The City of Dayton recently approved a new bus service, the West Branch Express, to provide free rides to residents of West Dayton who cross U.S. Route 35 to reach the Dayton Metro Library West Branch.
That’s because if a person living in the Pineview neighborhood, for instance, wants to walk to the Dayton West Branch library, they have to cross U.S. Route 35, which can be dangerous.
The city is launching the West Branch Express bus service in partnership with Dayton RTA and Dayton Metro Library, with support from the CareSource Foundation, which is providing $174,000 in funding for over a three-year period.
There will be six marked bus stops in the neighborhoods near the library that will take residents there for free. The neighborhoods include Pineview, Lakeview, Miami Chapel, Madden Hills and Edgemont.
Buses will make five stops in addition to the West Branch Library, including a stop at the Job Center. Weekday service will begin at 2 p.m., with the last stop at approximately 5:45 p.m.
Lamonte Hall Jr., assistant to the City Manager, said the new bus service is just a step in addressing community concerns.
“Really, the goal of this program is safe passage to the library, because those persons that live south of the West Branch Library have to cross the U.S. Route 35, which is a six lane highway with a 50 mile per hour posted speed.” Hall Jr. said.
Hall also said before the library opened in 2022, the city estimated about 10 people crossed the highway per day. Now, about 50 people cross the intersection between Abbey Avenue and U.S. Route 35 per day.
“We're seeing a lot of youth that are accessing the library or crossing the highway. And it's just a scary sight to see the youth crossing the highway.” Hall Jr. said.
The city has attempted to make the crossing safer. It painted wider crosswalk lines, added more signage for incoming drivers nearing the crosswalk and extended the red light on the highway for pedestrians to have more time to walk across.
The service will begin July 1 and will run for 3 years. In the meantime, the city is still seeking funding for a planned pedestrian bridge over Route 35.
Alejandro Figueroa is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms.
