Detroit Department of Transportation (DDOT), Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) and the City of Southfield have been working closely for several months to develop a plan that will end bus service to Northland Mall and relocate 12 bus routes to nearby area bus stops. The impacted routes include the 16 Dexter, 17 Eight Mile, 22 Greenfield, 46 Southfield , 23 Hamilton, 60 Evergreen, 400 Orchard Ridge, 405 Northwestern, 415 Greenfield, 420 Southfield, 710 Nine Mile and 851 WB/FH Park & Ride.
These changes will take place between September 2 and September 4, 2017. Riders should also note that DDOT and SMART will operate a Sunday schedule on Labor Day, Monday September 5. New routing for both systems will be in full effect that day.
Northland Mall closed in 2015. With the uncertainty of what could happen with the vacant mall space, DDOT & SMART joined together to conceive a proactive plan that would smoothly and safely relocate bus stops at Northland Mall to several nearby locations. While no one transit hub is taking the place of Northland, all new bus stop locations are in well lighted, central locations with great visibility. This move has provided DDOT the opportunity to expand bus service to new destinations like Oakland Community College, Providence Hospital, Meijer Shopping Plaza and 10 mile and Evergreen, an intersection DDOT has never connected to previously.
“This relocation plan is a result of our riders and drivers telling us what we needed to do. Our goal was to minimize transfers and get people where they need to go as quickly as possible. We believe DDOT and SMART staff has done that. I encourage customers to let us know how we can improve this service in the future, said Dan Dirks, Director of the Detroit Deparment of Transportation.”
DDOT and SMART will hold 3 community meetings announcing the service changes to the public. The meeting dates are as followed:
• Tuesday, August, 29th, from 6:00 – 7:30pm – Oakland County Community College, 22322 Rutland Dr, Southfield, MI 48075 (Southfield Campus)
• Wednesday, August 30th, from 10:00am – 12:00pm – Rosa Parks Transit Center, 1310 Cass Ave, Detroit, MI 48226
• Thursday, August 31st 6:00 – 7:30pm – Northwest Activities Center 18100 Meyers Rd, Detroit, MI 48235
DDOT & SMART riders are encouraged to attend one of three meetings to receive all necessary information regarding the changes.
DDOT has committed to opening their customer service lines on Saturday, September 2 from 7am – 1pm to take any questions riders may have regarding the changes. Normal customer service hours are 6am – 6pm, Monday – Friday. DDOT’s customer service can be reached at 313-933-1300. Additionally, DDOT staff members and volunteers will be stationed in the Northland area starting August 25th until September 8th, helping riders get comfortable and acclimated to the new routing changes.
In addition to the Northland routing changes, riders can also expect to see significant service level improvements to the 19 Fort, 27 Joy and 29 Linwood bus routes, effective September 2017. For all information on upcoming DDOT service changes, please visit www.ridedetroittransit.com.
For questions or for interview requests, please contact DDOT Marketing Manager, Nicole Simmons at 313-670-1687 or Simmonsn@detroitmi.gov.
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