A $9.2 million federal grant will allow CENTRO to buy new buses that will be part of the upcoming Bus Rapid Transit system in the city of Syracuse.
The funding comes from a low emissions grant that was part of the Biden administration's infrastructure bill. It will allow CENTRO to purchase nine compressed natural gas buses that will be a big part of the new Bus Rapid Transit, or BRT system.
"They will be different than the buses that are on the road today," said Christopher Tuff, CENTRO CEO. "So if you're a customer that's waiting at one of our unique BRT stops along James Street, you will see that that's a BRT bus coming my way. You'll know the difference, you'll see the difference, and identify that that's the bus I need to be on."
Tuff said the new buses will be more like a New York City subway car than a bus.
"It'll have different amenities, so it'll have real-time infotainment screens on the bus, almost like the subway in New York City does," Tuff said. "So the buses already announce the next stop, but this will give you real-time information of the next stop, some advertisements, some posts. It'll also have state-of-the-art fare technology collection system, and the front end of the buses will look a little bit different, called the BRT package for the design."
CENTRO has been working on this BRT system since 2018. It creates an X-shaped route through the city where buses will move on an express lane, creating faster, more frequent service on the main corridors in the city of Syracuse.
"Essentially, if you look at New York City, you have the local train and you have the express train," said Tuff. "This is the express train."
