Four and a half years ago, the public transportation system of Norman, Okla., underwent a change in management from private – run by a university – to municipal, as the university wanted to shift its focus to exclusively campus transit.

Since that time, the city has remodeled a downtown building into a transit center. Various upgrades were made to the building, and a major route change was implemented.

While the city inherited the old bus fleet from the university, it has since replaced 17 of the 28 buses. Two of the buses are now electric, making them the first city-owned electric vehicles. The existence of the new transit center has also allowed the city to transfer municipal employees who had previously worked in leased university space.

“The transit center and route changes have been the jewel of the last four years,” Taylor Johnson, transit and parking program manager, stated.

A consultant updated the long-range transit plan in conjunction with suggestions harvested from public meetings. Many of the city routes were previously large, looped routes: Today the city has bi-directional routes, meaning that a bus leaves the transit center, runs its route, then turns around at the end of the route and comes back along the same path. This allows residents a more direct route to and from their destinations and can decrease the amount of time spent on the bus as compared to a looped route.

“We felt strongly about making the routes bi-directional,” Johnson commented. “While we did lose coverage in some areas, we see it as a choice of making transit better for the majority. Now that the transit center and route changes are implemented, I am excited to see how passengers and the community respond to them.”

As the city reviewed available properties with an eye toward creating the transit center, a council member offered an old bank building for consideration. The bank was ultimately chosen as the site. The Norman Transit Center utilizes the bank’s six drive-up bays, and buses are able to fit under the already-constructed roof. The location is on a side street but near downtown.

The seller was willing, and the city saw the situation as a great reuse option with no eminent domain concerns. The building was purchased in April 2022 and the city spent until December or January working up the design. In February 2023, a contractor was hired, and in March 2023 work began. A grand opening took place on Oct. 16, 2023.

The front area of the former bank is an indoor lobby with a seating area, and offices for transit employees are located in the back. An indoor public restroom was created, necessitating another big improvement: water access.

In order to run water lines to the old university transit center, it would have cost $30,000. The new location has a water fountain and water bottle filling station.

“We wanted to make improvements with the new transit center,” Johnson described. “The previous transfer station worked, but it was not ideal in the amenities provided. We wanted to increase the number of people using transit by giving them the amenities they wanted and deserve.”

A few issues were encountered during the remodeling process. One of the greatest was the need for remediation of asbestos. Problems also popped up after the sewer lines were reopened: Due to increased use, the already-rusted lines clogged and had to be replaced. The transit center had to be closed for about a month to replace all the pipes and install a grinder pump.

“Nothing comes easy with an older building remodel,” Johnson said. “I am thankful that we were able to work through those issues and get the transit center open for our passengers and staff.”

Funding for the projects came from a variety of sources.

Replacement of the buses was made possible through grants, as was the transit maintenance and operations facility. The center was locally funded, and the department had to request a capital budget.

The city spent approximately $1 million on the remodel, not including the purchase price. It was all done without any missed days of service.

“I am excited about how far we have come in a short amount of time and look forward to the future of transit in Norman,” Johnson said.

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