City and transit officials cut ribbon on new bus station downtown
The Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority held a ribbon-cutting ceremony the afternoon of Friday, June 30, for its long-awaited MAX Birmingham Central Station, located on Morris Avenue and 18th Street South.
About 125 transit riders, BJCTA staff and other officials gathered for a ceremony held in a covered area outside the facility.
“This is a glorious day” and a “rebirth for public transit in the city,” said BJCTA executive director Barbara Murdock.
She called the new station – along with the larger intermodal transportation terminal set to open on Morris Avenue between 18th and 19th streets south – a “game changer.”
Murdock said that the new bus terminal, which has been in operation since June 19, has new technology, including large video displays and Wi-Fi.
Mayor William Bell recounted some tense times immediately after he became mayor in 2010 when he was informed by city engineer Andres Bittes that the city was within days of losing the federal funding that was to help build the new intermodal facilities.
The city, the BJCTA and other partners – working together – were able to act quickly to create a new proposal and salvage those crucial federal dollars, according to the mayor.
Bell also noted that the city had to pay the federal government only about $150,000 as a penalty for tearing down the previous bus terminal, which had also been built using federal money and had not been in place for very long. The figure mentioned at first was about $13 million.
“God moved his hand over this project,” Bell said.
Birmingham City Council President Johnathan Austin called the bus station “a great facility” and said there were other great things happening or in the works for transit in the city, including recently launched circulator buses and a planned bus rapid transit system.
Transit “is about connecting people to resources and to jobs, abut providing access to those who need it most,” Austin said.
He said that he hopes the day will come when people look at transit in the city as a preferred “first option.”
Council President Pro Tem Steven Hoyt praised the contributions of the entire city council to the project.
He also celebrated the potential economic impact of better mass transit in the area.
“This is a great day for Birmingham and for Alabama, because transit in Birmingham will make a difference in the region and the state,” he said
Transit rider Marva Douglas told attendees that the station represents real progress but that she wants transit users to continue to push political leaders to seek the funding necessary for Birmingham buses running “every 15 minutes around the clock.”
Murdock said the remainder of the intermodal facility, which will serve as the new stop for Amtrak trains, will be open in August.
The entire facility, including BJCTA executive offices, should be complete by September, she said.