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Main Street Bus Only Lane Opens Monday

main street bus lane map
Courtesy City of Cincinnati

Main Street in downtown Cincinnati will get a dedicated bus lane during morning and afternoon rush hours starting today.  
That means non-bus traffic will be prohibited from using the far-right lane of Main Street between Fifth and Central Parkway from 7-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m.  

It's a pilot project to help buses move faster out of Government Square and to their routes.  

Council Member P.G. Sittenfeld was supportive of the plan and will be on the first bus Monday morning that will utilize the lane.

"Most of all, (I) look forward to bringing some equity to our roads and making sure that bus rides sort of aren't treated in a second-class way," Sittenfeld said. "They deserve to get to work, get to [the] hospital, get to the grocery store with as much efficiency as everyone else."

The Better Bus Coalition worked with the city to get the proposal implemented.  

Cam Hardy with the group said they'll be monitoring the project.

"We got plenty more proposals on bus only lanes in the city," Hardy said. "If this works out then I'm pretty sure that you'll be seeing us in here more with more proposals and more data to back up the fact that this should happen."

The city's parking enforcement officers will be monitoring the bus lane to make sure it stays clear.  

The city said in a report this spring that in the afternoon alone, about 100 buses use Main Street.
 

Jay Hanselman brings more than 10 years experience as a news anchor and reporter to 91.7 WVXU. He came to WVXU from WNKU, where he hosted the local broadcast of All Things Considered. Hanselman has been recognized for his reporting by the Kentucky AP Broadcasters Association, the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists, and the Ohio AP Broadcasters.