Creating the foundation to fulfill mobility goals and support growing demand for bus service, the Greenville Transit Authority opened a state-of-the-art operations and maintenance facility at 205 Arcadia Drive.
City, county, state and federal officials gathered for a ribbon cutting, celebration and tour on Dec. 18. The new facility, which sits on 26 acres, doubles the capacity for bus maintenance and provides 16 electric bus chargers, a natural gas fueling station and regular gas and diesel pumps. The bus terminal located downtown at 100 W. McBee Ave. will continue to operate as the hub.
“This is one of great successes of the last 10 years for Greenville County,” said Mayor Knox White. “Ridership is up more than 30 percent since COVID. We know our citizens and those in the county rely on Greenlink to get them to work, the grocery store and medical appointments. This upgrade allows Greenlink to meet demand.”
The facility replaces a small, aging maintenance shop on Augusta Street. The property is currently for sale.
“As Greenville grows, we need to be prepared to add more buses and more bus service. The maintenance facility on Augusta Street would not meet those needs,” said Greenlink Director James Keel.
Plans include implementation of 30-minute routes and Sunday service. Neither will be possible without recruitment and retention of drivers and mechanics. The larger bays for repairs and new charging stations for natural gas buses provide better working conditions.
“Now, all we have to do is just pull straight in or back straight in and we can get four, maybe five buses in here at a time, to get these things back up and running and get them back out on the street quicker,” Maintenance Technician Derek Masquelier said.
The new buildings also include multiple break rooms, outdoor seating and trails, a fitness center and a quiet room.
“If a driver is working a split shift, the quiet room is a space where they can clock out, relax and decompress,” Keel said. “When designing this facility we were mindful of the physical and mental health of our drivers.”
The GTA Operations and Maintenance Facility put dispatchers, administrators and mechanics and drivers in the same location, allowing for better communication, coordination and problem-solving. The campus includes a pavilion, playground and open space that were constructed for neighbors to enjoy.
Greenlink currently has 42 buses in its fleet. Six of them run on natural gas.
Visit https://ridegreenlink.com/ for more information.
Written by the City of Greenville.