Moscow and University of Idaho transportation systems will merge into one with the construction of an Intermodal Transit Center (ITC) this summer.
The project is in phase two, which focuses on finalizing designs and getting ready to start construction on UI’s blue lot 60, said Bill Belknap, Moscow’s director of city development.
“The ITC will be the central location for the Moscow Valley Transit (MVT) and UI parking and facilities offices,” Belknap said. “It will also be home to bus parking for private and public operators and provide a covered, public waiting area with restrooms and lockers for passengers.”
Belknap said this is a beneficial collaboration between UI and Moscow because all facilities will be located in one central hub. MVT’s current offices are located in Lewiston and the buses park at the fairgrounds because there are no local designated parking areas.
“We wanted to provide the community with a greater sense of presence and better public transportation services,” Belknap said. “The location offers a central place for the city, the university and the regional services to connect and deliver its passengers.”
Funding for the project came from a $1.5 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER II) grant. The project also received $436,106 from the Federal Transit Administration’s transit capital investment program and $182,560 from the city of Moscow, according to the Phase I final report document. Belknap said UI also contributed about $200,000 in funding, totaling the project budget at around $2.2 million.
Director of UI Parking and Transportation Carl Root said the installment of the ITC will eliminate 50 to100 parking spaces from lot 60.
“This will be a positive addition to our campus,” Root said. “With UI and the city working together on the ITC to provide a central location for the MVT, university transportation as well as provide a location for the regional services, it’s beneficial for everyone.”
Belknap said the partnership between the university and the city’s transportation systems are one of the unique aspects about the project, and that it was an important collaboration of the two services.
“A lot of the riders are largely students, so with combining UI with the city’s transportation it helps reduce the overlapping of the two services,” he said. “Over long term this will be an important service to the students at UI and the city of Moscow.”
The ITC was designed by Design West architecture in Pullman and will be completed by December 2012 or January 2013.
Belknap said the focus of the entire project was on the community and how the ITC can create a better connection and basis for public transportation.