Yuma mayor talks 10.6 million dollar transit grant
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded the City of Yuma 10.6 million dollars in funding to develop a new transportation center.
It’s a project the city has been planning for years but was ultimately held up due to a lack of funding.
The city’s plan calls to take over the old hotel del sol in the heart of downtown Yuma.
“This is something that'll be instrumental and transformative for our downtown to kind of make it connected to the rest of the county rest of the region,” said Mayor Doug Nicholls.
“For residents who you know want to come and maybe access, you know AWC or we even have routes that go even over to Imperial County. So this will be kind of that focus point which they can come together, make sure they have all the ticketing and all that figured out,” Nicholls added.
The new transit hub will feature a pedestrian pathway to the Amtrak stop and bus bays for Greyhound and Y-CAT.
It’ll also be used for taxies, private shuttles, and rideshare vehicles.
Jesus Guzman, a local student, uses the current transit stop at the hotel almost every day
“There’s sometimes that buses are broken down. It would help me a lot to get there faster to my school. It’s a pretty good thing they’re doing for us,” Guzman explained.
On the first floor of the Hotel Del Sol, the city promises it will provide better access to transportation for working people and families, all while creating more jobs downtown.
“So YCIPTA will have a desk in there, Amtrak, all those will have the ability to use the inside of the building for offices, but also ticketing. And if you've ever caught a train out of Yuma it's really really early in the morning like two or three in the morning you'd have a place indoors to stay,” the mayor added.
Mayor Nicholls says designs have already been drawn up and they plan to get the ball rolling on construction in a few months when they receive the federal funds.
