Bus Corridor & Infrastructure Improvements on Call

Project Overview:

On-call repair and/or reconstruction of new and altered bus stops as well as parking lot and infrastructure upgrades and maintenance. Typical work included bus stops reconstruction, electronic bus signage, station wayfinding, pavement markings, sidewalk widening and reconstruction, curb ramps, traffic and pedestrian signals, and drainage.

Key Challenges Overcome:

• Finishing concrete in compliance with ADA at curb ramps, a 1/8” bump at any point along the ramp or flares required the curb ramp to be re-poured.
• Quantity of plans – RFIs were required at 75% of the completed stops, existing conditions were not as described on the plans, no utility location was completed by the designers, and if the road was on a slope greater than 4% we found that the curb ramps were incorrectly designed and did not meet ADA compliance which led to downtime.
• DigSafe – Working under existing sidewalks always presents a risk, unmarked conduit was common although most of the unmarked findings were old and unused.

Interesting Facts / Figures

• The MBTA operates at 7,500 bus stops, this project aimed to improve rider accessibility and ADA compliance at approximately 130 stops. SPS completed ADA improvements at 84 of the stops as well as a full redesign at 4 stops.