A Transportation Plan for the Greenleaf Terrace Neighborhood

Goal 4: Public transit is a convenient and efficient transportation alternative
for neighborhood residents and is linked to pedestrian and bicycle routes.
Public transportation is an important component of urban life; just like walking and
biking, it provides an alternative means of transportation to the automobile, especially for
those that either do not have access to or are unable to utilize other modes. While survey
results indicate that a small percentage of Greenleaf Terrace residents currently take
advantage of the Charlottesville Transit Service (CTS) bus route that serves the
neighborhood, many surveyed residents indicated that they might use the service more
frequently if it were made more convenient. The same residents also cited the current
lack of service to the University of Virginia campus as a major disincentive toward bus
usage.
Because of the nature of public mass transit, the bus can not reasonably visit every street
in the neighborhood as it circulates on its route. The current route through the
neighborhood serves most residents well, although the majority of them may have to
walk 1 to 2 city blocks to reach a bus stop. This is not a issue as long as the walk or bike
ride to the bus stop is made safely on sidewalks and with safe street crossings. Many of
the improvements under Goal 1 are therefore strongly tied to making public transit
service more accessible to Greenleaf Terrace residents.
Objective 4.1: Modify current route 3B to include service to UVA campus
The 2007 alteration to CTS route 3B that resulted in the drop of direct service to the
UVA campus is consistently cited as a reason for discontinuing bus patronage by
Greenleaf Terrace residents. UVA is a major employer in Charlottesville as well as
attracting many thousands of students a year to its campus. Resuming direct service to
the UVA campus can only increase the use of this currently underutilized community
service. Therefore it is recommended that service to the UVA campus be added to the
existing route 3B to enable more residents in the neighborhood to use mass transit as a
means to travel to work or school.
Objective Implementation:
The City of Charlottesville, through the Charlottesville Transit Service (CTS) should
implement the creation of Route 9 as proposed for the 2009 city budget. This new route
would replace the existing route 3B and would resume service to the UVA campus while
also extending service north of the neighborhood to Grove Road.
Objective 4.2: Increase frequency of bus route navigation from every one to every onehalf
hour during peak travel times
Relatively frequent bus service is an important factor in the ability for riders to
conveniently utilize a mass transit system. Many areas in Charlottesville do not have the
levels of ridership to support 15 minute or even half-hour. Unfortunately, the need to