SMART bus service to connect suburbs to downtown Detroit

[Casual]

A new high-frequency, limited-stop bus service unveiled Wednesday will for the first time provide a direct connection to the Detroit Metropolitan Airport and also will connect Detroit’s suburbs to its downtown, the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation said in a news release.


SMART's new FAST buses debuted today at the Troy Terminal and will launch on Jan. 1, according to the statement. The name stands for Frequent Affordable Safe Transit.


The FAST Michigan route will provide direct service to the McNamara and North terminals at the airport; FAST Woodward serves Pontiac and Troy, four hospitals, the Detroit Zoo, Midtown and Downtown; and FAST Gratiot provides service to 23 Mile, Mt. Clemens, Macomb Mall, Midtown, Eastern Market and Downtown, according to the news release.


“The new FAST service will make the commute from the suburbs to downtown Detroit quicker and more convenient for riders,” SMART General Manager John C. Hertel said in the statement. “By creating a limited-stop route, we are able to streamline the service and provide better commuting options to help connect people to work, school, medical facilities, shopping and the growing entertainment district that downtown Detroit has to offer.”

The Free Press reported in early December about SMART’s plans to launch express routes that would run on Woodward, Gratiot and Michigan avenues and replace the RefleX bus service, a limited-stop service with buses that run every 45 minutes during peak hours.


The FAST Gratiot and Woodward routes will run every 15 to 20 minutes, and FAST Michigan buses will run every 30 minutes, according to maps provided by SMART. There would be lower frequency on nights and early mornings on all routes.

Stops will be located about every mile, and riders are only able to board and deboard at official FAST stations, according to the news release.


The FAST Michigan route will run from 5 a.m. to midnight, and FAST Gratiot and Woodward will both run from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m.


A one-way fare is $2 and transfers are 25 cents, according to the release. Service on the FAST bus routes will be free from Jan. 1-15, said SMART spokeswoman Beth Gibbons.


For route maps and more information, go to http://on.freep.com/2l9VY9J.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...ort/984975001/

[EGrant]

That is amazing. An Uber trip to downtown that might cost $40, is now $2? Transfer for $.25 and go pretty much anywhere in the suburbs?

A+

[SammyS]

Good deal and perfect for events

[Bham1982]

That is amazing. An Uber trip to downtown that might cost $40, is now $2? Transfer for $.25 and go pretty much anywhere in the suburbs?
A+

How is taking a bus remotely comparable to Uber?

And these bus routes already exist. All they're doing is eliminating stops.

[casscorridor]

How is taking a bus remotely comparable to Uber?

And these bus routes already exist. All they're doing is eliminating stops.

The frequency is every 15 minutes throughout the day. Not bad. And less frequent buses mean faster travel times. I'd say this is definitely an improvement over what currently exists [[the "Reflex").

[dtowncitylover]

And these bus routes already exist. All they're doing is eliminating stops.

A Michigan express route does not exist [[until now). The 125 route pales in comparison to anything like this and is a joke of any airport to downtown service.

[professorscott]

A Michigan express route does not exist [[until now). The 125 route pales in comparison to anything like this and is a joke of any airport to downtown service.

This is all good. I'm happy to see SMART take up the challenge of providing decent, frequent, reasonably fast access to downtown Detroit from distant points. I think this will prove to be a popular service, and will give people something to think about the next time a vote on support for the RTA comes up. The sales pitch then will be, the SMART service, but with some amenities to make it even faster.

[stasu1213]

I will be able to go to a Pistons, Red Wings, or a Tigers might game without worrying about paying for parking

[dtowncitylover]

RefleX was great but since the Woodward route was run by DDOT, I couldn't use it as much as I'd like because I always needed exact change and they didn't accept SMART passes. Yes, I could've bought a DDOT pass but logistically it wasn't easy. I tried once but the CVS on Warren didn't sell the one I wanted. Now I can buy a SMART pass at the ROTC and keep it on me for the FAST service.

SMART and DDOT need to sell their passes throughout the metro region.

[Cincinnati_Kid]

Anything is a improvement over what we currently have. Detroit still needs to come out the Stone Age, and get on board with a Rapid Transit System.

[emu steve]

Wow, and remember the story of the Detroit resident who walked every day to work in Pontiac [[I think).

Now he could have a really nice bus ride.

[[BTW, I believe he has a nice car to ride thanks to the generosity of some people after his story became public).

[Jimaz]

Wow, and remember the story of the Detroit resident who walked every day to work in Pontiac [[I think).

Now he could have a really nice bus ride.

[[BTW, I believe he has a nice car to ride thanks to the generosity of some people after his story became public).

That was such an inspirational story. That was James Robertson and he worked [[works?) in Rochester Hills.

Heart and sole: Detroiter walks 21 miles in work commute

Every trip is an ordeal of mental and physical toughness for this soft-spoken man with a perfect attendance record at work.

'Walking man' settles into new life, friends, waist size

Like a lottery winner, his life changed almost overnight: From commuting 21 miles a day on foot to driving a new car — and from fending off feisty pals in an urban rooming house to kicking back in a suburban apartment all his own.

Likewise, James Robertson suddenly had a pile of unearned cash — about $360,000. It poured into three GoFundMe pages on the Internet and kept coming, 24/7, until the humble factory worker said after a week "that’s enough” and the pages were shut down.

