How the progress on Fort George Wright Drive may or may not be effecting students routes to school.

A​ ​better​ ​road​ ​leading​ ​to​ ​SFCC​ ​is​ ​in​ ​the​ ​works​ ​and​ ​hasn’t​ ​disrupted​ ​traffic​ ​flow​ ​too​ ​much.

In​ ​addition​ ​to​ ​Fort​ ​George​ ​Wright​ ​Drive​ ​looking​ ​nicer,​ ​the​ ​estimated​ ​2.8​ ​million​ ​dollar​ ​project​ ​benefits citizens​ ​in​ ​a​ ​number​ ​of​ ​ways,​ ​including:​ ​​ ​A​ ​new​ ​off-street​ ​passenger​ ​loading​ ​platform,​ ​shelters​ ​and​ ​other passenger​ ​amenities,​ possibly​ ​WIFI,  repaved​ ​campus​ ​driveways​ ​to accommodate​ ​buses,​ ​and​ ​a​ ​new​ ​traffic signal​ ​to​ ​facilitate​ ​bus​ ​access.​ ​​ ​

The​ ​new traffic​ ​signal​ ​will​ ​be​ ​located​ ​on​ ​Elliot​ ​Drive, according​ ​to​ ​Fadeley​ ​McCall,​ ​executive​ ​assistant​ ​to​ ​the​ ​vice​ ​president​ ​of​ ​SFCC.

​“It​ ​hasn’t​ ​been​ ​too​ ​bad​ ​so​ ​far,​ ​as​ ​long​ ​as​ ​I​ ​show​ ​up​ ​early,”​ ​said​ ​Jordan​ ​Felatli,​ ​a​ ​student​ ​at​ SFCC.

Spokane​ ​Transit​ ​Authority​ ​(STA)​ ​sought​ ​to​ ​conduct​ ​a​ ​planning​ ​meeting​ ​for​ ​a​ ​new​ ​bus​ ​station​ ​at​ ​Spokane Falls​ ​Community​ ​College​ ​in​ ​response​ ​to​ ​requests​ ​from​ ​community​ ​members,​ ​including​ ​SFCC.​ ​

A​ ​planning collaboration​ ​with​ ​City​ ​of​ ​Spokane,​ ​STA, West​ ​Hills​ ​Neighborhood​ ​council​ ​and​ ​SFCC was​ ​formed​ ​to​ ​form​ ​a​ ​plan​ ​for​ ​the multi-faceted​ ​road​ ​project.

The​ ​STA​ ​corridor​ ​plan​ ​enabled​ ​the​ ​West​ ​Hills​ ​Neighborhood​ ​Council​ ​to​ ​combine​ ​their​ ​City​ ​allocations​ ​of $21,000​ ​and​ ​$60,000​ ​for​ ​the​ ​construction​ ​project.​ ​​ ​

It’s​ ​been​ ​a​ ​win-win​ ​effort​ ​for​ ​the​ ​shared​ ​interests​ ​of these​ ​entities,​ ​who​ ​met​ ​in​ ​Spring​ ​2016​ ​and​ ​developed​ ​goals:​ ​​ ​Backers​ ​assessed​ ​conditions.​ ​

They developed​ ​a​ ​vision​ ​and​ ​goals​ ​for​ ​the​ ​street​ ​project,​ ​such​ ​as​ ​identifying​ ​alternatives​ ​for​ ​a​ ​commercial​ ​busstation​ ​at​ ​Spokane​ ​Falls​ ​Community​ ​College.​ ​

Additionally,​ ​there​ ​was​ ​a​ ​need​ ​for​ ​transportation​ ​access​ ​at The​ ​Mukogawa​ ​Fort​ ​Wright​ ​Institute,​ ​as​ ​well​ ​as​ ​improving​ ​conditions​ ​for​ ​bikers​ ​and​ ​walkers.​

​Bus​ ​station design​ ​needed​ ​developing.​ ​Lastly,​ ​the​ ​station​ ​traffic​ ​layout​ ​and​ ​flow​ ​needed​ ​to​ ​be​ ​engineered.

The​ ​new​ ​bus​ ​station​ ​is​ ​a​ ​key​ ​piece​ ​of​ ​the​ ​STA​ ​corridor​ ​vision.​ ​Essentially​ ​students​ ​could​ ​more​ ​safely catch​ ​a​ ​bus.​ ​​ ​It​ ​transforms​ ​a​ ​currently​ ​auto-oriented​ ​corridor​ ​into​ ​a​ ​walkable​ ​multi-use​ ​district.​ ​

The station​ ​will​ ​improve​ ​passenger​ ​safety​ ​and​ ​comfort.​ ​Safety​ ​has​ ​been​ ​an​ ​issue,​ ​as​ ​Matthew​ ​Perez​ ​of​ ​the Communicator​ ​reported​ ​that​ ​Jordan​ ​DeWitt​ ​was​ ​injured​ ​in​ ​a​ ​collision​ ​in​ ​2014​ ​at​ ​the​ ​bus​ ​stop.​ ​​ ​

The station​ ​would​ ​also​ ​allow​ ​a​ ​larger​ ​amount​ ​of​ ​people​ ​to​ ​travel​ ​to​ ​college.​ ​It​ ​will​ ​build​ ​on​ ​Spokane​ ​street improvements​ ​and​ ​the​ ​success​ ​of​ ​the​ ​student​ ​Universal​ ​Transit​ ​Access​ ​Pass​ ​(UTAP)​ ​program.​ ​

The​ ​station supports​ ​the​ ​neighborhood’s​ ​vision​ ​for​ ​new​ ​walkable​ ​multi-use​ ​district.​ ​

Overall,​ ​the​ ​bus​ ​station​ ​will improve​ ​the​ ​efficiency​ ​and​ ​increase​ ​the​ ​safety​ ​of​ ​the​ ​transportation​ ​system.