokesperson Rebecca Japhet wrote in a press release that the new transit center, the region’s first since the mid-1990s, will be the future of the Bus Rapid Transit line.

“The new transit center will serve as the southern terminus for the current Route 1 and the agency’s first Steam Bus Rapid Transit line,” Japhet wrote.

Built in two main phases

There are two main phases in the construction of the new center. Phase I will include the creation of the bus turnaround, overhead passenger shelters, a 38-car parking lot, and an operator comfort station. It is expected to be done in about a year.

Phase II increases the parking lot capacity to 250-300 parking spaces and is still being formulated.

The current plan unveiled by Pierce County Transit is shown in the map below.

Once the transit center is complete, it will service Route 1 from Spanaway to downtown Tacoma.

Japhet says this is a highly underserved area and she is excited to see that the community gets the bus service it needs to be able to go to school, work, and visit friends.

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