Agenda - Council - 01/27/2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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'above and below) Architect's designs of the Burnsville Transit hub Design The primary desi~,n concept for the sta- tion was to present an inviting image of transit to the community. Transit, to be effective, must present itself as highly accessible and visible to por. ential riders. Excellent accessibility onto the site from adjacent roadway systems is vital to give Park and Ride users a travel-rime advan- tage. Visibility, along with a feeling of safety and security, provides transit users with a sense of comfort and safe~/ of their person anQ their parked vehicle. Historically, subu~an passenger stations and Park and Ride facilities have been afterthoughts in major highway projects, located on remote, remnant real estate with few opportunities to share facilities. This station is located to allow for logi- cal and direct circulation from Park and Ride parking spaces through the transit/retail area to the bus boarding bays. This passenger flow allows the retail users to capture walk-by traffic as well as keeping passengers from cross- lng bus [raffic for boarding. Buses access the site in a separated roadway system to insure minimum con- flicts between cars and pedestrians. As the bus leaves the site, a pressure-sensi- tive pavement detector system in~tiates a light signal change and allows the bus to leave on ~ts own lane and proceed direct- ly onto the interstate. This continued sep- arauon of ouses arid cars has proven (below) A fully integrated design for a mixed-use transit facility incorporatinl~ retail, commercial and housing invaluat~ie in the few months the facility has been in operation. Material selection for roadway sur- faces included rejection of standard poured-in-place concrete for concrete unit pavers. A harder and more durable product, the 3..1.8" thick pavers were used within the 'bus loop' area to insure Iow maintenance costs and ease of repair as well as their aesthetic appeal. Passengm, comlm't The fully climate.controlled environment for passengers adds a great sense of stability for the transit rider, increased levels of safety and security and addition- al opportunities to provide improved passenger information such as availal~le car and van pools, ride.sharing and revised scheduling. The 8urnsville Transit Station is a 5,600it2, two-story glass and masonry budding designed to accommodate pas- PASSENGER T E R M I r'q,~, L '95 84 sengers and provide route and schedul- ing information, a[range ride-share part- nerships, van and car-pool ·coordination, and postings for community information and events. MV'rA staff offices are Iocat- ed on the second level, which allows excellent interface opportunities between passengers and staff. Additionally, MVTA has made the facility available for use by community groups for meetings and small events. The project architect at LSA Design created a spacious, well-lit safe waiting space for riders by integrating a two- story glass curtain wall looking out toward the bus area. The facility was designed to ensure passengers' comfort by heating or air conditioning all spaces throuc[h which they pass. The 8umsville passenger terminal will service the ¢[reatest volume of passengers per day within the MVTA system, approximately 2800 of the current 5000 daily trips. The nature of the Minnesota climate dictates various levels of weather protec- tion. The entry vestibule buffers the main waiting area from cold winter winds. Both the vestibule and main waiting area will have adequate cooling in the summer. Canopy systems will connect the transit facility to retail/commercial uses to pro- vide weather protection to those who wish to shop throughout the site. Another form of weather protection is a steel canopy that extends from the main interior waiting area in two direc- tions - toward the parking area and the bus loading and unloading zone. On cool summer mornings and temperate winter mornings, passengers can wait in the sun next to the canopy before boarding the bus. The sun screens located on the south building facade sbade the entire waiting space in the summer months and allow sunlight to warm the space in the winter months. On the basis of its ridership projec- tions, the MVTA expects to see upwards of a 20 per cent increase in ridership within the next year from this station. The' MVTA Board has recently sold all residual property for development at the station and 8r~und breaking for six retail/com- mercial buildings and the 150 unit three- story housing site is scheduled for November ~995. Not only is a sustainable transit facili- ty reassuring to the future success of the MVTA, but it is also quite promising to the private enterprises who want to ride along with their success. 0