Press Releases
08/29/2016
Gov. Malloy Announces CTfastrak has Surpassed Four Million Riders
Central Connecticut's Bus Rapid Transit System Has Quickly Become Part of the Daily Routine for Traveling Throughout the Region
Click to enlarge
(HARTFORD, CT) - Governor Dannel P. Malloy today announced that CTfastrak - Connecticut's recently launched bus rapid transit system - has passed a significant milestone, having carried over four million riders since its launch on March 28, 2015. During the month of July 2016 alone, passengers rode CTfastrak buses more than 259,000 times, or over 10,000 passenger boardings on an average weekday - that's an increase of more than 23 percent over July 2015, demonstrating that usage overall in the corridor is increasing significantly.
"Transportation is critical to our future, and new options are critical to our growth as a state. It was just eleven months ago that we were celebrating the one millionth rider, and this is another exciting milestone to achieve in a relatively short period of time," Governor Malloy said. "We've clearly seen that CTfastrak has become an important means of travel for many in central Connecticut. From health care visits for senior citizens, to the daily commute for some of our most well-known corporate partners, CTfastrak has become a popular mode of travel. Students are using the bus rapid transit system to travel to Central Connecticut State University and Capital Community College, and it has also become a popular mode of travel to the XL Center in downtown Hartford. This is a great milestone that we must continue to build on. We are also seeing a rise in transit oriented development, with new real estate developments happening in towns along the system. The growth of our economy depends on a modernized, efficient transportation system. Our residents deserve nothing less than a best-in-class system that delivers progress, mitigates congestion, and creates jobs. CTfastrak is an important piece of that goal."
"We're finding that the use of public transit is quickly becoming a more frequent choice of travel," Department of Transportation Commissioner James P. Redeker said. "Our CTfastrak outreach program has made significant progress in reaching almost every population segment living, studying, and working in central Connecticut. Certainly, CTfastrak as a bus rapid transit system, which offers a pre-boarding fare payment system, next bus arrival predictions, free Wi-Fi and seven days a week, up to 21 hour a day service, has become a favorite way to go for many people."
Additional statistics about CTfastrak ridership are available online at www.ct.gov/dot/ctfastrak.
The CTfastrak bus rapid transit system provides direct service to and from Waterbury, Cheshire, Southington, Bristol, Plainville, New Britain, Newington, West Hartford, Hartford, East Hartford and Manchester with routes that take advantage of the bus-only CTfastrak roadway. The CTfastrak system offers a one-seat, no-transfer ride to many major regional employment, education, shopping and healthcare destinations as well as connections to the New Haven Line-Waterbury branch rail in Waterbury and Amtrak service in Hartford. A 4.5-mile, multi-use trail runs parallel to the CTfastrak bus-only roadway from New Britain to Newington Junction.
For information about CTfastrak, visit www.ctfastrak.com, connect via Facebook at www.facebook.com/ctfastrak or via Twitter at @ctfastrak. Route timetables are available at www.cttransit.com under the "Routes/CTfastrak" tab. The latest information on the more than 60 businesses participating in the CTfastrak Rewards program is available at www.ctfastrak.com/rewards.
- Twitter: @GovMalloyOffice
- Facebook: Office of Governor Dannel P. Malloy