ICTC adds new route from Tallgrass Apartments to campus

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Icy windshields can go unscraped and snow pants unworn since the addition of a new route to public transportation in Mount Pleasant.

The Isabella County Transportation Commission service added a Tallgrass/Mission route, which combined with other routes allows riders to access retail stores, South Mission Street and Blue Grass Road.

“This is our attempt to expand what is working for students to get to campus and also give them access to a number of other retail and governmental services, banking and all of the other things they need to get by at CMU,” said Dennis Adams, ICTC’s director of marketing and public relations.

ICTC added a new stop at Save-A-Lot, 1721 S. Mission St., and busses will stop on request at all businesses.

“We decided to pick up community members also, now that we are going into town anyway,” Adams said.

One of the main reasons for the addition of the Tallgrass route was the section of Mission Street between Preston Road and Broomfield Road, which contains several destinations previously not covered, Adams said.

The campus bus service has seen 15 percent growth since the service started in 2004. It provided 127,000 rides to three apartment complexes, Adams said.

ICTC provided 223,000 rides to nine apartment complexes over the last school year.

Some students are already enjoying the benefits of the new route.

“It’s great for getting to class and into town,” said Ohio sophomore Jacob Rhoad. “The best part is that it’s free because I would never use it if I had to pay.”

Tallgrass Apartments were the first to have a bus stop, followed by Lexington ridge.

“It took a while for people to start realizing what the real value was,” Adams said.

In the future the campus shuttle could cover the east and west areas of town and look for potential partners, Adams said. Mejier and Mid Michigan Community College have shown interest in the program.

The routes will run regularly on special days like Martin Luther King Jr. Day, exam week and spring break. There will be a modified version of the schedule in the summer.

Adams said ICTC may be able to take over school bus routes if they are ever eliminated.

“We could develop community routes that would serve that function,” Adams said.

Sterling Heights sophomore Audrey Rozell said the service has been very helpful for her.

“It is a good idea because a lot of people either don’t have cars or just don’t feel like driving in the winter on Mission because it’s so crazy,” she said.

Adams anticipates there will be timed stop routes that people can walk to in almost any city location in the next five years.

“Our partnerships with these apartments and with the university have been the key to having this thing started and moving forward,” Adams said.

Route schedules, locations and details can be accessed on the ICTC website.