News
SARTA announces July 17 Grand Opening for new Massillon Transit Center, community is invited to join celebration that will include ribbon cutting, food & music
July 15, 2024
| Canton, Ohio – The Stark Area Regional Transit Authority (SARTA) is inviting the community to attend the official Grand Opening of the system’s new Massillon Transit Center, located at 227 Tommy Henrich Dr. NW, Massillon, OH, on Wednesday, July 17 from 10 AM to 2 PM. The new Center replaces an outmoded passenger waiting area in the downtown Hampton Inn that SARTA closed in December of 2021. According to SARTA CEO Kirt Conrad, the event will feature a ribbon cutting ceremony starting at 11 AM, two food trucks, and music provided by a Q92 DJ who will be on site from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. “Making the Grand Opening a real celebration is our way of saying ‘thanks’ to our riders, Massillon city officials, and the general public for bearing with us during the time it took to build the Center,” Mr. Conrad said. “We truly appreciate their patience, loyalty and support and we’re confident that once they see the new facility they will agree it was well worth the wait and occasional inconvenience.” The new 5,565 square-foot stand-alone building is located on a 1.5 -acre plot across from the Towne Plaza shopping center. Built at a cost of $5.1 million and funded by grants from the Ohio Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration, the facility’s contemporary design features a passenger waiting area enclosed by floor-to-ceiling glass walls with passenger access points on all four sides that will make it easy for passengers to enter and exit buses. The center has passenger restrooms, a customer service/ticket sales area, as well as a secured office and break room for SARTA employees. The site can accommodate six buses at a time and includes a 20-space parking lot and two electric vehicle charging stations. The Center, which is expected to serve 400 to 500 riders per day, will be open from 7 AM to 9 PM Monday through Friday and will be staffed by customer service representatives from 9:15 AM to 4:15 PM during that time. Mr. Conrad noted that the facility has been open since May 24 and has received rave reviews from riders and employees. “The sizeable investment we’ve made in Massillon demonstrates our unwavering commitment to ensuring that every resident of Stark County has access to safe, affordable, convenient public transportation,” Mr. Conrad commented. “From bricks and mortar, to vehicles, to state-of-the-art technology, to constantly evaluating and enhancing the service we provide, to our hydrogen fuel cell and other zero emission programs, to building an outstanding team of transit professionals, we always have and always will do whatever it takes to meet the needs of existing riders, attract new ones, and improve the quality of life in this community.” For more information, please contact SARTA CEO, Kirt Conrad, at 330-477-2782 x 522. |