Locale El Paso, Texas, US Hubs 8 Founded 1977 Routes 59 Stops 2,873 | Service area El Paso County Annual ridership 16,501,793 (2013) Operator City of El Paso Fleet 159 Service types Transit bus, Paratransit | |
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Slogan "Save money, Save energy, Save the planet Alliance Project Amistad, County Route Transit Headquarters El Paso, Texas, United States Profiles | ||
El paso sun metro burning bus
Sun Metro Mass Transit Department, simply known as Sun Metro, is the public transportation provider that serves El Paso, Texas. Consisting of buses and paratransit service, it is a department of the City of El Paso, and the agency also serves the rest of El Paso County and Sunland Park, New Mexico. The major hub is located at the Bert Williams Downtown Santa Fe Transfer Center in the surrounding block areas in Downtown El Paso.
Contents
- El paso sun metro burning bus
- Ride sun metro
- History
- Facilities
- Brio bus rapid transit
- El Paso Streetcar
- Route list
- References
Until 1987, Sun Metro was called Sun City Area Transit (SCAT).
Ride sun metro
History
The agency was headquartered at the historic Union Depot in downtown El Paso until 2014, when it opened a new 37.5-acre (15.2 ha) facility along Montana Avenue southeast of El Paso International Airport.
Facilities
Brio bus rapid transit
Sun Metro began operating its bus rapid transit system, named Brio, on October 27, 2014, serving the Mesa Street corridor (part of State Highway 20) between Downtown El Paso and the Westside Transfer Center in Northwest El Paso. The frequency of Brio buses range from 10 minutes during weekday rush hours to 15 minutes mid-day from Monday to Friday, and 20 minutes on Saturdays; buses do not run on Sundays or holidays. The line uses 22 purpose-built curbside stations with shelters, ticket vending machines for pre-boarding payment, and real-time arrival information. The 8.6-mile-long (13.8 km) route runs in mixed traffic, but does use transit signal priority. The Brio fleet consists of 60-foot-long (18 m) branded New Flyer Xcelsior articulated buses powered by compressed natural gas, able to carry 72 total passengers and feature on-board WiFi, interior bike racks, and passenger information monitors. The project cost $27.1 million to implement, using local funds and a Federal Transit Administration grant.
Sun Metro plans to open its second Brio route in 2016, extending the system to Mission Valley via Alameda Avenue at a cost of $35.5 million. Further routes on Dyer Street and Montana Avenue are planned, with the former beginning construction as early as 2017.
El Paso Streetcar
The El Paso Streetcar is a new streetcar system under construction and slated to run 4.8 miles (7.7 km) from Downtown El Paso to UTEP. Streetcars will travel north on Oregon Street, turn east at Glory Road/Baltimore, then south on Stanton Street. A downtown loop will travel east on Franklin Avenue, south on Kansas Street, west on Father Rahm, and north on Santa Fe Street. The El Paso City Council approved going forward with the project in July 2014. Construction began in late December 2015 and is projected for completion by the end of 2018. The overall project budget is $97 million. The service will use historic El Paso PCC streetcars that are being extensively refurbished.