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The city of Brownsville is scheduled to get 30 new bus shelters.

Construction is scheduled to begin in November and is expected to be completed in either June or July 2023.

The addition of the new bus shelters was discussed and approved at a May 3 city commission meeting.

“We understand the need for additional bus shelters. The City has a couple hundred bus stops and we are prioritizing shelters as quickly as possible. We had eight new much-needed shelters go up recently in the Southmost area and will be constructing 30 more this coming year” said Brownsville Mayor Trey Mendez.

A view of a bus stop along McDavitt Boulevard and Roosevelt Street as the City of Brownsville prepare to add new bus shelters for passengers throughout the city. (Miguel Roberts/The Brownsville Herald)

Some of the new bus shelter locations include at Hortencia Boulevard and 30th Street, FM 802 and Valley Resaca Palms Apartments, Alton Gloor Boulevard outside Walmart, the Frontage Road near Sams Club, 1304 and 1101 Central Boulevard and McDavitt Boulevard and Roosevelt Street.

“We are currently looking to improve 30 sites throughout the city and looking at these sites. They have no shelters or amenities. We looked at the top highest ridership in areas that had right-of-way access to identify which sites we would be installing bus shelters,” said Gennie Garcia, deputy director, for the Multimodal Transportation Department.

The city has 600 bus stops and of that number 100 have shelters. The new coverings will be 5-feet-by-10-feet prefabricated bus shelters.

Garcia said some of the benefits of having bus shelters is to protect the bus riders from harsh weather conditions and have lighting in them for safety reasons.

The solar powered bus shelters will include benches, USB chargers, solar lighting, advertising space and a space to identify a passenger’s route map and bus schedule times.

The new bus shelters will have sidewalks, ADA ramps and concrete pads.

A mother and daughter wait together at a bus stop for the arrival of a Brownsville Multimodal Transportation Bus along Central Boulevard as the City of Brownsville prepare to add new bus shelters for passengers throughout the city. (Miguel Roberts/The Brownsville Herald)

Each city commission district will get between six to eight bus shelters, Garcia said. They consist of residential and commercial areas.

District One Commissioner Nurith Galonsky said the new bus shelters will make bus riders’ wait times more comfortable and pleasant.

“I’m glad that B-Metro is constantly striving to improve their customers’ experience,” Galonsky said.

Eight bus shelters were installed earlier this year along Southmost and International Boulevard.

The cost of the project is estimated at $1.1 million. The funding is coming from local funds, Garcia said.

The contract was awarded to EnGoPlanet Energy Solutions LLC.

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