By Brenda Wintrode

Bus riders outside the College Park Metro station Wednesday weren’t sure where to wait for their bus. Construction began on Sept. 1 to rearrange the bus loop on the station’s east side to make way for the incoming Purple Line light rail train. All bus stops have been temporarily relocated along River Road. The project is one of six Purple Line construction sites that will impact commuters traveling through College Park this school year.

(Map of College Park bus loop reconfiguration project. Source: PurpleLineMD.com)

Standing in front of what she believed was bus shelter “T2,” Johns Hopkins professor Mary Habeck hoped she was in the right place. 

“There’s no route map. I want to know where the buses go,” said Habeck. 

Yuru Huang, a researcher who works near the station, had the same problem. She paced River Road looking back and forth from Google Maps on her phone to the red signs of all seven bus shelters before settling on the same stop as Habeck. She said more signs would have been helpful.

Metro Bus operator David Boynes said he stops at River Road once a day and gets asked directions by at least one person. Today it was two. 

Each bus shelter has a pole next to it with a red sign at the top noting the shelter name and which buses stop in front of it. Signs explaining the nine-month project are hung on the fence bordering the work area as are signs directing bus riders to River Road. Despite the various signs and posters, the changes prove challenging to some.

Greg Sanders, vice president of Purple Line Now, a coalition of businesses and civic organizations that advocates for the light rail project, said that construction is “always going to be hard and disruptive,” but agreed there is room for improvement.

“We need more signs. We need better signs,” said Sanders.

He added that students and faculty will experience greater flexibility in their transportation options because the light rail will connect them to MARC, Metro and Amtrak trains and bus routes. He encourages students, faculty and the larger College Park community to report any confusion to the state on the PurplelineMD.com website.

Jayleen Casimiro, 17, takes the College Park Metro buses frequently and said the construction is “a little annoying and confusing, but not anything unbelievably annoying.”

Olabimpe Bannjoko, a Laurel resident, sat in the temporary “T1” bus shelter made of wood. Bannjoko is visually impaired and finds her way with a cane. She rides the bus twice a week and heard about the changes from Metro officials who were at the station handing out leaflets before the project started. She said she had no issues finding her stop.

While she described her commute, two women pushing a toddler in a stroller asked Bannjoko for directions to their bus. Familiar with more than just her route, Bannjoko directed them to wait at the bus shelter across the street. 

The Purple Line is owned by the Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration. MDOT MTA formed a public-private partnership with Purple Line Transit Partners “to design, build, operate, and maintain the light rail system for 35 years,” according to the MDOT MTA website. The 16.2 miles of light rail will link 21 stops through the northern parts of Prince George’s and Montgomery counties. Five of the stops will be located in College Park. 

When can students expect to ride the Purple Line? Gary Witherspoon, the Assistant Director of Public Outreach and Communications for the Purple Line, said the goal is to have “substantial operations underway in late 2022.” Witherspoon also confirmed some good news for students and employees of the university will ride for free when they use any of the five stations that serve the University of Maryland. 

Stories Beneath the Shell requested comment from MDOT MTA on the confusion at the River Road bus stops, but a response was not received prior to press time.

Car riders using the College Park Metro station over the next nine months are directed to park in the Park and Ride garage. Bikers will have access to bike racks during construction, but bike lockers have been permanently removed. 

Sign up for construction-related updates specific to College Park on PurpleLineMD.com to learn more about all six construction zones in and around the campus.