SARTA to host grand opening for new Massillon Transit Center

MASSILLON − The Stark Area Regional Transit Authority will host a grand opening for its new Massillon Transit Center at 227 Tommy Henrich Drive NW from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday.

The event will feature a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11 a.m., two food trucks, and music provided by a Q92 DJ from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

“Making the grand opening a real celebration is our way of saying ‘thanks’ to our riders, Massillon city officials, and the general public for bearing with us during the time it took to build the Center,” SARTA CEO Kirt Conrad said in a prepared statement. “We truly appreciate their patience, loyalty and support, and we’re confident that once they see the new facility, they will agree it was well worth the wait and occasional inconvenience.”

The $5.1 million center replaces a waiting area in the downtown Hampton Inn that SARTA closed in 2021. The new 5,565-square-foot, stand-alone building is on a 1.5-acre plot across from the Towne Plaza shopping center.

Funded by grants from the Ohio Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration, the facility features a passenger waiting area enclosed by floor-to-ceiling glass walls with passenger access points on all four sides. The center has restrooms, a customer service/ticket sales area, as well as an office and break room for SARTA employees. The site can accommodate six buses at a time and includes a 20-space parking lot and two electric vehicle charging stations.

The center is expected to serve 400 to 500 riders per day, and will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday. It will be staffed by customer service representatives from 9:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. during that time. The facility has been open since May 24.

“The sizable investment we’ve made in Massillon demonstrates our unwavering commitment to ensuring that every resident of Stark County has access to safe, affordable, convenient public transportation,” Conrad said.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: SARTA to host grand opening for new Massillon Transit Center