This month, the Raleigh City Council has moved forward with adding much nicer bus shelters to our existing system. This was a result of a design competition that was held a few years ago. The design has changed since the competition but the result is still a stark difference from our current design.

You may have already seen the concept shelters as some are installed outside of the NC Museum of Art. Now, we’ll be seeing more around the city.

The video above from the March 3 council meeting has the history and latest discussion on this topic.

From the beginning, finding a way to elevate the GoRaleigh brand was important. Bus shelters can be seen as the “front door” to transit so the difference between the current shelter and this new one helps show a greater commitment to transit by our city.

Last year, the council lowered the requirement (based on daily riders) for a bus stop to get a shelter installed. That change made about 200 stops now eligible for a bus shelter. The city hopes to have this built out by 2023. That would mean that 85% of riders would have access to a shelter.

The use of the new shelter would result in a 14.6% increase in the cost to install a bus shelter. ($28,300 vs. $24.700, based on averages)

I think they look great and the branding behind them is worth the extra cost.