The effort to construct a new bus transit hub in Turlock is well underway on the triangle of land bordered by Del’s Lane, Golden State Boulevard and Hawkeye Avenue, and traffic jams from related road work are expected to conclude soon.

 “It’s moving well,” said Turlock City Manager Roy Wasden. “But it’s generating a lot of questions and it’s a little inconvenient right now.”

The new transit hub, funded entirely by federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus funds and state Prop 1B transportation funds, will feature six bus shelters, a bicycle rack, small parking area, landscaping, and lighting, while the southwest end of the lot will remain vacant for future development.

Turlock expects to wrap up street work within the next week or so, with the entire project seeing completion within five months.

The street work will see the intersection of Del’s Lane and Golden State Boulevard gain a traffic signal, so busses can more easily make a left from southbound Golden State Boulevard onto Del’s Lane and into the hub. The Golden State Boulevard median was also torn down, south of Hawkeye Avenue, to allow for installation of two, longer left-turn lanes – construction which required the removal of at least three large redwood trees, Wasden said.

Removal of the trees was “unavoidable” to widen the turn lane, Wasden said. The new double turn-lanes are expected to improve safety, eliminating the common issue where cars stacked up past the queue and blocked traffic on the through lanes, while also allowing more room for busses to maneuver.

The new transit hub will be directly adjacent to the current transit hub, which forces passengers to transfer on Del’s Lane itself, with busses making use of the wide bike lane to conduct transfers in the street without blocking traffic. That arrangement is dangerous for drivers and passengers alike, according to the city.

The new hub will create a shaded place where all busses from the Bus Line Service of Turlock, Stanislaus County’s Stanislaus Regional Transit, and Merced County’s The Bus will stop. The single transfer point will allow riders to travel across the two counties easily – and safely – moving from one bus to another.

“We think it will be a great addition to the community,” Wasden said. “It’s creating some hardships for people driving through and some businesses right there, but it should be good when it’s done.”

To contact Alex Cantatore, e-mail acantatore@turlockjournal.com or call 634-9141 ext. 2005.