KENNEWICK, Wash. – Ben-Franklin Transit (BFT) is set to hold multiple open houses for the rest of the year to hear from community members about it’s services.
These open houses are in preparation for BFT’s 2025 Annual Service Plan, a policy established in 2021 by the board of directors to improve upon the organization’s efficiency and reliability.
Gabe Martin, BFT’s Manager of Transit Planning, said that the goal of these open houses are to learn about the public’s opinions of their operations. Martin also says it’s a great opportunity to tell the public of their upcoming plans.
“So we’re looking at as many cost effective solutions as we can find…and we’re hoping to get those implemented pretty soon,” said Martin.
Those cost effective solutions include mobile ticketing systems and real-time arrival stats for busses and bus stops. Martin also said that they’ll be introducing the public to new rides and routes.
“These are a commuter-focused express routes… that will get you between Kennewick and Richland and Richland and Pasco a lot faster than than what we’re doing right now,” said Martin.
Brittney Archibald, BFT’s Community Relations and Social Media Manager, said she’s excited to see what new routes will be added to the existing zone, especially with the number of riders they currently have.
“We do about 10 to 11-thousand boarding’s per weekday… at any given time on a weekday we have about 55 busses out en route,” said Archibald.
Archibald also mentioned that they are closing in at nearly 12,000 daily riders, a large milestone for BFT.
To learn more about BFT’s Annual Service Plan, or to find out what other days are available to attend the meetings, click here.