That guy's a legend. We need more stories like that.

[Gsgeorge]

For anyone interested, here is a handy downtown map of stops and transfers. Shoot, Detroit is starting to have some semblance of a real transit system. I welcome these new routes and they are a logical progression of the Reflex service. This is opening just in time for Auto Show, I'd be curious to see how many people take it to/from the airport.

[Danny]

Now that's the real Reflex bus service.

[professorscott]

For anyone interested, here is a handy downtown map of stops and transfers. Shoot, Detroit is starting to have some semblance of a real transit system. I welcome these new routes and they are a logical progression of the Reflex service. This is opening just in time for Auto Show, I'd be curious to see how many people take it to/from the airport.

GSGeorge,

Who made that map?! That's marvelous!!

[stasu1213]

It was said that the reason why SMART had ceased coming in and out of the city of Detroit after 6pm was for the Detroit City Council had stopped the services so that suburban commuters would be forced to catch the slow unrealiable DDOT. I had used SMART for 30 years and continually for the past 20 years. The services of SMART had declined in the past 5 to almost 10 years. Busses not showing on time and often late. Bus drivers holding continual unserviced like conversations with passengers who stand next to him distracting his attention from the road. It was reported that some of DDOT's drivers had came over to SMART bringing their bad work habits with them. Detroit need a realiable transit service to make it more attractive to millennials and those who don't want to drive their cars or don't care to own a car. There is going to be one last battle from the car corporations and other entities that benefit from the car. Hopefully if Amazon choose Detroit as it second home it would lobby local and statewide lawmakers for better regional transit for Michigan as well as Detroit

[Gsgeorge]

GSGeorge,

Who made that map?! That's marvelous!!

It’s from the SMART website; the full route maps are also posted here:
https://www.smartbus.org/About/News/...ls-New-Service

Looks like maybe there are some younger, more progressive voices at SMART who are trying to match what is considered pretty standard in other large and midsize cities. Or at least someone who knows how to design a clean, decent transit map.

[mtburb]

Today was the first day of operation for these new lines. Who on this forum has ridden it yet or at least seen one of their buses?

And I agree with that one person a few posts ago on wondering if it will be heavily used during the Auto Show.

[professorscott]

It was said that the reason why SMART had ceased coming in and out of the city of Detroit after 6pm was for the Detroit City Council had stopped the services so that suburban commuters would be forced to catch the slow unrealiable DDOT.

I can't go into too much detail because I don't have the authority to speak for SMART, but I can say unequivocally that this is not true. Just for starters, the Detroit City Council does not operate SMART and cannot tell it what to do or not do, just as suburban communities cannot prevent DDOT from operating in their communities if it wants to.

The old modus operandi, pre-SMART service cuts, where the SMART buses would enter Detroit all day and night but not pick up inbound passengers within the city and not drop off outbound passengers within the city, was based on an agreement between Detroit and SMART's board of directors, but that is an old, stale document and I don't think it has any weight anymore.

[stasu1213]

I can't go into too much detail because I don't have the authority to speak for SMART, but I can say unequivocally that this is not true. Just for starters, the Detroit City Council does not operate SMART and cannot tell it what to do or not do, just as suburban communities cannot prevent DDOT from operating in their communities if it wants to.

The old modus operandi, pre-SMART service cuts, where the SMART buses would enter Detroit all day and night but not pick up inbound passengers within the city and not drop off outbound passengers within the city, was based on an agreement between Detroit and SMART's board of directors, but that is an old, stale document and I don't think it has any weight anymore.

DDOT complained that SMART was picking up DDOT riders who ere waiting and hour or so for a never or slowly arriving DDOT bus especially on the Jefferson line that's if the ride who were waiting in the Detroit side of the border was going downtown. It was told that the Mayor and or council had stopped SMRt from entering the city after 6 pm. This was in 2011 or 2012

[DetroitSoldier]

I took the 462 FAST from Phoenix Center in Pontiac to Downtown Detroit this morning. We left at 7:05 and arrived at 8:03. This is only slightly slower than the same route in a privately owned vehicle. I drove this route with my car last week in 48 minutes.

There were only about 6 people riding in the burbs. Then when we got to the city we started picking up random people every mile or so. This goes against my understanding of a limited or express route. Even so, this line was fast and on time. When the full fare hits, getting from Pontiac to Downtown Detroit in just an hour for 2 bucks will be a great win for commuters. Overall my first experience was a good one.

[Wesley Mouch]

Bravo SMART.

[dtowncitylover]

Then when we got to the city we started picking up random people every mile or so. This goes against my understanding of a limited or express route.

The FAST routes have more stops than the RefleX routes, even in the suburbs. I know they added 12 Mile and 10 Mile/696, specifically. But still fewer stops/pick-up locales than the regular routes.

[MicrosoftFan]

Will there be a Downriver FAST route in the future? Possibly down Fort/Jefferson?

[Gsgeorge]

So I happened to see an interesting sight at Woodward & Mack today... The QLine, being passed by a SMART bus, which was in front of a DDOT bus, which was in front of the Reflex bus, which was in front of a FAST bus. It honestly just looked like a sad mess. Why do we get so many flimsy band-aids, when we so desperately need open-heart surgery?